Family trip to Tbilisi, Georgia

If any of you are interested in an incredible adventure, consider Georgia in the Caucasus.
I took my three kids aged 5, 9 and 13 there this past summer - it is pristine and we hardly saw any tourists - best to take a tour though, or at least a car and driver.
I've been blogging about the trip at www.travelwithkidz.wordpress.com and happy to answer all questions!

I was seriously debating going to Tbilisi a few years ago (before the conflict with Russia), but was put off by my enquiries - distilling it to be socially near-anarchic, with an oppressive crime-rate/large and aggressive criminal element. I like a 'challenge' or 'adventure'', but at the time it didn't look like it would shape up to be much of a 'holiday' and was a mite dangerous for foreigners. What about now? Do you happen to speak the language?

I'd say it's 100% safe - we felt safer than almost anywhere else we've been to, day or night, and we don't speak a word of Georgian or Russian. (I'm not sure what it would be like for Russians though - some bad memories clearly still linger). We ventured all over without an interpreter or a guide. InTbilisi we used the very cheap taxis and the Metro and we walked a lot.
But the language was a big obstacle - English is extremely limited and the second language is clearly Russian - people almost automatically tried to speak to us in Russian. We had to resort to "speaking" with our ands a lot. Nevertheless, most people were very friendly though we did come across the odd person here or there who seemed suspicious of us - they may have thought we were Russians.
There is a Tourist info office in Tbilisi staffed by English speakers, most hotels will have at least one English speaker on staff, in Tbilisi we found that restaurants either had an English menu, or a server who spoke English. Outside of Tbilisi, forget it. A guide would be a very good idea for most people - it only took me one day to realise that we had to have an English speaking driver at least!

You've got me going on this. We head for Europe, Turkey and Syria for four months from late October, so will look into the logistics of Georgia. Prices/costs generally ...?

Suite in a 3* hotel in Batumi cost $114. Apartment in Tbilisi cost $70.
Various homestays cost about $60 for the whole family (we are 5).
Driver and car was about $50/day + petrol

You can do it for cheaper -public transport is very cheap but we found it too tough with our family of 5 luggage etc. I'm not sure you can get decent accommodation for much less. Western hotel chains (Marriott, Sheraton etc) are a lot more - $200 though I believe discountable.

Turkey - prices are higher than the used to be. Public tranport in Turkey is fantastic - buses are super easy and still pretty cheap. Budget domestic airlines are good. 3* hotels in Turkey are around $120 or so. In Istanbul we rented an partment we found on VRBO.com - worked very well for us.

Haven't been to Syria (yet)...

Thanks for the update on Turkey - as with Syria, haven't been there for many years, or with children. I remember between 1988 and 1996 Istanbul had transformed massively - become very cosmopolitan - and expect it will have changed dramatically since then. Istanbul sounds to have become relatively pricey, so we'll be watching the budget/time spent there - but too interesting for the kids to miss. We're keen to return to Syria, especially with the kids - was excellent, and reportedly generally remains so, but apparently becoming very popular, so want to get back before becomes too 'worn' with tourism. As with yourself have found travelling as a tribe makes alternatives to public transport often the better option. Will check out apartments on VRBO.com. How did you find food options/prices in Georgia? Hygiene considerations ...?

For a family Trip you will need a hotel to stay.. Ecologically pure are of Tbilisi, perfect for children as well as adults, No disturbing noises from outside, fresh air and great view.
3 Star Hotel with all the essential services including Wireless Internet and Cable TV. Heating and Air Conditioning..
Contact Info:

Nutcubidze Plato 4 Mkr
12 Painters str.
Tel: ( + 995 32 ) 31 70 60
Mob: ( + 995 99 ) 18 52 18
( + 995 99 ) 50 13 14
E-mail: info@hotel-mkudro.ge
hotel-mkudro@mail.ru
Website: http://www.hotel-mkudro.ge/

Hi, for a family stay the best choice is to rent an apartment. You may try [www.feeltbilisi.com]
Did it myself. Enjoyed much.

Edited by: andriuvanner