Republic of Georgia

The chief attractions of Georgia are monasteries, fine wines, great food, mountainous terrain, historical and mythological sites, a beautiful coast, cave settlements, art and outgoing people. Though parts of the country are too dangerous to visit, the rest of Georgia is an appropriate destination for adventurous people who are looking for someplace truly different, who are accustomed to travel in eastern Europe or the Middle East and who enjoy roughing it.

All arriving foreign-passport holders who pass through immigration at Georgia’s Tbilisi Airport are given a gift after their passport is stamped.

The small bottle of red wine comes with a message that says in part: “We warmly welcome you to Georgia, the country that gave wine to the world.” This gesture leaves no doubt about the country’s desire to please foreign visitors.

Georgia already is realizing some of its potential for wine tourism, with vintners in Kakheti, the country’s top winemaking region, offering tours and tastings.

Georgia claims to be the place where winemaking was born around 8,000 years ago, though some scholars credit other locations in the general vicinity.

Regardless of who got to the starting line first, winemaking, using millennia-old methods, is a vibrant 21st-century business in Georgia. The country counts more than 500 indigenous grape varieties, all with unpronounceable names unknown in the West. Some popular European varietals have been imported recently, and today, selected wines are made using European techniques.

But traditional methods, which involve aging the crushed grapes with their seeds and skins in clay jars buried in the ground, are alive and well. The reds are so dark Georgians call them black.

Skiing is possible in the resorts of Bakuriani (75 mi/120 km west of Tbilisi) and Gudauri (50 mi/80 km north of Tbilisi) December-March. The adventurous can even try heli-skiing using old military transport helicopters.

Various operators in Tbilisi (increasingly working with foreign tour companies) can arrange hiking, horseback-riding and mountain-biking trips, particularly in the Trialeti hills, just southwest of Tbilisi, and the Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park, farther west, as well as mountaineering in the Caucasus.

Other activities available in Georgia include rafting, trekking and rock climbing.

Georgia is not the place to go for shopping. Supplies are low—stores in Tbilisi are the only ones with any variety. Things to shop for include pottery, wine, regional clothing and handicrafts (wooden goblets, wine horns, Georgian daggers and well-crafted copies of religious icons). Tbilisi’s central market is a bustling place where you can buy just about anything, but especially local foodstuffs.

Extensive paperwork is required to take modern works of art (including carpets) out of Georgia—the artist should know what is necessary. It’s illegal to export antiques.

Shopping Hours: Hours are generally Monday-Saturday 9 am-7 pm.

Georgia boasts a storied and varied cuisine. The emphasis is on freshness and the flavor of primary ingredients (though some dishes can be quite spicy). Some of the dishes you might encounter are mtsvadi, or shashlik (lamb shish kebab), chakapuli (lamb, plum and scallion stew), khinkali (meat dumplings with plenty of black pepper), badrijani (tiny eggplants stuffed with hazelnuts) and chanakhi (a stew of lamb, whole tomatoes, eggplant and peppers). Other dishes emphasize chicken, cheese, fruit or bread. We particularly enjoyed khachapuri, a sort of tomatoless pizza.

Georgians love wine, and there are numerous excellent Georgian wines. Some of these are Tsinandali and Gurdzhaani (dry whites), Chkaveri (a semisweet white), Mukuzani (an excellent dry red) and Khvanchkara (a semisweet red, said to have been Stalin’s favorite). Beware chacha, the local firewater (50% or greater alcohol content). Teetotalers can enjoy Borjomi, the regional mineral water.

Travelers should avoid Abkhazia (a region in the northwestern part of the country), where insurgents are still fighting for an independent nation. Other parts of the country are also unsafe: Ethnic unrest has led to sporadic fighting in South Ossetia (in the northern part of Georgia). Traveling anywhere near the border with Russia, especially around Dagestan, Svaneti and Chechnya, is asking for trouble.

Travelers in Tbilisi should avoid walking anywhere at night. Guard your belongings against pickpockets, especially on the metro and the minivans that serve as public transportation. It’s wise to register with your embassy upon arrival.

For the latest information, contact your country’s travel-advisory agency.

Don’t call Georgians “Russian.” Neither the language nor the national culture is Russian. Do, however, learn Cyrillic (Russian) phonetics before heading there. It’s not that difficult (especially if you’re already familiar with Greek phonetics), and certainly not as difficult as Georgian script. Many signs are posted in both Georgian and Russian, and knowing the Cyrillic pronunciation will help immeasurably.

Do attend a choral concert. Whether praising God or their oxen, Georgian singers can be spellbinding, haunting and beautiful.

Don’t refuse an invitation to have dinner with a Georgian family. Meals frequently become elaborate celebrations, with an abundance of food, drink and ritual. Do your best not to disrupt the flow of the celebration. For instance, if you’re invited to a feast, do not raise your glass before the tamada (toastmaster) has made his toast to those assembled. Never change the theme of the toast—to do so is an insult to the tamada (an appropriate response to a toast made in your honor is a simple speech of thanks). The tamada may make as many toasts as he wants during the meal—don’t be surprised if he makes more than 20 of them.

Don’t take sides in political discussions, especially ones dealing with internal problems.

Do take plenty of small items for gifts (for example, hometown postcards). Georgians love to give (and receive) gifts on almost any occasion.

Passport/Visa Requirements: Citizens of Canada and the U.S. need passports. Visas are no longer required for visits of up to 90 days. All travelers must fill out a currency declaration form that will be checked closely by customs officials upon leaving Georgia. Reconfirm travel document requirements with your carrier before departure.

Population: 4,570,934.

Languages: Georgian, Russian.

Predominant Religions: Christian (Georgian Orthodox, Russian Orthodox), Islamic.

Time Zone: 4 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (+4 GMT). Daylight Saving Time is observed from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October.

Voltage Requirements: 220 volts.

Telephone Codes: 995, country code; 32,city code for Tbilisi

The lari is the official currency, but U.S. dollars, euros and Russian rubles may be accepted, and can be exchanged in the omnipresent exchange counters. Traveler’s checks can be exchanged in banks only.

ATMs are available in Tbilisi, and major hotels, restaurants and shops there will accept Visa and MasterCard credit cards; outside the capital, it’s a cash economy. Do declare all of the money you take into the country if you want to take it out untaxed. Don’t exchange too much money at once.

Tip 10% in restaurants and taxis, or at least round up the bill. Tips in hard currency (U.S. dollars) should be reserved for extraordinary services.

The best time to visit is mid-April to October, when days are warm or hot. Tbilisi can be very hot in July and August. Evenings tend to be cool, even in the summer. Don’t go December-late February, when inland temperatures can be bitterly cold. The climate varies considerably from east to west. In the eastern mountains, the weather is drier and more extreme. The western part of Georgia, near the Black Sea, has a more moderate climate. No matter when you go, be sure to take along a sweater for the cool evenings.

Novo Alexeyevka Airport (TBS) is 11 mi/18 km east of Tbilisi. Note that power outages have sometimes disabled the airport’s guidance beacon, and aircraft may have to land using visual flight rules.

Fuel shortages affect all modes of transportation—expect frequent air, rail and road delays. Rental cars are scarce, as are taxis. Most Georgians try to flag down passing cars, but the shortage of vehicles on the roads—even in Tbilisi—makes this technique difficult. In any case, foreigners face issues of communication and security. Driving can be complicated—facilities (such as fuel or repair service) may not be readily available off the main roads. A good rule of thumb is to fill up whenever you see gas available. Traffic moves on the right.

Buses cover most of the country, mainly leaving from the Didube terminal in Tbilisi, but they are slow, overcrowded and unreliable. A better option is a marshrutka or private minibus, running frequently on most routes.

There is limited rail service through the central and eastern parts of the country (book first class whenever possible), but no trains run to the secessionist region of Abkhazia. From Tbilisi, there are day and night trains to Kutaisi, Zugdidi, Poti and Makhindjauri (just outside Batumi). A night in a sleeper compartment is a pleasant way to get from Tbilisi to Batumi. There are also international trains from Tbilisi to Baku, Azerbaijan, and—only on alternate nights—Yerevan, Armenia.

Cruise ships call at the Black Sea port of Batumi. Sukhumii, in the breakaway region of Abkhazia, was also a favorite and may be again when things settle down.

Within Tbilisi, there is a good range of public transportation, including a subway system (called the metro), minibuses (called marshrutkas), the occasional taxi and trams.

The Georgian Feast by Darra Goldstein (University of California Press). A splendid introduction to Georgian food.

The Caucasus: An Introduction by Thomas de Waal (Oxford University Press). A deft look at Georgia’s troubled
recent history.

Visit Georgia

The tourist agency has an office at 14 Nishnianidze St. in Tbilisi. http://www.visitgeorgia.ge/en.