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Introducing Zugdidi
The main city of Samegrelo (Mingrelia), Zugdidi is 108km northwest of Kutaisi. As the nearest Georgian city to Abkhazia, it has had to absorb a particularly high number of refugees since the 1990s (by some estimates they have doubled its population) and is a centre for Georgians who favour military action to regain Abkhazia. It was also from Zugdidi that deposed President Zviad Gamsakhurdia, himself a Mingrelian, launched his unsuccessful 1993 rebellion against the Shevardnadze government. Today Gamsakhurdia’s statue stands on the town’s central boulevard, which is named after him.
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Despite this troubled recent past, today Zugdidi is a bustling and (at least outwardly) pleasant town that sees few travellers except for those heading for Svaneti, for which Zugdidi is an essential stepping stone.
Last updated: Feb 17, 2009
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