Tbilisi – quick travel guide

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Most vibrant city in the Caucasus region, a favorite hip spot for diehard expats.

Georgia is a mountainous country in the Caucasus region, right between southern Europe and the Middle East. Such a distinct culture (with their own cool-looking alphabet), amazing food and a really nice vibe.

Although Tbilisi itself is pretty flat. I do recommend you do at least a few day tours out of the city to get a feel for the amazing mountain terrain. Georgia is so much more than Tbilisi! I really enjoyed wandering around town with local friends and also meeting other foreigners. I met many Russians, Ukrainians and Kazakh people here.

Stay 3-5 days to visit the main sights, neighborhoods, food, and nearby daytrips. But you could also stay longer to soak in the vibe. It’s cheap here! You can get a huge apartment for very little, cheap food, cheap massages, etc.

Where to stay:

  • Old Tbilisi (aka “Freedom Square”):
    • I think Old Tbilisi covers the entire city area, but to be more distinct…I reference it here as being only the Freedom Square area (aka “Liberty Square”) and reaching southeast to Narikala Fortress. Busiest area where most tourist things start from (Rustaveli street going north), Peace Bridge on the east, Matsminda mountain on the west and Sololaki hill neighborhood in the south.
    • Highest density of restaurants, bars, cafes, shops, and tourists things. But it’s not a requirement to be here IMO. Other areas can be nicer/cheaper, better views, and yet still close and walkable to everything. Old Tbilisi areas are all walkable, but vibe varies so I’ll explain each.
    • Freedom Square (north, west, east) – more flat and easily walkable, better paved roads and sidewalks. More relaxed, chill vibe, but still vibrant and not boring. More likely to find big parks going north. Also faster to cross Saarbrucken Bridge, in case you wanna go Marjanishvili area. Staying northish is easier for cars to reach and helpful for calling rideshare to other areas.
    • Freedom Square (south) – more hills and cobbled stone roads & sidewalks. Staying south helps if you want to be closest to nightlife, hills and views, and/or plan to stay in one place and walk mostly. Going southeast is more likely to find better uphill views IMO because you get to see across the water better.
      • Gudiashvili Square – most central area for nightlife in Old Tbilisi. The square itself has some rowdy clubs and bars. On the west, you have bars and late night food on Shalva Dadiani St (also Bernard on next street over). Going east on flat land, you have L.P.M. Bar and surrounding area. Going southeast up the hills, you have bars with nice views (like Qandara). But don’t fear, Gudiashvili is a nice area and also lovely to be during the day or night even if you don’t party.
      • Upper Betlemi Church – great residential area to stay, it has a nice viewpoint for hanging out during the day or night. Can smoke or drink here with friends. Go down the Betlemi stairs to be right in the busy area, or head east see more beautiful hillside areas and views.
      • Freedom Square (southeast hill bottom) – Gorgasali Square is probably the most touristy point in all of Old Tbilisi. Cobbled stone ground right by bridges, water, starting point of the hills. It’s the classic postcard photo here. I personally wouldn’t stay by here because it’s too far from other stuff in the north, but it’s not a bad choice if you want to be right in the tourist zone.
      • Freedom Square (southeast hill top) – any place on Gomi or Betlemi St is probably going to have amazing views. But even if not, you can just go eat at a nearby restaurant or cafe with the views. I wouldn’t recommend staying on the hills if you don’t have the physicality to walk up hills everyday. It’s not that bad IMO, but perhaps I’m more fit than most. Some sections up here are accessible by car (but not always…especially when tires can’t grip the stones in the rain).
      • Freedom Square (south hill top) – Sololaki district, nice hilly area with hilltop cafes, restaurants, and bars. Touristy in the lower parts and great views up top, and also different vibe. Charmy architecture. Has a bit of that Istanbul vibe here. Can also find a nice sulfur bath house here. Can be awfully tiring to walk home to and maybe tricky for a car to reach directly to your building.
  • Rustaveli Street – area surrounding big main street going from Liberty Square in the south, going north up to the south bank of Kura River and finishes at Rustaveli metro (by the Giant Bicycle Monument) where it becomes another street and passes into Vera and Vake neighborhoods. It’s a nice city area as well…with many bars, shops, restaurants, etc. Still walkable to Old Tbilisi.
    • West of Rustaveli is mostly residential neighborhoods elevating up the hills, will be more affordable but also have nice views. East of Rustaveli is much more commercial or wide open spaces (also flat land and easier to get around and closer to the water).
  • Saarbrucken Bridge – the bridge in northeast of Old Tbilisi. Areas on north side of the water are nice and local, yet still very walkable to Old Tbilisi. Lots of shops and places to eat, and you’re still near the bridge and easily cross over to the southern busier side. East of here would get more quiet and residential up the hills, but also has nice views. South of the bridge feels like big parks, government buildings, and open spaces before reaching the denser areas by Freedom Square.
  • Marjanishvili (aka “Fabrika area”) – area north of Kura river by Marjanishvili metro and Marjanishvili St. Very vibrant and authentically local. You have the Fabrika (cultural center of mostly youngsters with cool bars, cafe, eateries) and then Urban Garden Gym. Then there’s busy Davit Aghmashenebeli Ave, which also becomes a nice walking street with many restaurants, bars, cafes, shops. It’s just north of the water and easily connects to Saarbrucken bridge where you can cross to Old Tbilisi.
  • Vera – area northwest of Rustaveli metro and Giant Bicycle Monument. Generally rundown buildings, which is par for Tbilisi. Further west is Vake. East side is Rustaveli big street with its downtown vibes…shops, restaurants, commercial buildings, museums. Still nice and still close enough to walk to Old Tbilisi.
    • Matsminda – further up the hills and not so conveniently walkable to other parts of the city. But nice views of the city down below. Easy to get up here by car, funicular (hill tram), or cable car.
  • East of Kura River – I’ve never stayed here but walked by it along the water a couple times. It seems pretty quiet, peaceful, and residential.
    • Chugureti – area east of the Kura River bend (near the German embassy). Affordable and also nice views. Walkable to Freedom Square in 20mins or drive in 9mins. Walkable to Avlabari area in 15mins.
    • Avlabari – Avlabari neighborhood (located by Avlabari metro) is a vibrant local area with its own feel, due to ethnic Armenian population. Everything looks a tad more rundown but also cheaper and still nice IMO (remodeled interiors). You can easily cross the Metkhi Bridge and reach the busy Sololaki district and busy Gorgasali square in 10mins scenic walking.
  • Vake:
    • Nice posh area (with many commercial stores/buildings) stretching northwest on Zakaria Paliashvili Street all the way up to Vake park. Stay more west to be by the park, or more east to be closer to city center. Widely known as the place for upscale locals and expats. European buildings and nicer infrastructure.
    • I love the fanciness of Vake but hate that it’s a little farther from the city center and no metro, which means there’s ALWAYS car traffic. Buses are super full. For tourist things and meeting up with people in Old Tbilisi, you’re always 20-40 mins drive through traffic to everything and it’s annoying. Whereas if you stayed closer to the Saarbrucken Bridge area, you can walk to nearly everything in 10-15 minutes (and drive time even less). For this reason, I can’t recommend it for short-term visitors. It’s only worth staying if you’re going to live here and hangout almost only in Vake.
  • Saburtalo – far off to the northwest past Vake, and generally not desirable for visiting foreigners because it’s not charmy like Old Tbilisi and is farther from touristy things, 1hr in public transportation to Liberty Square. But many expats and students live here. Also a nice area for families, space, parks, gyms, dogs, etc. Tons of shops and restaurants, busy crowded streets like a real city.

Remember not to be shy about staying what seems farther away from Libery Square on the map. From Liberty Square to the water is about 5-12 mins walk. Old Tbilisi is small and you can get most anywhere in 10mins by taxi easily, or metro. You can really be anywhere in Tbilisi and enjoy it. All neighborhoods seemed pretty vibrant and lively to me, and very connected to the Tbilisi energy. It’s not like in other cities where being in the wrong neighborhood can have you feeling like you left the city completely.

For first time Tbilisi visitors, I think it’s most charming to get a place with an old-style Georgian courtyard so you can enjoy the authentic architecture and see daily local life.

In regards to finding places on the hills with a view…you’ll most likely find that in these 4 spots:

  • Solalaki district on the hills south of Freedom Square. Can be tiring to walk home, walking uphill to reach your building and then up more flights of stairs to reach your place. Cars may or may not be able to reach all the way to your place. I didn’t mind this climb since the views are so amazing and also you’re so close to all the action below.
  • Tall apartment buildings by Liberty Square. Generally more expensive, but you’re nearby all city conveniences.
  • Hillside buildings west of Rustaveli St, generally affordable because of the walking inconvenience. Views can be really nice, but pay attention which direction the windows face.
  • Chugureti, northeast of where the Kura river bends (nearby German embassy). Cheaper and also quieter hilly residential area. Feels out of the action, but is not far from it either.

Hostels:

  • Fabrika Hostel – I didn’t try any but this is the hostel to try if you want to meet people and have young friends to party with. Also a great place to drink. Area nearby is very vibrant that you don’t feel too much FOMO being farther from Freedom Square.
  • Namaste Hostel – perfect location in tourist area of Sololaki (on the hills with amazing view), just go downhill and you reach Freedom Square. Many other hostels around here, too. Read reviews and decide.
  • Hostel Nomad – nice location right near Rustaveli St and metro. Walkable into Freedom Square.

I didn’t try any hostels but did see many potentially nice ones.

Neighborhoods & Walking areas:

  • Old Tbilisi – this is basically the entire tourist area, has everything. You’ll probably be inside here your entire 1st visit. Tourist walking tours will take you right by all of Old Tbilisi.
    • Rustaveli St – main street from Rustaveli metro station down to Freedom Square. Looks like typical busy city street with many shops and stores. Has some notable architectural gems like Georgian Natural Museum and Tbilisi Opera & Ballet Theater.
      • East side of Rustaveli takes you to the parks (Dry Bridge Market with old soviet items) and across Saarbrucken Bridge. South of the parks, you have the somewhat busy area of Orbeliani Square and Atonelli St with shops and eateries. Most touristy stop is the Clock Tower and nearby Ioane Shavteli St.
      • West side of Rustaveli takes you through local residential neighborhoods which slowly elevate uphill towards Matsminda with nice hillside views along the way. Not necessary to explore unless you specifically want to walk up to Matsminda Park on the mountain.
      • North of Rustaveli takes you into Vera & Vake neighborhoods. South of Rustaveli takes you into Freedom Square.
    • Freedom Square (city center)* – marked by the column with statue on top, right in the middle. Many stores, shops, businesses, restaurants, nightlife, bars and late night food, etc. Also referred to as Liberty Square.
      • Freedom Square (south)** – this is the most hip and cool area. Tons of eateries and nightlife, shops, and just a nice streets to walk. Many buildings look ragged and rundown but in a charmy way. Tons of unique Georgian architecture in every direction.
        • Southwest area of Freedom Square like Ivane Machabeli street are more gritty feel. Many nice shops, street art/graffiti and such.
        • Southeast area of Freedom Square like Gudiashvili Square are much more posh with newer nicer buildings. Gudiashvili Square is a nice open square with some trees and benches surrounded by nice buildings. Very charmy and pretty. Many restaurants and cafes here with outdoor seating. At night, there are some bars and clubs going on right on the square, you can go inside them or just bring your own alcohol and drink outside in the square. Even with the nightlife, I’d say the square is peaceful to be anytime whether day or not.
        • The main streets you walk from here are either south on Shavla Dadiani St towards the Lado Asatiani and hills with pretty architecture and views. Or east on Kote Afkhazi St towards Bridge of Peace.
        • Puri Square – not the prettiest square, but lots of authentic old architecture around. Scope out the little alleyways peeking up to the Mother of Georgia statue. You’ll likely pass by here anyway walking from Lado Asatiani towards Sololaki hilltop area or Gorgasali Square by the water.
    • Sololaki (hillside district) – hilly area of Tbilisi southeast of Freedom Square. Nice restaurants, bathhouses, shops, tourist stuff. Climb further up the hill for incredible views of the city below. Bottom of the hill in front is Gorgasali Square, and around the hill in back is National Botanical Garden and Botanikuri St area. Top of the hill is the Mother of Georgia statue and many beautiful views of Tbilisi along the way.
      • Gorgasali Square (tourist center) – most touristy square located at bottom of Sololaki, with postcard views all around. Hills, water, church, old architecture, bridges, people everywhere. It’s the postcard shot of Tbilisi.
      • Sololaki St – beautiful street on top of the hill featuring the Mother of Georgia statue and best beauitful panoramic views of Tbilisi down below. 3-4 ways to get up from Lado Asatiani Street, each with their own beautiful scenic routes. 1st route via Betlemi Stairs passing Betlemi Rise Viewpoint, and taking stairs behind Upper Betlemi Church. 2nd route following Lado Asatiani all the way east until it becomes Betlemi St, following east into Orbiri St and through Narikala Fortress (which unofficially has a wall we used to climb to reach Sololaki Street. 3rd way is using cable car from Rike Park. 4th way is via car and get dropped off just west of the statue.
      • Botanikuri St (Islamic area) – a more chill but also pretty touristy area just east of Narikala Fortress. Has the pretty Juma Mosque and many sulfur baths, alongside restaurants and shops. You can see down into it already from the fortress. In case you were looking for where the Muslim population actually lives in Tbilisi, I heard they’re all in Marjanishvili.
    • Bridge of Peace – this area refers to all things located directly east of Freedom Square.
      • Kote Afkhazi St – very touristy street with many shops and eateries, live street music, lots of people walking around. Ereckles II Street is also here, but many restaurants on there look extremely touristy (I probably wouldn’t trust).
      • Go further east to the water and you reach the Bridge of Peace. Cross the peace bridge and you reach Rike Park.
      • Rike Park – big green park east of Kura river). Nice to hang around. Is also like an amusement park with carnival games, hot air balloons, and other things for family entertainment. Has something for everyone. You can take photos of the peace bridge right from the concrete space just southeast of the bridge.
        • From Rike Park…you can walk 10-15mins or take car to Holy Trinity Cathedral, walk 5 mins to Avlabari area, or take cable car up to Mother of Georgia statue on top of Sololaki district.
      • Avlabari – area around Avlabari metro give an authentic non-touristy look into local life. But the real magic is at Queen Darejan Palace and Metekhi Virgin Mary Assumption Church, both giving incredible views across the water into Sololaki.
  • North of Old Tbilisi
    • Marjanishvili* – very busy and vibrant area by Marjanishvili metro. Just 3 streets east of it is the hipster, youthful, vibrant university area by Fabrika (cultural center & hostel). Most people will walk on Davit Aghmashenebeli Ave which looks like a busy city street (similar to Rustaveli), follow Davit until it crosses Tchorokhi Street and Davit becomes a walking street with many restaurants and bars that also serve as hookah lounges. Go further down and you see Saarbrucken Square and Saarbrucken Bridge to cross into the center of Old Tbilisi.
    • Vera – small area just between Vake and Old Tbilisi. Busiest area would be where Merab Kostava St & Tamar Chovelidze St cross.
    • Vake – the posh and fancy neighborhood of Tbilisi. Nice marble tiled wide sidewalks, big stores and shops, also small fancy boutiques. Fancier restaurants and bars with more space. Lots of greenery and tree-lined streets, also LED lights on trees at night. Nice to walk around and see a more posh city life. Nice area to be but can be inconvenient taking taxi back to Old Tbilisi during traffic hours. Buses are crowded, and there’s no metro line. Also no touristy things in this area.

Generally, the downtown tourist center starts around Freedom Square and stretches south towards the Sololaki street/district on the hills (by the Mother of Georgia statue), then southeast to Gorgasali Square, and east across the Bridge of Peace towards Rike Park. You can also go north from Freedom Square along big buildings on Rustaveli Ave… or northeast past Orbeliani Square, Clock Tower, then Dry Bridge Market and across Saarbrucken Bridge would also be touristy areas, although less crowded.

Cross the Saarbrucken Bridge bridge and walking northwest on Davit Aghmashenebeli Ave past Marjanishvili station would also be a nice touristy (but more authentically local) area.

Activities to do:

  • Buildings & architecture:
    • Mother of Georgia (statue) – beautiful statue of Kartlis Deda on top of the Sololaki St hill. Enjoy panoramic views of the city from here as well as the statue itself. Kartlis Deda (a fictitious woman symbol of Georgian character) carries in her left hand a bowl of wine for those who come as friends, and her right a sword for those who come as enemies.
    • Georgian National Museum – cool looking from the outside. I don’t have to tell you. You’ll easily notice it from Rustaveli and take a photo already.
    • Tbilisi Opera & Ballet Theater – European shape building with Moorish decoration.
    • Sololaki District and Betlemi St – many old houses here with charmy architecture.
    • Holy Trinity Cathedral – biggest church in Georgia. You can see it from pretty much anywhere in Tbilisi. It looks huge and is lit up at night.
    • Chronicle of Georgia** – looks like a really cool historic monument but was actually built super recently in 1985. Actually still super cool. Walk around and take incredible photos. You can also enjoy nice panoramic landscape views from here as well. Make sure you be like me and not tell anyone where it is when they see your photos and beg OMG, WHERE IS THIS?!
    • Old wall & blue house – on Nikoloz Baratashvili St. You’ll pass by often in car but should walk by it.
    • Houses – there are lists out there of notable houses and courtyards to check out. Explore the city and you’ll see. Courtyard hunting.
  • Parks, gardens, green spaces:
    • Matsminda Park:
      • Most important park for tourists because of the view. Classic soviet park on the hill, with carnival games and rides, shops and restaurants. Looks like an amusement park. Free entrance but every ride and game costs money to play which you buy in the form of credits.
      • Great views of the city from here from the Mtatsminda View Point, ferris wheel (best bench views next to it), or Funicular Restaurant. You could come here as “a day at the park” and just relax. Enjoy views and then eat when you feel hungry. There’s something for everyone.
      • 4 ways to reach Matsminda Park. 1st option easiest is take cable car from Lower Station of Mtatsminda Cable Car (12 lari, great view, and goes often). 2nd is take hillside funicular tram from Mtatsminda Funicular Station (3 lari and still nice view but obstructed by tram and buildings). 3rd is hike up the trail behind Mtatsminda Pantheon (which has amazing views and peaceful vibe), hiking all the way or taking halfway funicular hill tram from Tbilisi Funicular. 4th option is taking car all the way to Mtatsminda Park front entrance.
    • Rike Park – big park with play areas, nice views of the picturesque Peace bridge, and also some tourist attractions like the cable car to Solalaki. Highly recommended to take this cable car! Not only for the views but gets you effortlessly up the Sololaki hilly area. Which gives you beautiful panoramic views from there, among many other things, and then you can easily walk down the hill back to the central tourist area.
    • Vake Park – nice big park with many recreational facilities. Also a cable car to Turtle Lake up the mountain. The recommended thing by locals is to call a car directly to Turtle Lake, then enjoy the 25min scenic walk down the grass hill to Cecilia Cafe (eat there because it’s delicious). On another day, you do spend several hours at the Ethnographic Museum.
    • Dedaena Park – nice relaxing park, where the Dry Bridget Market takes place and you see many street vendors selling all sorts of things. Probably busiest on weekends. Worthwhile tourist visit.
    • Leonidze Park – chill local park. Come here to relax away from noise but still be close to the city.
    • National Botanical Garden – big green area right behind the Narikala Fortress. You’ll pass by many key city sights on the way here. Can also pair it up with the more peaceful Botanikuri St as a chill day.
    • I just want to add that there are many little tiny children’s parks or green spaces around the city where you can smoke or touch grass. But they don’t show up as green squares on GoogleMaps.
  • Beaches, bridges, water-points:
    • Bridge of Peace** – is the cool modern design bridge you’ve seen in Georgia tourism commercials. Walk across it just so you can say you’ve been to Tbilisi (or even Georgia).
    • Saarbrucken Bridge – is the one you’ll probably walk past most as a tourist or even local resident.
    • Kura River – wraps along the east side of Old Tbilisi. You can walk along it on both sides. I find the part along the eastern side of the river on the east side of Old Tbilisi most picturesque and nice, it’s called “Left Embankment” and connects right to Rike Park.
    • Lisi Beach – aka Lisi Lake. Nice place for a swim and nature escape not far from the city.
  • Markets, shopping:
    • Old Tbilisi – tourist center is probably better for souvenir stuff. For clothing and everyday household items, look elsewhere.
      • Galleria Tbilisi – many stores, brands, and fast food restaurants to choose from. 3rd floor has local Georgian designer shops, and IMO is the only unique point of this mall. This mall is not that big, not that fancy, not many options in general.
      • Russian market – checkout street vendors by Saarbrucken bridge and right next to it at 9 March Park (accessed from westside stairs). Tons of random stuff, arts & crafts, old soviet items & souvenirs. Also more vendors parked by street sidewalk at the back (lined up outside the Art Cafe).
      • Meidan Bazar – underpass repurposed into a souvenir shop with tourist prices. Many different kinds of interesting products and period-decor but don’t buy anything, it’s wayyyy too expensive. Also useful to pass by as you cross the street between Gorgasali Square and the water without running across the road.
      • Small boutiques – the small local shops with local-made stuff are the highest quality. You can search online for lists of souvenir shops.
      • Merani Mall – small mall with a half-dozen typical highend designer brands and nothing else. Streets around here will also have some big brand shopping stores.
      • Dezerter Bazaar – huge historic marketplace selling every kind of thing. Fresh produce, household items, clothing, etc. Also many shops nearby selling everything as well. Watch out for street dogs, child pickpockets, and scams.
    • Saburtalo – best shopping neighborhood for me. Tons of stores of all kinds all on 3 main streets. All kinds of items…clothing, household, tools, etc. Full range of lowend to highend.
      • City Mall – absolute best mall in Tbilisi. Nice mall with biggest selection of nice shops, restaurants. Many highend brands especially at the back of the upper floor upscale area. Then visit bottom floor crowded court of many small shops and booths. Tourists might find this mall out of the way in Saburtalo neighborhood but actually it’s great as nearby streets have many other stores to choose from.
      • Pekini Street – from the City Mall, you can walk along both Vazha Pshavela Ave and Alexander Kazbegi Ave until you reach Pekini St. Then explore south on Pekini St until it merges with Merab Kostava St.
    • Vake & Vera – these 2 neighborhoods seem to have all the fanciest and small boutique clothing brands. Explore the main streets and you’ll find many unique small designer brands.
    • Eyeglass stores
      • You can find eyeglass frames from 40-700 lari. Highend quality brands start from 179 lari and up. You don’t really need to go above 299 lari unless you want super fancy. Lens cost 40-220 lari depending on your options (thin lens, anti-reflection, blue light blocking) and special needs (e.g. astigmatism, etc).
      • Most optician shops out there carry a mix of low and upper-mid range, cost from 40-300 lari. I much preferred if they carried higher end stuff and especially if they had the George Piralli brand (local Georgian brand), which I felt were very stylish and high quality while yet reasonably-priced. Prices seem pretty standard throughout the stores. The same frame model will cost the same everywhere you go, only difference is how much they charge for the lens.
      • Queen Tamar Avenue – many eyeglass stores on this street, you can shop all brands side-by-side. Full range from lowend to highend, turnaround times are 15min to 2 days (depending on prescription). You see the most stores at Mghvdeli/Chubinashvili St then walk southwest about 3 blocks to Tsinamdz St. Some stores are chain stores found throughout Tbilisi.
      • Roniko (chain) – nicest chain with biggest store-space, biggest selection of highend frames and contacts, optometry services, and nice service (with English-speaking). Glasses take 2 days to make so I hesitate and wonder where they outsource it to. Their biggest store is on Rustaveli street but even their smaller stores have good selection as well (just in more compact display space).
      • Optimist (chain) – nice store, great selection with a balance of mid and highend. Best prices since they charge less for their lens, I bought from here. Turn-around can be 1 hour or 1 day depending on your lens.
      • Kenari (chain) – another popular chain with good selection, and service. More or less, same selection as Roniko and Optimist.
      • Mzera (chain) – mid range store carrying some common brands and also uncommon brands. Some good stuff but I preferred the stores that carried the local George Piralli brand and they didn’t.
      • Sani Optics (chain) – seems like a nice store carrying totally different brands from the usual ones found at Roniko, Kenari, and Optimist.
      • Afflelou (chain) – nice big selection and they have their own house brand as well.
      • Benissimo – nice store and owner, with super wide selection from lowend to highend.
      • Sauvage Concept Store Tbilisi – highend super trendy eyeglass brands and shopping. Things are overpriced.
      • Toreli – really nice highend sunglasses with super trendy cool designs.
      • Messy Weekend – cool sunglasses, good quality and good price.
      • Okkia – nice sunglasses, at cheaper pricer point.
  • Arts & museums:
    • Georgian Museum of Fine Arts – cool building architecture from outside, interesting art works by Georgian artists inside. Mostly paintings, some pastels, some drawings, and sculptures. Then they have visiting exhibitions as well.
    • Ethnographic Museum – a really beautiful outdoor museum setting with parts of houses used as architectural exhibits.
    • Art galleries – there are many interesting
  • Viewpoints, landmarks, sunsets:
    • Tbilisi’s most amazing beauty…the 5 main viewpoint angles across the hilly city. Generally the 3 west-of-river viewpoints are better since they’re going with the sun. And the 2 east-of-river angles are also nice, but probably take better photos either early in the morning or later at sunset time or after.)
    • Sololaki angle – most popular and easiest panoramic viewpoint angle of the city, located from multiple places in the Solalki district. Clear view of peace bridge, Metekhi Church, and Holy Cathedral all in one shot. Look left, you see Funicular restaurant and Tbilisi TV Tower. Look right, you see Botanikuri St area and National Botanical Garden in the back. You’re high up but still close to the city, so you feel close to each sight and the photos look intimate.
      • Mother of Georgia (Sololaki) – you can take cable car up from Rike Park, or climb stairs or walk through Sololaki neighborhood streets. Many people take the cable car up and then walk back down to Gorgasali Square. 1st option walking is up Betlemi Street Stairs then more stairs behind Upper Betlemi Church or across on Betlemi or Gomi St, the other is through the fortress and then down Orbiri St. Both beautiful with different views. Car access is possible as well up to a part of the way.
        • Betlemi Rise Viewpoint* – like a little park with amazing view, benches, and street cats/dogs. So nice and chill, totally local neighborhood vibes all around. Lowkey one of my favorite places to be. Stopping here to eat lunch at day, or at night with music and late night food after coming home from a party. It’s super close to but much better views than the Belemi Street Stairs. Accessible only by foot. Honestly, it’s such a great view and only 6-7 mins walk up the stairs from the main street.
          • See360 – fancy restaurant in this area with nice views, but the wall is high so you don’t see much unless you stand up.
          • Kldisubani St. George’s Basilica – located from Gomi St and then up the Betlemi Dead End. Study the map before you go as you might not have cell reception here. I love this view because it’s super beautiful and unobstructed view, and there’s usually nobody around. You have the benches and views all to yourself. So peaceful.
          • Chillimi Hookah Lounge – nice lounge and great view for night-time.
          • Qandaras – nice view for night time.
          • 144 Stairs (cafe restaurant) – cafe restaurant in this area with the most amazing views. Outside seating with low walls so you have totally unobstructed views. Day time you can just walk in and get an amazing outdoor table with a view, at night you may need reservation for guaranteed outdoor seating. Food is good but small portion for the price.
        • Narikala Fortress** – right next to upper cable car station for Mother of Georgia statue. Accessible by car to fortress, or cable car, or walking. Best panoramic viewpoint of the city IMO because you’re high up and can see everything but also feels like you’re close to the city and not super far away. Photos look like you’re immersed in the Tbilisi skyline. (NOTE: much better view if you scramble up along the walls. The highest tower gives 360 degree angle view.)
          • Cafe 38 – simple neighborhood cafe/restaurant has high chairs and low window frames (completely open, no glass) giving amazing unobstructed view. Food is subpar, so I would only drink wine or tea here. Place is run down and almost always empty, so it’s a great way to catch a view. You can even sit on concrete ledge by street for free outside (similar view).
          • Gorgasali Square – basically down by the street and water already. Nice postcard area with charmy buildings and sights, by the water with the church across. Beautiful views at this square and many roads leading to more beautiful views in every direction. As a tourist, you will naturally end up here anyway as many touring tours also start from here.
    • Mtatsminda angle – highest viewing angle with lots of comfortable viewing space, even chairs and benches to sit on. Depending on what side of the mountain, you can see north towards Vake neighborhood, northeast towards Tbilisi Reservoir. Or all common historical sights in the south like peace bridge and Holy Cathedral, but you can also see the Mother of Georgia Statue (from front-ish diagonal angle). Many ways to get up, and many activities on this mountain make it the 2nd most popular viewing angle (but not my 2nd favorite).
      • Mtatsminda mountain – is like a big park on the mountain, with an amusement park and restaurants and shops built on it. Like most slavic cities, it’s free to enter instead of a cover charge at the gate that you see in most western countries (e.g. Disneyland). Best views of the city from up here are Mtatsminda View Point (which is free) or ferris wheel or Funicular Restaurant (nice option for night time).
      • Funicular, Ferris Wheel
        • Mtatsminda Pantheon – like a church on a hill inside the park with a long handrail. Incredible views inside such a tranquil peaceful place. So so underrated!!! From here, you can walk up the hill to the Funicular midway-station and take the funicular or walk the rest of the way up to Mtatsminda mountain.
        • Church Of Mikhail of Tver – lower neighborhood version of this viewing angle. Has a handrail and some benches. Simple viewing point but more laidback and can be nice if you just want to drink and chill with some friends.
        • Polikarpe Kakabadze St – the street between Pantheon and Mikhail Church. You might be tempted to call a car but it’s a nice 15min with views in between the hilltop residential houses. A nice walk!
        • Giant Bicycle Monument – could be a fun tourist photo if you’re walking by here. Both of the bicycle itself as well as the city view below.
    • Tabor Monastery angle – easily the 2nd if not 1st best viewpoint angle. You can see everything because this angle isn’t from a tourist point. You can see Mtatsminda mountain with funicular and TV tower, then Mother of Georgia statue and Narikala Fortress above the Botanikuri St, then follow the peace bridge across the water to the Holy Cathedral on the other side of the river. This angle showcases many beautiful Tbilisi old architecture. Uncommon viewpoint probably because it seems far from common tourist area, but actually so easy to get here and so worth it.
      • Tabor Monastery – only 2 ways to get up (car via backstreet) or (walking via front neighborhood road). Walking through neighborhood is easy to get lost and not the best experience anyway…so I recommend taking a car up. Once at the top, enjoy all viewing angles by yourself. Almost nobody there and lots of seating for you to sit and relax. Then come back down by walking down the stairs and walkway into the neighborhood street. Can treat it as a day at the park with a short hike.
      • Gertsel Baazovi St – this is the neighborhood street you use to walk down from the monastery. You can use it to connect you to the Botanikuri St area. Side tip: follow neighborhood stairs (at Gertsel Baazovi 16 or Gertsel Baazovi 10) up to the upper footpaths for elevated views of local neighborhood. They might not seem like public footpaths but they are! Explore and enjoy.
    • East of Kura River:
      • Just remember that being on the east side means you’re looking into the sun in the afternoon, which make not make for the best photos at that time. But it’s a great view regardless of when you go. You see the peace bridge, mother of georgia statue, and funicular and TV tower on the Mtatsminda mountain.
      • Terrace Bar Dali – nice restaurant with viewpoint to see at day or after dark. At night is a nice place for a drink and also has amazing food.
      • Holy Trinity Cathedral – nice big church on the mountain would definitely have a great panorama looking back at the city. Go early if you don’t want the sun shining back at you from the west.
      • Queen Darejan Palace* – beautiful architecture and elevated position looking across to Old Tbilisi and Sololaki hills.
      • Metekhi Virgin Mary Assumption Church – lower view than Queen Darejan Palace and without the cool palace architecture.
      • Rike Park – cross the Peace Bridge and stand on concrete area (to your right) for nice photo ops of bridge and city.
      • Peace Bridge – nice bridge to look down the water.
    • Monuments
      • Clock Tower – classic tourist photo of really old charmy architecture around here.
      • Statues –
  • Tours:
    • Classic walking tour:
      • Highly recommended to learn basic things about Georgian culture and history, and walk past interesting things in old town.
      • You can also do the tour yourself. I did it twice. Start at Orbeliani Square, walk out to Pushkin St and past city walls towards the water. Turn into narrow Iane Shavteli St and go past clock tower and the church. Turn left when you reach the main street by Erekle II Square, and cross the Bridge of Peace. On other side, you can walk around Rike Park for more city views and Bridge of Peace. Take cable car up to the hill of Sololaki Street. Walk around the street up there, enjoying views, also climbing into the Narikala Fortress walls. Then walk down to the Gorgasali Square from fortress entrance and enjoy Sololaki District. If you’re too tired to do all in one day…then do the cable car and Sololaki District on another day.
    • Carriage tour – where you sit 2 or 4 persons on like an open carriage driven by motor or horse, and they take you around common city sights. They all tend to start at Gorgasali Square. Can be fun or romantic.
  • Relaxation:
    • Sulfur bath house – come for a relaxing day at the spa, and also get scrubbed down by a bath house lady. Then relax in the room. The ones my friends tried (and loved) was Sulphur Bathhouse №5 (few blocks east of Gorgasali Square). There are many others around, look at photos and read reviews to decide.
    • Massage – maybe try one since things are cheaper in Georgia.
  • Events:
    • Tbilisi Open Air – annual music festival playing mix of national and international music.

Restaurants & Cafes:

  • RadioCafe – awesome cafe with great food and drinks, right across from the beautiful Leonidze Park. Also a live pianist during the day (maybe also at night, I’m not sure). Great place to eat during the day (try the 3-mini khachapuri)…and probably before doing a walking tour of Tbilisi.
  • Salobie Bia* – solid, not BEST food, but amazing cool decor and reasonable prices. It’s like a restaurant in an art gallery.
  • See360 – nice restaurant with good food and service. Offers a really nice view of Tbilisi. I will complain slightly that the wall is too high that you can’t see the view as much when you sit down, you have to stand for the view. So if you want a better view, I’m sure the other nearby restaurants around can deliver.
  • Zodiaqo – typical cave restaurant rated as one of the best food places in Tbilisi. But I found the food underwhelming for the hype… it was good (not life-changing), and we had frustratingly poor service here.
  • 12 Taghi – I didn’t eat here but I walked by and heard lovely live music. It looked fancy. Will try soon.
  • Chveni – cute outdoor garden type restaurant with great food, perfect for lunch. Looks more casual and rundown, not fancy.
  • Lolita – cool busy trendy restaurant, meant for nighttime. Hipster divey grungey decor.
  • Caravanserai Bakery – the oldest bakery in Tbilisi. One of our walking tours took us by here to watch the process. I could’ve cared less and swore it was a tourist trap (with the tour guide getting commission). But some of my friends bought it and actually, the bread was pretty damn good. So yeah, I’d highly recommend it.
  • Restaurant Hide* – nice cave restaurant with modern decor. Great food and service, perfect English-speaking.
  • Cafe Dante – cute little cafe in old building with totally retro vintage decor. Nice for photos. But food is overpriced and sucks. Come here for a tea or wine on the terrace, but not for food.
  • Cafe 38 – kind of run down place but with great views and available seating. Very casual non-fancy setting. Things are overpriced and I don’t imagine their food is great. But have a glass of wine for the view. It’s nice since some places on the hills require you to spend a certain amount to have a table with a view.
  • Grafika – amazing decor and vibe inside, good service. Food and drinks are good enough but don’t add up to the price. Big cafe with lots of seating farther inside, modern design and many tables for coworking. Can be vibey when full or seems super quiet when empty.
  • Chaduna – really nice brunch, cafe, wine bar. Nice elegant artsy decor.
  • Coffee Place – cute coffee place.
  • Cheri Pasta Bar – really high quality pasta. Nice hipster vibe and music. Kinda of pricey in terms of portion size.
  • Pasanauri – chain Georgian restaurant, good food and reasonable price. Always solid and reliable. Food cook time can be slow.
  • Korea Restaurant –
  • Barbarestan
  • Charm Thai – good thai food and friendly service.
    • Thai Curry – another good option.
  • Terrace Bar Dali – beautiful terrace view! Pricey but vibey in a non-pretentious way. Many rooms with different themed decor. 2-levels of outdoor terrace balcony with incredible views looking to the east. Just 5-10 minutes walk downhill back to the main city streets. Great selection of drinks/wine, absolutely delicious food, great service. I hear the best time to go is 8-9pm.
  • Late night food:
    • Liberty Square – fast food places will be around here. But for sitting down or higher quality, you’ll have to go south and southeast towards the nightlife areas.
      • Bernard – classic late night 24/7 place with good food. Everybody goes here for food after a night out. Bernard Sushi is just next door, nice asian food and alternate option if Bernard doesn’t have enough space for your big group.
      • Feed Me – best burgers open later, but just a street shack with no seating.
        • Good Choice – also good burgers and with indoor seating.
      • Plover – sells plov (rice and meat with fat). Open late.
      • ACID Bar – I heard was a nice option, but never tried.
    • Obeliani Square
      • Cafe Daphna – excellent khinkali, and many other traditional foods. Big space to sit and cowork inside, friendly service, opens late.
      • Mai Thai – good enough thai restaurant.
    • Gorgasali Square – has many restaurants open late as well, and with a terrace view of the city at night. Look around the I Love Tbilisi sign (restaurant right behind this is good), many other options around as well.

There is so much nice food everywhere. Even some 3.5 star restaurants can be pretty good. I listed only the more iconic ones that I know of but really, there are many for you to explore.

Generally, restaurants utilize a handful of the following to attract customers:

  • Good food
  • Cool decor
  • Live music (or performance, like cultural dancing)
  • Terrace views

Bars & Clubs:

  • Liberty Square & Shavla Dadiani St – classic big club and big bars, loud music and young people looking to get crazy. Of course, there’s vibey bars along the way as well. Just walk down Dadiani and see what catches your eyes (or ears).
    • Rudeboy – typical party bar when you’re on the main street and trying to decide where to head next.
    • Zest – nice fancy-casual bar and restaurant with indoor/outdoor seating. Good to sit outside late and smoke/chat. Enjoy fresh air, they play some vibey music too but you can still hear each other.
    • Barmaglot – famous upscale bar chain found in many slavic countries.
    • So Lucky Cocktail Bar – nice underground cave bar with good vibes, drinks and service, more grungry hipster decor but a nice place. There’s music but at talkable volume. Right balance of fun but not too crazy. We came here cuz it was open later than surrounding ones.
  • Gudiashvili Square – nice square with many big noisy clubs. You can also just sit outside on the benches and smoke, drink, chill as well.
    • L’ado by Valiko – another nice club in the hill area.
    • Makerspace – cool bar/club in the hill area.
  • Gorgasali Square & Kote Afkhazi St – the most touristy party area with a wide range from casual drunk music bars to fancy elegant wine bars, touristy Irish pub, karaoke, and everything in between. Also, there’s always people walking about…both party people and non-party people. Many clubs here rip off tourists, so watch out. There are 3 main areas to cover:
    • Gorgasali Square going up hill – you can pop into the small streets and pick a wine bar or party bar with terrace views. nice bars with a view of the city below. Just know that climbing the hills can be a pain for girls wearing heels, but the views are well worth it!
      • Qandara – cool hillside bar with amazing terrace views over the city. Lovely setting at night. My advice is to call, or check their IG to make sure they’re open before you climb the hill. Hahaha.
    • Afkhazi St & below – there’s a ton of bars and clubs right behind the main street towards the water. Jan Shardeni St, Bambis Rigi St, and other streets listed as “cotton rows” on GoogleMaps (don’t ask me why). Some are classy, some are casual, some are crazy. Be careful, many ripoff clubs here. Generally, this is not where local youngsters typically go to party!
      • Safe Night Club, Phoenix Club, Joey Bar, Shift – many bad reviews of people getting ripped off or feel threatened by staff.
      • BRIX BAR – read good reviews online.
      • Mosmieri Wine & Tapas – nice classy little place with great wine selection, good food, indoor/outdoor seating, and lovely owner.
    • Sophiko Chiaureli Garden – many bars around the little park. Most common one I know is LPM.
      • La Puta Madre (L.P.M. Bar) – popular spot playing latin hits and pop music. Can be fun early or late in the night. Can visit other similar bars around .
  • Marjanishvili & Davit Aghmashenebeli Ave – nice local party area across the water. Also with a wide range of different vibes. If you walk west on David Agh ave right from the Saarbrucken Bridge, it’s a lot of outdoor seating and hookah lounges. Go further north and you hit the infamous Fabrika.
    • Fabrika – artistic warehouse space with little shops, restaurants, bars, cool cafe for working/studying inside. Great spot to get a drink and meet people. Mostly youngsters around and divey vibe.
  • Bar 22 – cozy classy bar. Beautiful atmosphere and nice music. Relaxed friendly vibe.

Basically there are 3 main party areas:

  • Freedom Square down Dadiani St to Gudiashvili Square…
  • …then Gorgasali Square and surrounding areas from Afkhazi St towards the water or up the hill
  • …then Marjanishvili and Davit Ag ave.

Or to be more simple, you could say from Freedom Square to Gorgasali Square is the Old Tbilisi party area. And then the Marjanishvili area north of the Kura River. And all areas have a good mix of classy to casual to crazy. But north of the water is generally more local vibe whereas Old Tbilisi has all kinds.

Miscellaneous tips:

  • Transportation:
    • Metro – fast, reliable, cheap.
    • Bus – there are small buses that take you almost everywhere. Cheap.
    • Driving – I highly don’t recommend it unless you want to do roadtrips out of the city. Tbilisi is full of street traffic. Keep this in mind when planning daytime trips to the airport or bus/train station.
    • Rideshare – YandexGo and Bolt are here. Bolt is in English, easier to for foreigners to setup or they already have it but costs 20% more. I use Yandex, keep in mind it uses Russian spelling so street names can be slightly different from latinized version of Georgian spelling.
    • Scooters – I saw Jet, Bolt, Scoot rental e-scooters here. Great for long main streets but not as helpful for climbing steeps hills with cobbled roads.
    • Airport transfer – just call Yandex or Bolt. It’s cheap and convenient.
  • Dangerous drivers – be careful of driving or standing around on the streets of Tbilisi. The drivers here are especially dangerous and reckless. I’m warning you to take this seriously. You could easily be hit by a speeding car. Georgia & Armenia are easily the worst (and most dangerous) drivers I’ve ever seen in the world. I’ve also seen many street dogs barking at cars…you figure maybe one of their friends was killed by one. :/
  • Tap water – generally safe in Tbilisi and many other cities in Georgia.
  • Barber shops:
    • Stray Dog Barbershop – great shop here and speaks good English.
    • Camora Barber Shop – trendy big shop. Very happy with this one, good cut & speaks English. Fast cut and I walked in without any reservation.
    • RL Barbershop – old school small shop. 2 lovely old guys who cut fast and cheap. Walked in, waited 5 mins, and was out after another 10 mins with a clean fade exactly like I hoped for. Limited english but understood me just fine.
    • Alex Barbershop – might be spelled “Aleks Beauty Salon” in person. No frills barbershop featuring nice old Armenian-Georgian man who speaks limited English but cuts well enough and reasonable price. He cuts with great pride and attention to detail. He didn’t do exactly what I wanted so you may have to stop him or reiterate what you want at some points.
  • Gym:
    • Urban Garden (Marjanishvili) – I hear it’s the best gym. A nice big gym in a park that has everything you need, machines and trainers. Day rate possible.
    • 12 Rounds Boxing Club (Vake) – really nice posh gym. Lots of equipment, clean space. Tons of classes but also open training allowed.
  • Weather – best fall months for me is Sep if you like some hot, Oct is perfect (slightly chill at night), Nov gets too cold. I haven’t tried spring months yet, but most people would suggest May and June (since you have long sunny days but not the brutal heat, and fewer tourists).
  • Dentist – Lika recommended Albius Dental Center, Sam recommended Dream Dental & Aesthetic Group.
  • Safety – Tbilisi is generally very safe to me. I felt safe everywhere all the time, day or night, even walking down small dark scary-looking alleyways and stairwells at night. If there’s any danger, I would say to watch out for those scam night clubs or strip clubs that force every foreigner to pay $1,000 USD when leaving (EVEN IF THEY DON’T BUY ANYTHING).

Itinerary:

  • DAY 1:
    • Walk around Old Tbilisi (following my walking tour above) down to the Bridge of Peace, cross the bridge into Rike Park (more photo-points of the bridge from here as well). If you’re tired, can stop here and save the rest for another day.
    • If not tired…take cable car up to Solonaki hills. Walk around up top, passing the Mother of Georgia statue and around the Narikala Fortress for more beautiful city views. Descend through the hills of Sololaki district and eat wherever you’d like a nice view.
  • DAY 2 – breakfast at RadioCafe (enjoying live piano music), walk to the Dry Bridge Market (it’s like a park), then cross the Saarbrucken bridge. Eat at nearby local area. Can spend evening hours at bars by Fabrika.
  • DAY 3 – see Chronicle of Georgia, then Matsminda Park.
  • DAY 4
    • Day trip to Uplistsikhe ancient cave city archaeological ruins, then Mtskheta small mountain town, then Jvari Monastery, then back to Tbilisi.
    • If you really have extra time, you can visit Gori before Uplistsikhe. Gori has the Stalin Museum (which is cool and worthwhile) but also the Gori Fortress which I found really underwhelming and unnecessary waste of time. Both the fortress and the view from the fortress are boring. Better to skip ahead and have yourself more time at the beautiful Jvari Monastery viewpoint at the end.
  • DAY 5 – day trip to Sighnaghi or Kazbegi. But really, Kazbeghi truly deserves a 2-night stay IMO.

Nearby towns:

  • Mtskheta* – the little town itself is cool and interesting to wander around a little bit, passing shops and the church. But the Jvari Monastery viewpoint of Mtskheta is the real highlight for me. Aim to get there just before sunset time.
  • Sighnaghi – if you have time, sure.
  • Kazbegi** – beautiful as a daytrip tour but I highly recommend you stay here 2 nights. The beauty is so soooooo worth it.
  • Batumi – I hear it’s a very nice train trip with nature landscape views.

Other helpful guides:

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