Kutaisi – Caves, Monasteries and Racha

Gelati was medieval Georgia's Oxford: an academy founded in 1106 by King David the Builder, where philosophers translated and taught beneath golden mosaics. The great Virgin mosaic of the main church survives, one of the finest in the Caucasus, alongside layers of superb frescoes. David himself lies buried under the gateway stone, so that all who enter step over their king. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and, for many travellers, the most moving building in western Georgia.

Prometheus Cave is western Georgia's underground cathedral: 1.4 km of walkable galleries dripping with stalactites, stone curtains and calcite pools, all discreetly lit. The route ends, water level allowing, with a boat ride along a subterranean river, a rare experience anywhere in the world. The temperature is a constant 14 degrees, welcome on any summer day. It is the largest show cave in the country, and it feels like it.

Racha is the Georgia that tourists haven't found yet: a deep-green highland of forests, alpine meadows and slow mountain towns along the young Rioni river. Its treasure is Nikortsminda, an 11th-century church whose carved facades are called the finest stone lace in the country. This is also the home of Khvanchkara, the famous naturally semi-sweet red wine. Roads are winding, views are enormous, and crowds simply do not exist.