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4 Days (Kutaisi) – Svaneti Highlight
Medieval tower villages high in the Greater Caucasus.
Departure
Kutaisi
Duration
4 Days
Price from
€
133
Currency: Georgian Lari (GEL / ₾). Cards accepted in cities; cash useful in smaller towns.
SIM Cards: Available at the airport and in cities (Magti, Beeline, Cellfie). eSIM also offered.
Time Zone: GMT +4.
Visa: Many nationalities (EU, US, Canada, UK, etc.) enjoy visa-free entry for up to one year.
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS
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.
Svaneti is Europe's highest inhabited corner, a land that was never fully conquered by anyone. Medieval stone towers still rise from every village, built by families who defended their honour and their treasure behind metre-thick walls. Mestia holds a museum of golden icons carried up here for safekeeping over the centuries, and UNESCO-listed Ushguli sits at 2100 m beneath Shkhara, Georgia's highest summit. The scenery of glaciers, meadows and towers belongs on another planet.
TOUR ITINERARY
DAY
1
Gelati and Motsameta
We begin with Gelati Monastery, founded by King David the Builder in 1106 and famous for golden mosaics and frescoes, a UNESCO site that was medieval Georgia's greatest centre of learning. A short drive away, the small monastery of Motsameta clings to a cliff above a dramatic bend of the Tskaltsitela gorge, one of the region's most photogenic corners. From there the road turns north along the Enguri valley, past the great arc of the Enguri dam, watching stone watchtowers multiply on the slopes as we climb into Svaneti. By evening we are in Mestia, the mountain capital, beneath a skyline of medieval towers and 4000-metre peaks.
Overnight in:
Kutaisi
DAY
2
Mestia
A day in and around Mestia, the mountain capital of Svaneti: lanes threaded between medieval stone tower-houses, the superb Svaneti Museum with its ancient icons and manuscripts, and an optional walk towards the Chalaadi glacier or the cross viewpoint high above town. Overnight again in Mestia.
Overnight in:
Mestia
DAY
3
Ushguli by 4x4
A full-day 4x4 expedition to Ushguli, at 2100 m one of the highest permanently inhabited villages in Europe and a UNESCO site, where clusters of medieval towers stand beneath the wall of Mount Shkhara, Georgia's highest peak. We walk between the hamlets, visit the little church of Lamaria and have lunch in a village house before returning to Mestia.
Overnight in:
Mestia
DAY
4
Mestia to Kutaisi
One last mountain morning in Mestia before the long, scenic descent along the Enguri valley to the lowlands. We reach Kutaisi by late afternoon, where the tour ends with a transfer to the airport or your hotel.
Overnight in:
Price Includes
• Professional licensed guide
• Comfortable air-conditioned transport
• Entrance fees as per itinerary
• Hotel pickup and drop-off
Price Doesn't Include
• Accommodation (unless stated)
• Lunches and dinners
• Personal expenses
• Travel insurance
Book now or contact us directly
3, Nina Khubulava Street
Tbilisi, 0190 Georgia
+995 500 88 77 58