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Gori

Gori has long been synonymous with Joseph Stalin, who was born and went to school here. During his rule of the Soviet Union the town's centre was rebuilt to his neoclassical tastes, and even today much of the downtown area is defined by its Stalinist architecture. The large Stalin Museum is the town's best-known attraction, but there are also some fascinating older sights nearby, most notably the cave city of Uplistsikhe.

In the 2008 war over South Ossetia (whose border is just 13km north of town), Gori was bombed by Russia, with at least 20 civilians killed, and the town fell under Russian control for 10 days. Predictably, anti-Russian feeling still runs high today.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Gori.

  • Archaeological Site

    Uplistsikhe

    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 developed into one of the chief political and religious centres of pre-Christian Kartli, with temples dedicated principally to the sun goddess. After the Arabs occupied Tbilisi in AD 645, Uplistsikhe became the residence of the Christian kings of Kartli and an important trade centre on a main caravan road from Asia to Europe.

  • Museum

    Stalin Museum

    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 in 1957, a reverent homage to the Gori boy who became a key figure of 20th-century history – although displays do now at least refer to the purges, the Gulag and his 1939 pact with Hitler. The Dzhugashvili family's wood-and-mud-brick house where Stalin lived for the first four years of his life is reverentially preserved outside.

  • Church

    Ateni Sioni

    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 built in the 7th century and modelled on Mtskheta’s Jvari Church. Beautiful reliefs of stags, a hunting scene and a knight were carved into the exterior walls later. Inside, the 11th-century frescoes, depicting biblical scenes and Georgian rulers, are among the finest medieval art in the country.

  • Fortress

    Gori Fortress

    This partially reconstructed oval citadel stands on the hill at the heart of Gori. It dates mostly from the Middle Ages, with 17th-century additions. With fine views, it’s a good place to be around sunset. At its northeast foot, a circle of eight mutilated metal warriors forms an eerie memorial to those lost in the 2008 war with Russia over South Ossetia.

  • Museum

    War Museum

    The War Museum is mostly devoted to Gori people’s involvement in WWII, but also contains a small display on the 2008 war. In the lobby are a few pieces of Russian ordnance from that war, including a cluster bomb that was dropped on Gori's main square.