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…
Must see attractions in Kakheti
- Top ChoiceUdabno Monastery
- Top ChoiceChavchavadze Estate
Prince Alexander Chavchavadze (1786–1846) was one of the most colourful and influential characters in Georgian history, and the palace and gardens he…
- ATop ChoiceAlaverdi Cathedral
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…
- BTop ChoiceBatonistsikhe Castle
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…
- STop ChoiceSighnaghi Museum
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…
- WWalls
Most of Erekle II’s 4km defensive wall still stands, with 23 towers and each of its six gates named after a local village. Part of the wall runs along…
- SSchuchmann
A very professional modern operation 7km southeast of central Telavi, producing 1.5 million bottles a year – 30% is qvevri wine (under the Vinoterra label…
- LLagodekhi Protected Areas
This remote, 244-sq-km nature reserve climbs to heights of over 3000m in the Caucasus above the small town of Lagodekhi in eastern Kakheti near the…
- TTwins Old Cellar
A family-run operation making qvevri and European wine, 23km north of Telavi. Visits include its comprehensive qvevri wine museum and a tasting of three…
- SShumi
This interesting smallish winery produces wines of numerous appellations under the Shumi and Iberiuli labels, and has a vineyard of 432 vine varieties,…
- EEagles Canyon
A few kilometres outside Dedoplis Tskaro, Eagles Canyon is home to enormous griffon, black vultures and black storks. It's an epic place best explored…
- VVashlovani Protected Areas
The Vashlovani Protected Areas total 370 sq km of territory harbouring a very high concentration of different species including 46 mammals, 135 birds, 30…
- PPeristsvaleba
The 6th-century cave church Peristsvaleba contains Davit Gareja's tomb, to the right of the icon screen.
- NNekresi Monastery
Nekresi’s early Georgian architecture and the views across the Alazani valley from its hillside-woodland site are marvellous. The monastery is 4km off the…
- IIkalto Monastery
This monastery, beautifully situated in a cypress grove, was one of two famous medieval Georgian Neoplatonist academies, the other being Gelati near…
- BBodbe Convent
Bodbe Convent, the revered final resting place of St Nino, is set among tall cypresses 2km south of Sighnaghi, a pleasant walk on country roads. The…
- GGremi Fortress
From 1466 to 1672, Gremi was the capital of Kakheti, but the town down to the west of the citadel was totally devastated by Shah Abbas in 1616. Within the…
- LLavra
This restored monastery is on three levels, with buildings from many periods. You enter by a gateway decorated with reliefs illustrating stories of the…
- WWinery Khareba
What's special here is the 7.7km of wine tunnels, dug out of a hillside in the early 1960s for storing and ageing wine at constant temperatures. Today the…
- KKhornabuji Fortress
This impressive hilltop ruin is an extraordinary site to behold and it's hard to imagine how it was even constructed atop such a steep peak. The truly…