Shatili

Shatili is a fortified village of flat-roofed stone towers and houses built against each other on a slope above the Argun River, at about 1,400 m in Khevsureti, near the border with Chechnya. Some 60 towers form one connected complex that worked as both village and fortress, with passages and ladders linking the houses. It is one of the best-preserved tower villages in the Caucasus. Most residents left during the Soviet period, and today a few families live here in summer and run guesthouses in restored towers.

Getting here is part of the experience. The road from Zhinvali climbs through Barisakho to the Datvisjvari Pass at 2,676 m and then drops steeply into the Argun valley; much of it is gravel, and the pass is usually closed by snow from October to May. Spend at least one night so you can walk to the Anatori crypts, about 2.5 km away, and drive to the ruined tower village of Mutso, about 12 km further on.

Shatili's towers were built and rebuilt over centuries as defences against raids from the North Caucasus, and the village controlled the route along the Argun gorge. Families lived, stored food and sheltered livestock inside the connected buildings. In the Soviet period many Khevsurs were moved to the lowlands and the village emptied. Since the 2000s several towers have been restored, many of them as guesthouses.