Find out everything there is to know about organizing an independent travel to Georgia! How to go? What documents are needed? What to see in Georgia? Tips, prices in 2021, ways to get there, vacation reviews for 2019 and 2020.
Until recently, Georgia was considered an almost exotic destination - few people went there and were going there at all. Now the Internet is full of tourist reviews, country guides and beautiful photographs. Georgia has become one of the most visited countries for Russian tourists! This is both good and bad: on the one hand, the infrastructure is developing, there are many flights, on the other hand, you will have to put up with a huge number of other tourists, especially in summer.
Our experience... We have been planning an independent trip to Georgia for a long time, but from year to year our attention was drawn to the handsome North Caucasus, Istanbul, or Baku. In February 2019, we finally got to Georgia - we flew to Tbilisi for a few days. We liked! Now we are making plans for a big trip to Georgia in our car. In this review, we will share with you our experiences, tips and plans.
Currency exchange rate: 1 Georgian lari (GEL) ≈ 23 RUB.
Documents for travel to Georgia
What documents are needed to travel to Georgia? Everything is very simple here: Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians do not need a visa if the period of stay in the country does not exceed 1 year. A passport, of course, is needed for a trip to Georgia, it must be valid for the entire duration of the trip and it must not have Abkhazian stamps (otherwise there will be problems, so enter Abkhazia with an internal passport).
Insurance - not a mandatory item, but for your peace of mind, we advise you to place it on the Sravn.ru or Cherehapa websites. They compare prices of all major insurance companies. You can choose a policy according to the parameters you need and the best price. We always take out insurance.
Trip to Georgia: how to get there on your own
By plane
Plane is the easiest way to travel to Georgia on vacation. Tickets are very cheap - many airlines fly to Georgia, the competition is good, so the prices are low. Pobeda also flies - usually, it has the best prices. Flights to Tbilisi from Moscow, as well as from many other cities in Russia, are direct. Tickets from Moscow, Perm, Yekaterinburg, Rostov-on-Don cost 5-10 thousand rubles in both directions without luggage.
An idea for lovers of interesting independent travel and difficult routes: fly to Georgia on the flights of the cool Azal airline with a long transfer to Baku and see the beautiful Old City of Baku beyond daylight hours.
Where and how to find cheap tickets? They are easily found on the search engines Aviasales and Skyscanner. To find the best price, check both and see tickets for different dates. Read also our detailed instructions on how to find cheap flights correctly.
By car
An independent trip to Georgia by car is a completely different travel format. In some cases, it is not as comfortable as the flight, and, undoubtedly, longer and more tiring, but how many impressions you get, how many secluded corners you can visit! One Georgian Military Road is worth something. We want to go there by car. In general, we love to travel by car, especially in the Caucasus.
Can't come by your own car? Rent a car! It's simple and inexpensive. Myrentacar.com is a reliable and convenient car rental service in Georgia. Choose a car according to your taste and budget - there is a wide choice. The cost of car rental is from $ 23 per day. Do you have any questions? The Russian-speaking support service will help you with everything.
Housing prices in Georgia
It is very easy to find accommodation for every taste and budget in Georgia! There are a lot of options. We advise you to choose not just an ordinary hotel, but national-style accommodation - believe me, you will especially enjoy your trip to Georgia. We did just that for our rest.
| A type | Price per day (rub.) | Example |
| Budget guesthouse in the center of Tbilisi | from 1200 ₽ | Guest House Kato |
| 3 * hotel with breakfast in Old Tbilisi | from 3000 ₽ | 7 Baits Hotel |
| Hotel 3 * by the sea in Batumi | from 1700 ₽ | Cozy Corner Hotel |
| Apartment with a courtyard in the center of Tbilisi (2 bedrooms) | from 3000 ₽ | Central Tbilisi - Patio Appartment |
| Apartment in Batumi by the sea | from 2600 ₽ | IOANE HOME |
Useful tips for choosing a home
Book in advance... If your trip to Georgia is planned for the summer or for the holidays (New Year, May), be sure to book your accommodation in advance, preferably a couple of months in advance. First of all, this concerns the Black Sea resorts and Tbilisi itself. This way you can get the best value for money, and not be content with what is left free. We remind you: A LOT of tourists come to Georgia.
Look for discounted hotels on the Rumguru service. So you will not wander around the city with luggage in search of the best option, save time and money. However, if you are ready to bargain and like to take risks, you can try to find options in the old fashioned way - on the spot. But, to be honest, I do not understand who and why else is doing this.
Live in an apartment... The best way to make your trip to Georgia pleasant and memorable is to rent a cozy apartment in the national style. We highly recommend it! By the way, for a family or a group of friends it will be both cheaper and more convenient to stay in a hotel. Look for cool apartments and rooms on Airbnb.ru - there is a huge selection of accommodations for every taste and budget.
Do you want to experience the famous Caucasian hospitality? Stay in guest houses - as a rule, this name hides either rooms in the owner's house, or in a separate one next door. The bathroom is often shared. A warm welcome, homemade wine and lots of socializing are guaranteed.
Want to save money? It is better to refrain from resting in Georgia in the high season (July and August), as prices rise greatly. We flew to Georgia at the end of February: prices are the lowest, there are few tourists, and the weather is already springtime.
Food Prices in Georgia - 2021
Delicious Georgian cuisine is one of the main reasons why tourists love this country. Many people come here just for the sake of all these khinkali, khachapuri and kebabs! According to reviews of all tourists vacationing in Georgia, food prices are quite reasonable, and cooking on your own is not always cheaper than eating in a cafe.
The portions are often very large (with some exceptions), you can order half portions - check this if you are not ready for a hearty meal. Sometimes the waiters even warned us that the portion would be large and asked if we would like to order a smaller one.
Our average check in a cafe in Tbilisi - 25-35 lari for two. These are two or three main courses, tea or lemonade, dessert. In most cafes and restaurants, a service charge of 10-15% is added to the order amount.
Prices in a cafe in Georgia in 2021:
- Adjarian khachapuri - from 6 GEL;
- khinkali, 1 pc. - 0.5-0.7 GEL;
- eggplant with nuts - 5-7 GEL;
- lobiani and kubdari - 4-7 GEL;
- kebab, skewer - 6-10 GEL;
- coffee and hot chocolate - 2-3.5 GEL;
- tea - 1.5 GEL;
- water "Borjomi" - 1 GEL.
Selection of goods in supermarkets large cities are about the same as in Russia, you can find anything (which cannot be said about small villages). Vegetables and fruits are usually cheaper to buy either from markets or supermarkets. The prices for single stalls on the streets are usually overpriced. Many products are brought to Georgia from Russia, even labels with information in Russian, so in the store you will feel like in your own Pyaterochka.
Approximate food prices in stores in 2021:
- milk (1 l) - up to $ 1.5;
- bread (500 g) - from 0.2 to 0.4 $;
- local cheese (kg) - $ 2-4;
- eggs (12 pcs) - $ 1.2-1.6;
- a bottle of wine - $ 3-6;
- water (1.5 l) - $ 0.3-0.5;
- bananas (kg) - $ 1.2-2;
- apples (kg) - $ 0.6-1.2;
- figs (kg) - from $ 0.8;
- grapes (kg) - about $ 3;
- oranges (kg) - $ 0.6-1.7.
If you are not afraid baking, then one meal, for example, when sightseeing, can be replaced by eating khachapuri (or something else tasty) on the go - tasty, cheap, fast, satisfying. Georgians themselves are eager to buy pastries in local bakeries.
What to see on your own in Georgia
Georgia only looks like a small country on the map. In fact, there are a lot of interesting places here. In addition, the country is mountainous, so it takes a lot of time to move around it.
It is difficult to advise what to see in Georgia on your own, especially in just a few days or a week. We will list the places that we have taken note of for ourselves, and you, based on the list, make routes according to your interests and terms.
Places worth seeing while traveling on your own in Georgia:
- First of all, it is Georgian military road - they say she is one of the most picturesque in the world. We are big lovers of mountain roads, so this is the most interesting attraction for us. If you go on a trip to Georgia in your car, then your path will run along this road.
- Tbilisi... We have already been here. We advise you to see not only the main sights of Tbilisi, but also to visit cozy courtyards and magnificent ceremonial cities - for us this was a real discovery, it was for them that we fell in love with Tbilisi.
- Batumi - the main Black Sea resort in Georgia. Read more about beach holidays in Georgia.
- Kutaisi and Imereti in general.
- Vardzia monastery.
- Kakheti - wine-making region. Sighnaghi and Telavi cities, Gremi castle, numerous monasteries.
- Tusheti - it is better to go here by SUV for a few days (only in summer).
- Svaneti.
- And much more.
Do not try to see the whole of Georgia in one trip at once - you still will not succeed, and constant traveling will simply exhaust you. Better to carefully work out several routes and come to the country several times.
We spent three full days in the Georgian capital. We lived in the most comfortable apartment in the Old Town. The program for our first visit to Georgia was simple and uncomplicated - we walked around the city all day long, looking for and exploring its wonderful front doors and courtyards, gorging ourselves on national food, went out of town only once - to Mtskheta for half a day.
In Tbilisi, you can pay by card almost everywhere, so you hardly need cash. I only exchanged $ 15 to pay for transportation. In general, exchangers are here at every turn.
In total, we spent in Tbilisi in three days 11,000 rubles excluding tickets. The budget for one day for two is 3700 rubles.
