Must-see attractions in Georgia

  • Sunbeams in ornate church window

    Gelati Monastery

    Western Georgia

    This Unesco World Heritage–listed monastery complex, on a wooded hillside 8km northeast of Kutaisi, is an outstanding example of Golden Age architecture…

  • Ancient Mural painting 13th century, David Gareja monastery, Kakheti, Georgia; Shutterstock ID 659886058; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Georgia destination page masthead and POI images

    Udabno Monastery

    Davit Gareja

    Less of a monastery than a series of cave-hewn chapels, Udabno runs along a steep escarpment looking down to grassy plains in Azerbaijan. While many caves…

  • Vardzia cave city complex in Georgia

    Vardzia

    Vardzia

    The remarkable cave city of Vardzia is both a cultural symbol and a spectacular natural phenomenon with a special place in Georgian hearts. King Giorgi…

  • Gergeti, Georgia - July 20, 2015. One of the foremost Georgian landmarks - Tsminda Sameba church (english: Holy Trinity) near Gergeti town; Shutterstock ID 446367901; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Georgia destination page masthead and POI images

    Tsminda Sameba Church

    Stepantsminda

    This 14th-century church 2200m above Stepantsminda has become almost a symbol of Georgia for its incomparably photogenic hilltop setting with mighty Mt…

  • Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in Mtskheta, Georgia; Shutterstock ID 509083501; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Georgia destination page masthead and POI images

    Svetitskhoveli Cathedral

    Southern Georgia

    This extraordinary (and for its time, enormous) building dates from the 11th century, early in the golden age of Georgian church architecture. It has an…

  • Shatili Old Town

    Great Caucasus

    This magnificent agglomeration of koshkebi (defensive watchtowers) and atmospheric slate houses packed tightly together on a steep hillside to create one…

  • Uplistsikhe cave town near Gori city in Georgia. Ancient cave city Uplistsikhe at sunset in Georgia, UNESCO site.; Shutterstock ID 2108311661; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Uplistsikhe

    Gori

    This once enormous cave city sits 10km east of Gori above the north side of the Mtkvari River. Between the 6th century BC and 1st century AD, Uplistsikhe…

  • Statue in front of Joseph Stalin Museum in Gori town, Georgia; Shutterstock ID 426843613; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Georgia destination page masthead and POI images

    Stalin Museum

    Gori

    This impressively designed museum makes no serious attempt to present a balanced account of Stalin's career or deeds. It remains, much as when it opened…

  • Chavchavadze House Museum in Tsinandali. Georgia; Shutterstock ID 633216923; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Georgia destination page masthead and POI images

    Chavchavadze Estate

    Kakheti

    Prince Alexander Chavchavadze (1786–1846) was one of the most colourful and influential characters in Georgian history, and the palace and gardens he…

  • Exterior of Narilka Fortress in Tbilisi.

    Narikala Fortress

    Tbilisi

    Dominating the Old Town skyline, Narikala dates right back to the 4th century, when it was a Persian citadel. Most of the walls were built in the 8th…

  • Alaverdi Cathedral

    Kakheti

    At the beginning of the 11th century, when Georgia was entering its cultural and political golden age, King Kvirike of Kakheti had this majestic cathedral…

  • 2A8JGD5 Georgia National Gallery. Tbilisi, Georgia

    National Gallery

    Tbilisi

    For most visitors the highlight here is the hall of wonderful canvases by Georgia’s best-known painter Pirosmani (Niko Pirosmanashvili, 1862–1918),…

  • Photo taken in Tbilisi, Georgia

    Cable Car

    Tbilisi

    Tbilisi's most exhilarating ride is its massively popular cable car, which swings from the south end of Rike Park high over the Mtkvari River and the Old…

  • Batumi, Georgia - October 03, 2016: Fountains on Batumi boulevard. Seaside Park; Shutterstock ID 627260348; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Georgia destination page masthead and POI images

    Batumi Boulevard

    Batumi

    Everyone soon finds themselves strolling along Batumis bulvari, the park strip fronting the main beach, originally laid out in 1884 and now stretching 7km…

  • Jvari Church

    Southern Georgia

    Visible for kilometres around on its hilltop overlooking Mtskheta from the east, Jvari is, to many Georgians, the holiest of holies. It stands where King…

  • Georgian National Museum

    Tbilisi

    The major highlight of the impressive national museum is the basement Archaeological Treasury, displaying a wealth of pre-Christian gold, silver and…

  • Metekhi Church

    Tbilisi

    The landmark Metekhi Church, and the 1960s equestrian statue of King Vakhtang Gorgasali beside it, occupy the strategic rocky outcrop above the Metekhi…

  • Svaneti History & Ethnography Museum

    Mestia

    Mestia’s excellent main museum is one of Georgia's best, with fascinating displays of church treasures, manuscripts, weaponry, jewellery, coins and…

  • Funicular

    Tbilisi

    The ride up Mt Mtatsminda on the city's funicular is spectacular, as are the views from the top – and there are a couple of great places to eat or drink,…

  • Dartlo

    Tusheti

    Dartlo, 12km northwest of Omalo in the Pirikiti Alazani valley, is an extraordinarily picturesque village crowned by an impressive tower grouping,…

  • Anchiskhati Basilica

    Tbilisi

    Tbilisi’s oldest surviving church is perhaps its loveliest. Built by King Gorgasali’s son Dachi in the 6th century, it's a three-nave basilica whose…

  • Batonistsikhe Castle

    Telavi

    Batonistsikhe was the residence of the Kakhetian kings in the 17th and 18th centuries and remains today a superbly preserved old castle right in the…

  • Sighnaghi Museum

    Sighnaghi

    This well-displayed, modern museum has good exhibits on Kakheti archaeology and history downstairs, and a room of 13 paintings by Kakheti-born artist Niko…

  • Kartlis Deda

    Tbilisi

    This 20m-tall aluminium symbol of Tbilisi holds a sword in one hand and a cup of wine in the other – a classic metaphor for the Georgian character, warmly…

  • Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park

    Borjomi

    The ranges of the Lesser Caucasus in southern Georgia are less well known and much lower than the Great Caucasus, but they still contain some very…

  • October 18, 2019: Exterior of the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi (Sameba) in Old Tbilisi.

    Tsminda Sameba Cathedral

    Tbilisi

    The biggest symbol of the Georgian Orthodox Church's post-Soviet revival towers on Elia Hill above Avlabari. Tsminda Sameba, unmissable by night and day,…

  • Blue-tiled mosaic facade of Orbeliani Baths in the Abanotubani area of the Old Town.

    Abanotubani

    Tbilisi

    The brick domes rising here are the roofs of subterranean bathhouses, the Abanotubani. Alexanders Dumas and Pushkin both bathed in these sulphurous waters…

  • Bagrati Cathedral

    Kutaisi

    Kutaisi's cathedral was built in 1003 by Bagrat III, with a tall drum and pointed dome resting on four freestanding pillars. In 1692 a Turkish explosion…

  • Ananuri Fortress

    Great Caucasus

    This fortress 66km north of Tbilisi is a classic example of Georgian architecture, enhanced by its superb location overlooking the Zhinvali Reservoir. The…

  • Truso Valley

    Great Caucasus

    The beautiful Truso valley, source of the Tergi River, heads west off the Georgian Military Hwy 17km south of Stepantsminda. It's dotted with ancient…

  • Rabati Castle

    Southern Georgia

    Rabati Castle has been comprehensively renovated from the perilous, semi-ruined state it was left in a decade ago, and while it was a much-needed…

  • Ateni Sioni

    Gori

    This impressively ancient church has a beautiful setting above a bend of the pretty, grapevine-strewn Tana valley, 12km south of Gori. Ateni Sioni was…

  • Okatse Canyon

    Western Georgia

    An exciting 700m-long walkway projects from the edge of this 100m-deep canyon and culminates in a viewing platform that hangs right out over the middle…

  • Parliament Building

    Tbilisi

    The impressive high-arched Parliament building has seen many momentous events, including the deaths of 19 Georgian hunger strikers at the hands of Soviet…

  • Open-Air Museum of Ethnography

    Tbilisi

    This collection of traditional, mostly wooden houses, from all around Georgia, is spread over a wooded hillside with good views, and makes for an…

  • Nokalakevi Fortress

    Western Georgia

    Nokalakevi is an ancient Colchian fortress built on the banks of the Tekhuri River. It's been mooted as one of the (many) places to have housed the Golden…

  • Keselo

    Omalo

    Constructed during the Mongol invasions during the 1230s, these five towers form a protective fortress on the hilltop above Zemo Omalo where locals would…

  • Dadiani Museum

    Western Georgia

    The castle-like palace of the Dadiani family (old lords of Samegrelo) is now a museum set in beautifully maintained grounds. As well as interesting 19th…

  • Sapara Monastery

    Southern Georgia

    Sapara has a dramatic position clinging to a cliff edge about 12km southeast of Akhaltsikhe, and rivals Vardzia as one of the most important sights in the…

  • Martvili Canyon

    Western Georgia

    The attractive Martvili Canyon has been comprehensively adapted to the needs of tourists and now contains multiple walkways and bridges giving lovely…

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