NINE-DAY TOUR IN GEORGIA
1 st Day.
Meeting at the airport, transfer to the hotel, supper in the restaurant.
Overnight in Tbilisi.
2nd Day
Today you will visit the most important churches and museums of the capital of Tbilisi which was founded by Vakhtang Gorgasali in V century. You will visit Sioni Cathedral where St. Nino’s, cross is kept, (St. Nino preached Christianity in Georgia), Metekhi and Anchiskhati churches, the bridge of Peace, Puppet Theatre e.t.
You will visit The National Museum and its Gold Fund where priceless findings of different era, from bronze age (3500 – 1200 b.c.) up to XX century are exibited. Here are kept most samples of Caucausian National Culture.
Supper in the restaurant is accompanied by the national folklore.
Overnight in Tbilisi.
3rd Day.
On this day you will visit old capital of Georgia. The city is very important for history of our country because christianity as state religion first was declared here in 326 year. Here in Mtskheta you will visit Svetitskhoveli (XI c) or the Cathedral of Twelve Apostles where The Lord’s tunic is rested in the basement. That is why Mtskheta is called the second Jarusalem. According to legend the church was built over the cedar stump that seeped aromatic oil, myrrh. Under that cedar St. Nino, who preached Christianity in Georgia, prayed.
Then you will visit the church Jvari (VIc) on the hill, from which you have a beautiful view of the old capital.
Dinner is in a restaurant in Mtskheta.
After the dinner we go to the winery “Shato Mukhrani” one of the leaders of producing Georgian wine.
The winer is in a historical site in the princes estate, governed by Bagrationi royal family. The palace and the cellars were restored and you will learn a lot about the history of the dynasty of Bagrationi, unique traditions of wine making that go back to 1878, see the famous palace, beautiful garden, exceptional cellar, stable, ultramodern winery for making premium wine. During the excursion you’ll hear an interesting story about the history of Georgian winemaking and methods of winemaking in Shato Mukhrany. The excurcion will end with tasting 4 kinds of wine and chacha (grappa). the taste of which you will never forget.
Back to Tbilisi, free time.
Overnight in Tbilisi.
4 th Day.
After breakfast we drive to West Georgia. On the way you will see Uplistsikhe,”the lord’s fortress”, an ancient rock-hewn town in eastern Georgia, some 10 kilometers east of the town of Gori, Shida Kartli. Uplistsikhe is identified by archaeologists as one of the oldest urban settlements in Georgia (1000 b.c.). Strategically located in the heartland of ancient kingdom of Kartli (or Iberia as it was known to the Classical authors), it was completely deserted in XIX c.
Then we’ll visit Stalin museum in Gori, iconic museum and most famous in Georgia.
After Gori our route is through Rikoti pass to western Georgia. There we’ll visit Gelaty Monastery. A masterpiece of the Georgian Golden Age, Gelati was founded in 1106 by King David IV of Georgia and is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Georgians have always had a knack for choosing the most superb locations for their churches and this monastery complex, on a wooded hillside 10km northeast of Kutaisi, is no exception. Beautifully situated on a forest-covered hill the Gelati Monastery complex consists of the main church (Cathedral of the Virgin), the Church of St. George (east of the main church), the Church of St. Nicholas (west of the main church), the Bell tower, the Academy Building which was founded in 1106, the South Entrance and the Chapel containing the tomb of King David Agmashenebeli (the builder). The first and most significant building built there was church of Virgin Mary the Blessed, which was finished in 1130. During the reign of Qween Tamar there were built two more churches. Gelati was not only religious centre but the largest cultural, scientific and historical centre as well.
Supper and overnight in Kutaisi – in the second largest city of Georgia.
5th Day.
In the morning we go to Kutaisi bazaar (market), an exceptional place, where you can see mountains of fruits, vegetables, greens, seasonings and spices. Find long rows of different kinds of cheese – gudi and sulguni, corn flour for gomi (porrige made with corn flower), churchkhelas of different colours and taste…
After that we are going to Svaneti, one of the most beautiful and attrective mauntainous parts of Georgia. In Mestia, the main city of Svaneti, we’ll visit Ethnographic museum. A typical Svan fortified dwelling consisted of a tower, an adjacent house and some other household structures encircled by a defensive wall. You can see a residential house (machubi) which once was two storeyed. The first floor was used for people to live and as a barn to keep their animals. The second floor was a hayloft. The house was heated by a fireplace typical for the Svaneti architecture. The food was made there too. As a rule the house was built next to the tower.
Supper and accomodation in a hotel in Mestia.
6 th Day.
After breakfast we ride in Jeep to the village Ushguli, the main place of interest in Svaneti, where the towers and houses are in better condition. Because of that the upper part of Svaneti is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Ushguli is the highest village in Europe and is surrounded by Caucasian mountains and Skhara is the highest among them (5068m.). In Ushguli we walk to the foot of the mountain Shkhara.
Then we go back to Mestia, have supper and spend night in the hotel.
7 th Day.
After breakfast we drive to the Black Sea shore, to Batumi, the capital of Autonomous Republic of Adjara. On the way we stop and have dinner in Zugdidi. In Batumi we’ll have guided excursion.
Free evening. Overnight in Batumi.
8 th Day.
After breakfast we’ll visit The Batumi Botanical Garden. There is a 108 hectare area of land 9 km north of the city of Batumi. Located at the place called Mtsvane Kontskhi (“The Green Cape”) on the Black Sea shore, it is one of the largest botanical gardens in the former Soviet Union. The Batumi Botanical Garden was started by the Russian botanist Andrey Krasnov (1862-1914), in the 1880s and officially opened on November 3, 1912. Currently, the garden consists of nine floristic sectors, those of Caucasian humid subtropics, East Asia, New Zealand, South America, the Himalayas, Mexico, Australia, and of the Mediterranean.
After seeing the Botanical Garden we go to Gonio to look at its fortress ( previously called Apsaros, or Apsaruntos), a Roman fortification in Adjara, Georgia, on the Black Sea, 15 km south of Batumi, at the mouth of the Chorokhi river. The village sits 4 km north of the Turkish border. In 1547 Gonio was taken by the Ottomans, who held it until 1878, when, via the San-Stefano Treaty, Adjara became part of the Russian empire.
By the end of excursion you can swim in the sea.
Supper is in Batumi and then we go to look at the dancing fountains.
Overnight in Batumi.
9 th Day.
Transfer to Batumi airport.
Tour package price 794 $
Services included in tour package price:
- Transfer to / from the airport;
- Accommodation in 4 * hotel 8 nights;
- Meals:
- 8 x breakfasts,
- 2 x dinners
- 6 x suppers;
- English speaking guide service;
- Transportation in modern, comfortable coaches;
- Fuel;
- Entrance tickets to the museums.
- Accommodation and food for the guide and the driver;
- One tasting of 4 kinds of wine and chacha (grappa);
- Ride in Jeep to\from Ushguli;
Services NOT included in the price:
- Air tickets;
- Travel Insurance;
- Dinner and supper except above mentioned
- Alcoholic drinks beyond tasting.