Borjomi Park Trek, Rabati and Vardzia
A three-day forest and ridge crossing of one of the largest national parks in the Caucasus, with nights in the park's tourist shelters, followed by two days of castles and cave monasteries in Samtskhe: Rabati in Akhaltsikhe, Khertvisi and Vardzia.
BorjomiPhoto: Sergey Sebelev, CC BY-SA 4.0Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park spreads over more than 100,000 hectares of fir, spruce and beech forest between the spa town of Borjomi and the hills of Imereti. Its oldest trail, named after Grand Duke Nikolai Romanov, who used these woods as a hunting estate in the late 19th century, crosses the park from south to north: up from Likani near Borjomi, over the open summit of Lomis Mta at about 2,200 m and down to the railway village of Marelisi. Over roughly 43 km you see the full range of the park, from dense forest to subalpine meadows where you may spot deer tracks, eagles and, with luck, a brown bear at a distance.
The park has simple wooden tourist shelters along the route with bunks, a stove and a toilet, and you sleep in two of them. A pack horse can carry sleeping bags and food, and your guide cooks dinner in the shelter. After the crossing a driver collects you at Marelisi and the trip turns cultural. You walk the ramparts of Rabati in Akhaltsikhe, see Khertvisi fortress on its rock and spend the last morning in Vardzia, the cave city cut into the cliffs of the Mtkvari gorge in Queen Tamar's time. Good for hikers who want a moderate challenge with a classic sightseeing finish.
Highlights
- Three days on foot across Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park
- The view from Lomis Mta over a sea of forest towards the main Caucasus
- Nights in the park's wooden mountain shelters
- Rabati Castle in Akhaltsikhe, with its mosque, church and citadel
- Khertvisi fortress above the meeting of two rivers
- Vardzia's cave churches and cells in the early morning
Tour facts
The three-day trek needs full mobility. Companions who do not hike can spend those days in Borjomi and Bakuriani, and join the group for Rabati, Khertvisi and the lower paths at Vardzia.
Places on this tour
8 places · tap any place to read its guide
- 1Tbilisi to Likani and up to the Lomismta shelter
- 2Over Lomis Mta to Sakhvlari
- 3Down to Marelisi and back to Borjomi
- 4Rabati Castle and Khertvisi
- 5Vardzia and the drive home
Day by day
01Tbilisi to Likani and up to the Lomismta shelterOvernight: Lomismta tourist shelter
Drive west from Tbilisi along the main highway and turn into the Borjomi gorge. At the park visitor centre in Borjomi your guide registers the group and pays the shelter fees. A short drive takes you to the Likani ranger station at about 930 m, where the trail begins. The path climbs through mixed forest on a steady gradient, with springs along the way and the trees thinning as you approach the ridge. The Lomismta shelter, below the summit, is your home for the night. The horse brings up the sleeping bags and food, and dinner is cooked on the stove.
02Over Lomis Mta to SakhvlariOvernight: Sakhvlari tourist shelter
Wake early for the short climb to the top of Lomis Mta, about 2,200 m, where a small chapel stands on the summit meadows. On clear mornings the main Caucasus range lines the northern horizon, and the forested ridges of the park fall away on every side. The rest of the day follows the ridge north and then drops into the forest again, past clearings used by summer herders. It is the longest stage. You reach the Sakhvlari shelter in the late afternoon.
03Down to Marelisi and back to BorjomiOvernight: Borjomi
A shorter final stage descends through beech woods and along streams to the Marelisi ranger station at about 540 m, on the Imereti side of the park. Your driver meets you there for the drive back round the range to Borjomi. In the late afternoon there is time to stroll through Borjomi's Central Park and fill a cup with the famous fizzy water at the pavilion, or to soak tired legs in the warm sulphur pools higher up the park. Dinner and a night in a hotel in town.
04Rabati Castle and KhertvisiOvernight: Vardzia area
Head south-west up the Mtkvari to Akhaltsikhe, stopping at the Green Monastery in the forest above Chitakhevi on the way. In Akhaltsikhe you spend a couple of hours inside Rabati, a fortress town of the Jakeli princes that later served the Ottoman pashas and was heavily restored in 2012. It now holds a church, a mosque, a museum and walkways along the walls. Continue along the gorge past Khertvisi, one of the oldest fortresses in Georgia, to a guesthouse near Vardzia for a home-cooked dinner.
05Vardzia and the drive home
Be at Vardzia as it opens. Work your way up through the cliff with your guide: wine cellars with clay jars, refectories, steep stairs and the Church of the Dormition, painted around 1185 with portraits of King Giorgi III and his daughter Tamar. Then look in at Vanis Kvabebi, an older and quieter cave monastery nearby. After lunch by the river the driver takes you back to Tbilisi via Akhaltsikhe and Borjomi, or over the Javakheti plateau and Lake Paravani in summer.
Prices
Price per person for a private tour, by the size of your group. Sample prices
| Group size | Per person | Whole group |
|---|---|---|
| Solo traveller | $1,760 | $1,760 |
| 2 travellers | $1,065 | $2,130 |
| 3-4 travellers | $855 | from $2,565 |
| 5-8 travellers | $705 | from $3,525 |
| 9-15 travellers | $585 | from $5,265 |
Room and children
- Single room supplement: $130
- Children from age 10 welcome; ages 10-15 pay 75% of the adult price.
- Prices change with hotel level and season; your quote is final.
Popular add-ons
- Borjomi sulphur pool ticket$5
- Upgrade to a spa hotel in Borjomi or Likani (per person)$120
- Sleeping bag rental$25
What's included
- Private transport from Tbilisi and back, including pickup at Marelisi
- Hiking guide in your language for all five days
- National park registration and shelter fees
- A pack horse on the trek for sleeping bags, food and cooking gear
- Two shelter nights, one hotel night in Borjomi and one guesthouse night near Vardzia
- Meals throughout, beginning with lunch on arrival day and finishing with lunch on day 5
- Tickets for Rabati Castle and Vardzia
- Sleeping bag (rental available)
- Sulphur pool ticket in Borjomi
- Drinks and personal snacks
- Tips for guide, horseman and driver
- Hiking insurance with medical cover; without health insurance you cannot enter Georgia as a visitor from 1 January 2026
Good to know
Who it's for
- Hikers who want a multi-day trek without high passes or glaciers
- Forest lovers and wildlife watchers
- Travellers combining a hike with Georgia's classic medieval sights
- Visitors in May, June or October, when the high Caucasus is still snowy
No time for a three-day walk? Borjomi and Vardzia in 2 Days visits the same spa town and cave city by road.
What to bring
- Comfortable hiking boots; the forest paths can be muddy
- A warm sleeping bag; the huts get cold at night even in summer
- A light towel and wet wipes; shelters have no showers
- Rain jacket, as the park is one of the wetter corners of Georgia
- Headtorch for the shelters, which have no electricity
- Clothing that covers knees and shoulders for Vardzia's cave church
- You must register at the park visitor centre before starting; the guide does this on day 1.
- Shelters are shared and first come, first served in busy weeks; tents come with us as a backup.
- Phone signal is weak inside the park, but rangers can be reached by radio from some shelters.
- A 2026 rockfall shut one section of Vardzia, but you can still visit the larger part of the site.
Walking days in numbers
| Day | Distance | Up | Down | Hours | Highest point |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 km | +1,100 m | −50 m | 6-7 | 2,000 m |
| 2 | 18 km | +450 m | −900 m | 7-8 | 2,200 m |
| 3 | 10 km | +50 m | −1,050 m | 4-5 | 1,550 m |
Guest reviews
Questions about this tour
How hard is the trek?
Challenging but not extreme: two days of 6-8 hours with up to 1,100 m of climbing and a shorter descent on day 3. The paths are well used and marked, and the highest point is only about 2,200 m, so altitude is not an issue.
What are the shelters like?
Simple wooden huts with bunks, a wood stove, a table and an outdoor toilet. Bring your own sleeping bag. They are shared with other hikers, so in busy weeks we also carry tents.
Will we see bears?
Brown bears live in the park but avoid people. Sightings are rare and usually far away. Your guide explains how to store food and what to do if you meet one.
Can we choose a different trail?
Yes. The St Andrew trail, about 54 km over four days to Sametskhvareo, is a longer and higher alternative. Shorter day trails near Likani suit families. We can rebuild the trip around any of them.
Can we start in Kutaisi instead?
Yes. Marelisi is closer to Kutaisi, so we can reverse the trek and finish with Vardzia and a drive back to Tbilisi, or end in Kutaisi.
