Five Favorite Things in Tbilisi

Tbilisi, Georgia

Tbilisi is one of those cities that just kept growing on me. I stopped through for the first time back in March, fresh off the Black Sea Ferry and on my way to Armenia to volunteer. The weather was cool and windy and I didn’t feel up to exploring much. The next time around, in mid-April, I had three days before I flew out to Rome.  I did one day trip outside of the city and otherwise spent a lot of time just sort of wandering around. When I came back to Tbilisi for the third – yes, third – time a month later, I had a full week there and really started to focus on some serious sightseeing.
 

So with a total of 12 days under my belt in Tbilisi, what did I love the most?

 

1. Rustaveli Avenue

 
This is the heart of Tbilisi – the Champs Elysee, Las Ramblas, the Magnificent Mile. I can’t even tell you how many times I walked up and down Rustaveli and it never got old. I loved the shaded stretches lined with trees, the view of the towering Monument of Freedom and Victory as I approached Freedom Square, and the rows and rows of shops and cafes.

Rustaveli also provided a nice place for an early morning run, although I certainly got a few strange looks!

Tbilisi, Georgia
 

2. The bells at the Trinity Cathedral

 
Oddly enough, while I am not religious, I tend to visit a lot of churches and other religious sites when I travel – likely because they often tend to be some of the most significant historical and cultural sites. The Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi really isn’t either. It is the largest cathedral in Georgia (actually, the largest in the Southern Caucasus), but it is pretty new – just finished in 2004. You could say it is a newborn in a land of Methuselahs.

I stopped by the Cathedral on a whim and due to something happening inside, I wasn’t even able to enter. But as I left, the bells of the nearby bell tower began to ring. Within seconds, I was completely mesmerized by what was possibly the most beautiful melody of bells I have ever heard from a church bell tower. And every time I thought they were almost done, they just kept going. It was like the two bell-ringers were putting on a concert, not just dutifully ringing the bells – watching them high in the tower, they seemed to do their jobs with passion and I could feel that in how the bells rang. I was sad when it ended.

Trinity Cathedral, Tbilisi, Georgia
Trinity Cathedral, Tbilisi, Georgia
 

3. Day trips.

 
Tbilisi is a great place to base yourself for day trips around the country. The easiest was Mtskheta, the former capital of Georgia. A short (and cheap!) marshrutka ride from Tbilisi’s Didube bus station took me there, where I visited the main cathedral before hiring a taxi to take me up to the Jvari Church overlooking the town. He threw in stops at a convent and another church as well.

Mtskheta, Georgia
Inside the Cathedral of Sveti Tskhoveli in Mtskheta

Another day I took a marshrutka to the town of Gori, where I hired a taxi (again, reasonably priced) to take me to the cave city of Uplistsikhe.

Uplistsikhe, Georgia
Uplistsikhe

Finally, I teamed up with two girls from my hostel to hire a taxi to take us all the way to Davit Gareja, a two-hour drive, to see the cave monastery there. And while I visited the Italian-like city of Sighnaghi from Telavi, it can also be done as a day trip from Tbilisi.

Davit Gareja, Georgia
Inside one of the caves at Davit Gareja

 

4. The Old Town.

 
I generally love “old town” areas of cities and Tbilisi’s is no exception. While much of it seemed to be under construction or renovation during my visits (likely part of the Georgian government’s attempt at a facelift to help boost tourism), I was still able to wander aimlessly through side streets past centuries-old churches and cute buildings featuring decorative balconies. The view down over the Old Town was also great, whether from Narikala Fortress or the Metekhi Church across the river.

Tbilisi, Georgia
 

5.  Prospero’s Book Store

 
I have often sought out bookstores that carry English titles during this trip – not usually looking for a book to read, but usually looking for a place that might carry maps or other local info in English. Prospero’s is by far the best I have found. They not only had a great selection of maps for Tbilisi and elsewhere in the country, but I picked up a guidebook for Armenia and an English-Armenian dictionary for my stint there. If I had some extra room in my backpack I also could’ve grabbed the Hunger Games trilogy in hardcover.

The other thing I loved about Prospero’s was the adjoining café featuring free wi-fi and some pretty good chocolate milkshakes. When wi-fi wasn’t available at one of the hostels I stayed at, I spent many hours working at Prospero’s – and with a location on Rustaveli Avenue, but back from the street, it was perfect.
 

Have you been to Tbilisi? What did you like the most?

 


15 thoughts on “Five Favorite Things in Tbilisi”

  1. Pingback: Kate’s Picks: Where to Go in 2016 Before It’s Too Late | Adventurous Kate

  2. Katie- I was diagnosed with celiac right after accepting a summer job in Tbilisi, and I’m a little panicked trying to figure out how I will manage. Any tips?

  3. Okay! This is interesting.. I am traveling tomorrow 2 days and lot of things to explore.:) Thanks for the pics.

  4. Rustaveli Avenue looks like my kinda place, ditto the Old Town – and thanks for the tip on Prospero’s, when I finally make it to Tbilisi! Surprised that there are no food or drink places included here though?! Although maybe that says something about me, when my first recommendations for places are always cafes r restaurants…

    1. I don’t tend to write much about food when I travel – because I’m gluten intolerant, there’s a lot I can’t eat and I just look for places that have anything I can eat. In Tbilisi, I just did mostly fast food kabobs because that was what I could consistently eat. Most of the Georgian specialties I can’t eat.

  5. Thank you Katie, I’ve just returned from Tbilisi and tried to follow your five favourites as I only had 4 days there. I can’t wait to go back. Loved the people, the wine and the country- in no particular order. The autumnal colours made the drive from Tbilisi to Kazbegi magical.

  6. The food! We spent 3 rainy days in Tbilisi last spring and also fell in love with the city, but especially the Georgian cuisine: kharcho, khachapuri, khinkali, and of course the excellent wine!

  7. Pingback: LandLopers Picks of the Week | LandLopers

  8. Wow, I have never considered Georgia as a place I might like to visit but following your travels there has me considering adding it to my list! Great photos and thanks for sharing these less traveled journeys with us!

  9. You are killing me! All your Georgia posts make me terribly nostalgic!!
    So glad you liked Tbilisi 😀 Rustaveli Avenue looks different yet has the same charm as 20 years ago when I left. I hope that most other renovations they’ve done in Georgia will keep the old charm as well.

    xx
    maya

    p.s.
    Uplistsikhe photo looks like it belongs to the National Geografic cover 😉

Comments are closed.

Scroll to Top