Tour Description
Preparing and having meals have its own rules, based on the talent, fantasy and taste. It is well known that higher is the culture of the nation, wider is its national cuisine. Georgian cuisine is one of such national phenomena, including about 500 meals. People were delighted with them centuries ago and enjoy now. Some meals have charmed the guests so much that the classicists have even described them in their works. For example, Alexandre Dumas, in his Caucasus described in details how satsivi is prepared.
In this tour you will have the opportunity to make several culinary discoveries in the world of exotic and piquant meals every day. You will taste the special meals of unique diverse Georgian cuisine together with Georgian kvevri wine, view the cultural highlights and all together will provide great pleasure and unforgettable impressions for you.
Tour Highlights
- In this tour you will taste over 20 original traditional Georgian meals.
- Taste world-famous Georgian kvevri wines made according to 8000-year technology that is the part of intangible cultural heritage included into UNESCO List
- You will view the country’s cultural monuments most of which are on UNESCO Cultural Heritage List
Gallery
Travel to Georgia
At arrival to Tbilisi the local representative of the company will meet you and drive to the hotel on the company’s car.
Tbilisi
You will explore Old Tbilisi with its old narrow streets, houses with overhanging balconies painted in different colors and decorated with incredible ornaments. You will visit Christian churches, synagogue, mosque located side by side and sense the spirit of old town. You will view Narikala Fortress being the outpost and main citadel of the city for many centuries and panoramic view of Old Tbilisi will leave indeed deep impression. After descending from the fortress you will find yourself in Abanitubani, at the bathes with natural geodesic sulfur waters that delighted the travellers from all over the world for many centuries.
Dinner in the restaurant decorated in Georgian traditional style. The chorus of singers will join you at a time of dinner and present Georgian polyphonic songs.
Night stay in Tbilisi
Special offer for lunch: soup of beans, ham of Racha, shkmeruli
Special offer for supper: eggplants with walnuts, corn bread
Tbilisi – Bodbe – Sighnaghi – Tsinandali – Telavi
In the morning, after the breakfast, you will visit Kakheti, St. Nino Monastery in Bodbe. Here you will view the cathedral of 4th century built on the grave of St. Nino, propagator of Christianity in Georgia, equal to the apostles. In the temple you will see amazing painting and frescos.
Further you will visit very beautiful small historical town of Sighnaghi, surrounded with the wall, looking down to Alazani gorge from above (400 m altitude), to Caucasus Mountain Range, with the steep mountains behind it, leaving unforgettable impressions to the viewers.
There you will see how Georgians make shashlik and bake Georgian tonis bread. You will also taste the delicious kvevri wine.
Then you will visit Tsinandali Home Museum, have a walk in the garden spread over several hectares, with numerous exotic plants from Europe, Asia and America, view huge wine cellar with personal collection of 70 types of wine in 16500 bottles.
Night stay in Telavi
Special offer for supper: pork shahslik, tonis bread, fish in coriander and vinegar sauce, kvevri wine.
Telavi – Gremi – Alaverdi – Tbilisi
In the morning, after the breakfast, you will visit the medieval residence of Kakheti kings (1466-1614), fortified city of Gremi, the political, economic and educational center in the past.
Further you will see Alaverdi Cathedral a beautiful sample of medieval Georgian architecture, with the roof made of blue tiles, located on green Alazani valley. Complex surrounded with the wall includes various structures. Of them, the centuries-old wine cellar deserves special attention. There you will taste the delicious wine made by the monks in kvevri.
Return to Tbilisi and supper.
Night stay in Tbilisi
Special offer for supper: chakapuli or chakhokhbili, khashlama.
Tbilisi – Mtskheta – Akhaltsikhe
After the breakfast you will visit Mtskheta, ancient capital city of Georgia (UNESCO monument IVc BC – VI), the city is associated with formation of Georgia statehood, with the history of Christianity. You will view Svetitskhoveli Cathedral (11th century), the most important among medieval Christian monuments in Georgia. It is surrounded with two-level wall with the towers. Further you will view Jvari Monastery of 6th century, also UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is located on the top of the mountain, facing Mtskheta, it looks over the ancient capital city of Georgia at the confluence of two rivers, with magnificent Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in the middle.
After the dinner you will travel to Akhaltsikhe.
Dinner and night stay in Akhaltsikhe.
Special offer for the supper: tenili cheese (included in the UNESCO tentative list of intangible heritage), apokhti
Akhaltsikhe – Vardzia – Kutaisi
In the morning, after the breakfast, you will visit Vardzia, a 13-level magnificent monastery complex with hundreds of premises. You will walk in the tunnels and on the squares connecting the stone city, see rock-hewn wine cellars, kvevris and churches. You will see the unique water supply system of this magnificent city, providing potable water to thousands of people.
Further you will head to Kutaisi.
Supper and night stay in Kutaisi
Special offer for supper: satsivi or bazhe, khachapuri, mkhali, chvishtari
Kutaisi – Samegrelo – Kutaisi
In the morning you will leave for Kutaisi and visit Gelati Godmother Monastic Complex, UNESCO World Heritage Site. You will view the most important education center of medieval Georgia – Gelati Academy.
In the noon you will head to Samegrelo, where you will see the art of preparing elarji, have delicious meals of Samegrelo and taste the wine.
Further you will travel to Prometheus Cave, distinguished with beautiful shapes of stalactites, stalagmites, waterfalls hardened into stone and suspended stone curtains.
Returning to Kutaisi.
Supper and night stay in Kutaisi
Special offer for lunch: kharcho with walnuts, giblets or kupati, elarji.
Kutaisi – Uplistsikhe – Mukhrani – Tbilisi
After the breakfast you will travel to Gori, the heart of Kartli Province. Here we shall visit Uplistsikhe, rock-hewn antique city-monument (1st -2nd millennia BC), walk in its streets, squares, living halls hollowed in the rock and 41-meter-long secret tunnel, view the wine cellars, bread bakeries, pharmacy and drainage system of the city.
At lunch you will have a chance to see several Georgian dances performed by the professional dancers.
Further you will visit Chateau Mukhrani palace, view the vineyards and wine cellar that includes 20 accessory buildings under the lawn. You will taste exclusive Georgian wines made in Chateau Mukhrani by the European technologies and return to Tbilisi.
Return to Tbilisi and supper.
Special offer for lunch: Georgian yoghurt soup, chakhrakina
Special offer for supper: khinkali, kebab
Departure
Transportation from the hotel to the airport.
Service:
● From / To airport in Tbilisi
● Accommodation
● Transfer According to the program
● English speaking guide
● Meals 7*B, 6*L, 7*D
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Visa requirements
Valid passport is necessary of the visitors of any nationality. Individuals with passports issued in USA, Canada, Israel, EU member states, Russian Federation, GCC countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE) etc., do not need visas. In addition, no visa is required for the nationals of CIS countries, with the exclusion of Turkmenistan. Please, see additional information at: https://www.geoconsul.gov.ge/en/visaInformation.
Entry into Georgia
To visit Georgia, you can take a flight. Shota Rustaveli International Airport in Tbilisi, the largest among 3 Georgian airports, offers numerous direct flights from the Europe and Asia. There are 2 more, smaller airports: Batumi and Kutaisi international airports. You can also cross border in several points by train from Yerevan (Armenia) and Baku (Azerbaijan) to Tbilisi. To arrive to Georgia from Turkey, you can cross land border in 3 points: Sarpi, Vale and Kartsakhi. In addition, you can cross border with Armenia in 3 points: Ninotsminda, Geguti and Sadakhlo. Azerbaijan can communicate with Georgia through 2 border posts: Red Bridge and Lagodekhi. Between Russia and Georgia operates one border point, at Larsi, in the vicinity of Stephantsminda.
Climate
Climate in the country is amazingly diverse. Greater Caucasus Range protects Georgia from cold air masses while Caucasus Minor ensures protection of the country from very hot and dry air from the south, as a result, average summer temperature varies between 19OC and 22OC, and winter temperature – from 1.5OC to 3OC.
The best period for travel
With respect of weather, May-June and September-October are the softest and most mellow months in Georgia, with sunny, warm weather. July-August is the best period for walk and tracking.
For the smokers
Smoking is prohibited in any buildings, including the hotel and restaurants. The smokers can use the balconies, terraces or enjoy smoking outdoors.
Water
In Georgia, tap water is safe but if you are used to bottled water, please, be consistent and have bottled water only.
Currency, banks & ATM
In Georgia the official currency is Georgian lari, usually denoted by GEL. Lari consists of 100 tetri. You can change foreign currency at airports, border points, hotels and currency exchange offices. Usually no service fees are paid for currency exchange though recently, in some places the newly opened offices request commissions, so be attentive,
Banks and ATMs are in all large cities but when traveling in countryside make sure that you have sufficient cash.
Electricity
Electricity is 220 V, 50 Hz, with round sockets corresponding to European standards.
Communication
Country telephone code is 00 995. Mobile operators (Silknet, MAGTI and Beeline) cover almost entire territory of the country (with the exclusion of several remote places). You can procure SIM card for the mobile phone with certain quantities of minutes and internet access. In large cities, actually all cafes, bars and restaurants offer Wi-Fi service.
Work hours
Banks open at 10:00 AM and close at 6:00 MP, from Monday to Friday, inclusive. On Saturdays the banks have short working days, from 120:00 AM to 2:00 PM. On Sundays the banks are closed. Most stores open on 10:00 AM and they do not close earlier than at 8:00 PM. Shopping malls work every day, from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM. There are also food-stores working for 24 hours per day, but this is only in large cities. The museums open at 10:00 AM and work up to 6:00 PM; museums are closed by Mondays. Cafes and bars open at about 11:00 AM and most of them work up to midnight, or until the last guest leaves.
What to wear?
Georgians wear modern western-style clothes. So, you can easily chose the clothes, if you don’t plan to visit the church. For the visit to church you should remember that women mist cover their heads and shoulders and wear long dress while the men must take off their hats and do not wear shorts.
What to taste?
Khachapuri (variations of cheese bread from different regions of Georgia)
Kubdari (minced meat, onion, garlic, pepper, spices, baked in dough)
Khinkali (minced beef and pork with spices in dough, meal from the mountains)
Chkmeruli (chicken roast on ketsi in garlic sauce)
Satsivi
Shashlik (grilled pork or calf)
Chakapuli (lamb pieces, onion, new green sour plums and estragon prepared in white wine)
Pkhali (spinach, chard, cabbage with spices and walnut paste)
Eggplants with walnuts (eggplants roast on the pan dressed with walnut paste with spices_
Imeretian Sulguni and guda cheese
Nadughi in the sulguni sheets (nadughi with mint and sour cream wrapped in sulguni sheets)
Gebzhalia (sulguni pieces boiled in milk and placed in Georgian yoghurt with mint and garlic)
Champignons with cheese (champignon heads roast on ketsi with the grated cheese above).
Tkemali sauce (sauce of sour plums with the young herbs (parsley, mint, dill, coriander), garlic and salt)
Churchkhela (sausage-shaped sweets made of walnuts and grape juice)
Gozinaki (roast walnuts in honey)
And, of course, you must have Georgian meals with wide variety of famous Georgian wines.
Emergency
For all the emergency cases please call 112.
Tour Map
Suggested Tours
Tour of 16 Wines in the Native Land of the Wine
If you like new experiences and you are interested to find the new taste of wine, degust the national meals and sense the original culture of the nation, this tour is for you. Here you will have the chance to visit regions of Georgia, known as the cradle of wine, view cultural attractions, taste different wines made in kvevri from endemic grape varieties and have special meals characteristic for each of the regions, wide diversity of which distinguishes Georgian cuisine.
Pearls of South Caucasus – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan
In this tour you will have a chance to visit 3 countries with absolutely different cultures and languages located on the border between Europe and Asia, in South Caucasus; get familiar with the architectural masterpieces and folklore of these countries, taste the meals of 3 different cuisines and enjoy beauty of nature, changing from the sea level to 2200 m altitude.
Christian Countries of South Caucasus – Armenia and Georgia
This tour provides opportunity to view 2 ancient South Caucasus Christian countries located on the border between the Christian and Moslem worlds. Unique location caused formation of original and absolutely different cultural heritage in both of these countries as can be clearly seen in architecture, folklore, customs and cuisines, overall, providing unforgettable impressions to the visitors.