Tbilisi and Kazbegi — 4 days, 3 nights

Overview

Duration

4 days / 3 nights

Base

Tbilisi — one hotel, no repacking

Route

Tbilisi → Mtskheta → Ananuri → Gudauri → Stepantsminda (Kazbegi)

Hotel category

4–5 star. The four-star hotels are in the Old Town or city centre; the five-star is by Lisi Lake, a short drive out

Tour type

Private car with driver-guide; group option on request

Best season

Year-round. The Kazbegi road is most scenic May–October; ski season runs December–March

• Gergeti Trinity Church at 2,170 m, reached by 4x4
• The Georgian Military Highway and the Friendship Monument
• Narikala Fortress by cable car, over the old town
• Abanotubani, the sulfur baths the city was founded on
• Jvari Monastery, above the meeting of two rivers
• Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, Georgia's coronation church

Day by day

1. Day 1 Arrival in Tbilisi

   

   Meet and greet at Tbilisi International Airport, private transfer to the hotel, check-in. The evening is free at leisure — an Old Town walk, or Shardeni Street, five minutes from most old-town hotels and where the city eats late.

   Meals: None — dinner is your own arrangement

2. Day 2 Tbilisi city tour and Mtskheta

   

   A full day, and two halves of it. The morning is an Old Town walking tour — Metekhi Church, the cable car from Rike Park up to Narikala Fortress, the Bridge of Peace, and the sulfur bath district at Abanotubani. The climb everyone warns you about is a three-minute cable car ride with the old town underneath it. In the afternoon, 25 minutes out to Mtskheta, Georgia's ancient capital: Jvari Monastery on its ridge above the meeting of the Aragvi and the Mtkvari, then Svetitskhoveli Cathedral below it. Back in Tbilisi by early evening.

   Meals: Breakfast — lunch in Mtskheta is your own expense

3. Day 3 Kazbegi, full day in the mountains

   

   North along the Georgian Military Highway, nine to ten hours door to door. The Zhinvali reservoir viewpoint, the Ananuri fortress complex, the Gudauri panorama and the Russia–Georgia Friendship Monument, then Stepantsminda — and from there a 4x4 up to Gergeti Trinity Church at 2,170 metres, with Mount Kazbek behind it. Back in Tbilisi in the evening.

   Meals: Breakfast — lunch in Stepantsminda or Gudauri is your own expense

4. Day 4 Departure

   

   Free morning for shopping or a last walk, checkout, private transfer to the airport.

   Meals: Breakfast

Your price

This is what you chose, priced. Change anything and it reprices — the price is the price, not a starting figure that grows at checkout.

Named hotels or similar in the same class, subject to availability on your dates. Prices are per person with two sharing a twin room; a single room costs more.

What’s included

Good to know

• Day 3 is a long mountain day. Comfortable shoes and a warm layer are worth packing — Gergeti sits at 2,170 m and is noticeably cooler than Tbilisi even in summer.
• The 4x4 section up to Gergeti is standard practice, not an upsell. The road is steep but short.
• Modest dress — covered shoulders and knees — is required inside churches and monasteries. Scarves are usually available at the entrance.
• In winter, heavy snowfall can close the Military Highway. The Uplistsikhe and Gori tour is the standard same-day substitute.
• Georgian lari is the only currency most small restaurants take, though cards are widely accepted in Tbilisi.
• The package runs with a minimum of two travellers. A solo-traveller supplement applies.

Questions

• How long is the Kazbegi day?

  Nine to ten hours door to door. Most of it is driving with stops rather than walking, and the only demanding part is the 4x4 up to Gergeti, which is a rough track rather than a hike. Expect to be back in Tbilisi in the evening, not the afternoon.

• What happens if the Jvari Pass is closed?

  It can close at short notice in winter. We will tell you when you book if your dates carry that risk, and if it closes on the day the itinerary is reworked rather than simply dropped.

• How much walking does the city morning involve?

  The old town is small but built on a hillside, and the lanes are cobbled. Narikala is reached by cable car rather than on foot, so the walking is between sights. Wear shoes you can do a few kilometres in.

• Can the free morning on day 4 be used for a tour?

  It depends on your flight time. Say when you enquire and we will tell you what actually fits, rather than selling you something you would have to leave halfway through.