Taste of Georgia
A long weekend that shows you three faces of the country: the old quarters of Tbilisi, the high Caucasus at Kazbegi and a family wine cellar in Kakheti, all with your own guide and driver.
Old Tbilisi (Kala)Photo: Alexxx1979, CC BY-SA 4.0Short on time but keen to get beyond the capital? This private trip fits a long weekend or a stopover. You spend the first day on foot in Old Tbilisi, moving from the sulphur baths and the walls of Narikala Fortress to Anchiskhati, a basilica raised in the 6th century. On the second day the Georgian Military Highway carries you north via Mtskheta and Ananuri to Stepantsminda, and a 4x4 covers the last steep stretch to Gergeti Trinity Church at the foot of Mount Kazbek. The third day turns east into Kakheti for Bodbe Monastery, the hilltop town of Sighnaghi inside its old walls, and a long lunch at the table of a family that makes its own wine.
You sleep in one Tbilisi hotel for both nights, so there is no packing and unpacking between days. The second and third days are full ones, each with roughly five to six hours on the road, though the roads are in good shape and the driver pulls over often for photographs, coffee and a plate of khinkali. Time on foot is brief and always optional, which keeps the pace comfortable for most people, older travellers included. Arriving late at night? Book one extra night at the start and we begin the following morning.
Highlights
- Riding the cable car up to Narikala Fortress, then strolling through the Abanotubani bathhouse quarter
- Jvari Monastery and Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, both part of Mtskheta's UNESCO listing
- The Georgian Military Highway, climbing to 2,379 m at the Jvari Pass
- Gergeti Trinity Church framed by the 5,054 m cone of Mount Kazbek
- The 18th-century defensive walls of Sighnaghi and nearby Bodbe Monastery
- Home cooking and qvevri wine at the table of a Kakhetian winemaking family
Tour facts
The car reaches the doors of Bodbe, Svetitskhoveli and the hotel, and a 4x4 drives right up to the Gergeti terrace. The Old Town walk, Narikala and Sighnaghi's ramparts involve steep cobbles and steps, so we can swap them for a driven city loop and the Sighnaghi viewpoints that sit beside the road.
Places on this tour
18 places · tap any place to read its guide
- 1Old Tbilisi on foot, then a first Georgian dinner
- 2North to Kazbegi via Mtskheta and Ananuri
- 3Wine country: Bodbe, Sighnaghi and lunch in a family cellar
Day by day
01Old Tbilisi on foot, then a first Georgian dinnerOvernight: Tbilisi
Your guide is waiting at Tbilisi airport and brings you to the hotel. After a break, the afternoon walk begins at Metekhi Church, perched on a cliff over the Mtkvari River. The cable car then carries you up to Narikala Fortress, from where you look down on the brick cupolas over the Abanotubani sulphur baths; behind them, a path drops into the gorge to the Leghvtakhevi waterfall. From there you head on to Sioni Cathedral, home of the grapevine cross of St Nino, and to Anchiskhati, built in the 6th century and the oldest church still standing in the city. The day ends with a welcome dinner: khachapuri, pkhali, mtsvadi off the grill and a glass of Kakhetian wine.
02North to Kazbegi via Mtskheta and AnanuriOvernight: Tbilisi
An early start takes you first to Jvari Monastery, raised in the 6th century on the hilltop above the point where the Aragvi joins the Mtkvari. Below it, you stroll through Mtskheta to Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. Then the Georgian Military Highway begins its long climb. You pass Ananuri, a 17th-century fortress above the Zhinvali Reservoir, then the ski resort of Gudauri, where the Friendship Monument, a Soviet-era landmark, gazes down into the Aragvi gorge. Beyond the 2,379 m Jvari Pass lies Stepantsminda and lunch. Afterwards a 4x4 grinds up the slope to Gergeti Trinity Church, which stands 2,170 m above sea level with Mount Kazbek rising behind it when the sky is clear. Expect to be back in Tbilisi in the early evening.
03Wine country: Bodbe, Sighnaghi and lunch in a family cellar
Head east through Sagarejo to Bodbe Monastery. St Nino, who brought the Christian faith to Georgia in the 4th century, lies in its church. Sighnaghi is only a few minutes further on, strung along a ridge inside the defensive walls King Erekle II put up in the 1760s. Walk part of the ramparts and look out over the Alazani Valley toward the peaks of the Greater Caucasus. At lunchtime a family of vintners welcomes you to their table. They lift the lids on the qvevri, the clay jars set into the floor of their cellar, and pour amber Rkatsiteli and dry Saperavi alongside dishes from their own kitchen. In the late afternoon you drive back to Tbilisi, in time for an evening flight or one more night in the city.
Prices
Price per person for a private tour, by the size of your group. Sample prices
| Group size | Per person | Whole group |
|---|---|---|
| Solo traveller | $1,055 | $1,055 |
| 2 travellers | $640 | $1,280 |
| 3-4 travellers | $510 | from $1,530 |
| 5-8 travellers | $420 | from $2,100 |
| 9-15 travellers | $350 | from $3,150 |
Room and children
- Single room supplement: $95
- Children under 6 free (sharing a bed); ages 6-11 pay 70% of the adult price.
- Prices change with hotel level and season; your quote is final.
Popular add-ons
- Tbilisi airport transfer (car, 1-3 people)$30
- Extra night in Tbilisi with breakfast$90
- Supra dinner with folk music$70
What's included
- Meeting at Tbilisi airport on arrival and a transfer back for your departure
- Your own guide in your language on each of the three days
- Air-conditioned vehicle reserved for your group, with its driver
- 4x4 ride up the final slope to Gergeti Trinity Church
- Tickets for the Narikala cable car
- Two nights with breakfast in a central Tbilisi hotel
- One welcome dinner and two lunches
- Qvevri wine tasting in a Kakhetian family cellar
- Drinking water on board
- Flights to and from Georgia
- Travel health insurance, compulsory for visitors since 1 January 2026
- Any meals or drinks not mentioned above
- Entry to the sulphur baths
- Gratuities for your guide and driver
Good to know
Who it's for
- Stopover or long-weekend visitors who want the capital, the Caucasus and a wine cellar in three days
- Travellers who hate repacking: one Tbilisi hotel holds your bags for the whole trip
- Older guests and casual walkers, since every stroll is short and can be skipped
- First-timers testing Georgia before planning a longer return trip
If you want to sleep in the mountains or reach the west of the country, three days is too tight; Highlights of Georgia adds a Kazbegi night and Uplistsikhe, and East to West carries on to the Black Sea.
What to bring
- A fleece or light down jacket for Gergeti, which sits at 2,170 m and can feel wintry when Tbilisi is warm
- Shoes with a firm grip for the slippery cobbles and steep lanes of the Old Town
- A scarf (women) and long trousers (men) so church visits need no borrowed clothing
- Sunglasses and sun cream: the light is strong on the Military Highway
- Some cash in lari for the bathhouses, khinkali stops and small cellar purchases
- Proof of health insurance for your trip, a Georgian entry requirement in 2026
- Days two and three each mean about five to six hours in the vehicle, with regular stops.
- From December to March snow can shut the Jvari Pass for hours or even days; if so, we either reshuffle the programme or head west to the Uplistsikhe cave town and Gori instead.
- At Svetitskhoveli, Gergeti and Bodbe, shoulders must be covered, and women are expected in a skirt and headscarf; wraps are often lent at the gate.
- For a late-night landing, book an extra night first so the walking day starts fresh.
Guest reviews
Questions about this tour
Is three days enough to see Georgia?
It is enough for a good first impression of the three areas most visitors head for: the capital, the mountains around Kazbegi and the vineyards of Kakheti. The west of the country, Svaneti and the Black Sea coast are out of reach in this time. If you can spare two extra days, Highlights of Georgia adds a night up in the mountains plus the rock-cut town of Uplistsikhe.
Is the road to Kazbegi open in winter?
Yes. Road crews keep the Georgian Military Highway open through the year, although between December and March heavy snowfall or avalanche danger can close the Jvari Pass for some hours at a time, and now and then for days. When that happens we either reorder the days or send you to Uplistsikhe and Gori in place of Kazbegi.
Can we start the tour on the day we land?
Yes. A lot of flights reach Tbilisi in the small hours, so we can book an early check-in, let you sleep, and begin the walk after lunch. For an evening arrival we recommend one extra night, with the tour starting the morning after.
What should I wear to visit churches?
Cover your shoulders, whoever you are. Women should also put on a headscarf and wear a skirt down past the knee; spare scarves and wraparound skirts usually hang at the church door for anyone who arrives without. Men go in wearing long trousers, with hats removed.
