Highlights

• National Gallery
• Tbilisi cable car
• Chakandrila Cooking course with Chef Irina
• Tbilisi concert hall
• Opera and Ballet Theater of Tbilisi
• Tbilisi Open Air Museum of Ethnography
• Walk down Shota Rustaveli Ave
• 9 April park
• Lado Gudiashvili sculpture
• Dry Bridge Market
• Public Service Hall aka Mushroom building
• Flower market in Orbeliani Square
• Brown dog– an actual dog that sits in a similar place made it onto GoogleMaps!
• Parliament of Georgia
• Tbilisi Street Market
• Georgian Museum of Fine Arts
• Georgian National Museum
• Rike Concert Hall
• Bridge of Peace
• Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi
• Narikala Fortress
• National Botanical Garden
• Mother of Georgia statue
• Gudiashvili Square- pretty houses
• Sulfur Baths
• Statue of King Vakhtang Gorgasali
• “I Love Tbilisi” Sign
• Zion Cathedral of Tbilisi
• Mtatsminda Park on the hill

Before you go

• Many places prefer cash so ensure to have cash available, in smaller bills and coins
• There is no Uber but Bolt works well
• Ladies need to wear headscarves and long skirts in Georgian orthodox churches. Short trousers for men are also forbidden
• Tbilisi cultural events such as concerts can be found on the TKT website
• Tbilisi metro rides are with contactless cards for 1.50 lari. Buying a ticket costs 1 lari and the refundable deposit for the plastic card is 2 lari
• Tbilisi old town has lots of cobblestones
• People smoke a lot but luckily usually outdoors
• Opening times seem flexible compared to what is on the internet, so a few cafes I went to in the morning were not quite open until after the official opening time
• Lunchtime is often really late around 15:00
• Most public toilets cost around one lari and usually have toilet paper
• Tipping is not mandatory but is appreciated in cash
• Tbilisi is a hilly city so wear good shoes for walking
• Weather is very cold in the winter and hot and humid in the summer; there can also be unexpected rain

Transport

• Tbilisi airport is located about 20 minutes by taxi from the city centre if there isn’t traffic. Bolt is the best way to find a taxi at a fixed rate. The pick up location is just outside of the departures terminal. Beware of drivers offering a taxi as you exit the arrivals door. They do not seem legitimate
• I flew Aegean Airlines from Athens to Tbilisi and Georgian Airways from Tbilisi to Yerevan
• Bolt is an easy and relatively cheap way to get around quickly in the city by taxi. It’s also convenient since you know the price in advance and can pay by credit card
• The Tbilisi metro system is cheap and quick. The stations are very deep and nicely decorated in Soviet style. However, it doesn’t reach the airport on either of the two lines. There is a refundable plastic card that costs 2 GEL and it can be reloaded for the metro, bus and cable car

Accommodation

• The Central Gate Hotel is conveniently located in the Old Town on a quiet street.
• Prices are very reasonable. My room was comfortable and clean. It was quite small but big enough for a few days. The hotel doesn’t serve breakfast but there are many places nearby
• The staff were friendly and helpful. They answered questions before I arrived and during my stay. In fact, they told me honestly that a Bolt taxi would be cheaper than them booking me a taxi
• Although the area seems safe, it was nice to have a person at reception 24/7 and the front door was locked at night
• During the summer from June through September there is an outdoor pool.
• Cleaning is only every three days or you need to pay a small fee. That was fine with me as I don’t need to change towels and sheets daily. Often I think that’s a bit wasteful as I wouldn’t do that at home!

Food

Restaurants

Somehow during my visit in Tbilisi, I only tried two restaurants. This is because I took two day trips, and also when I ate out I always had leftovers for the next meal. First, I went to Pasanauri, a Georgian chain that the hotel recommended. It was very busy but luckily I got a table. For khinkali, the minimum order is 5 and the charge is per piece. I had 5 of the meat-filled ones. In addition, I tried the veal kebab wrapped in flatbread and a cabbage, apple and dill salad. Everything was delicious!

On another evening I ordered takeaway from Zodiaqo. The fried khinkali were amazing! And to be healthy, I also had a fresh cucumber and tomato salad.

Chakandrila Cooking Course

One of the highlights of my visit to Tbilisi was taking a cooking course with Chef Irina at Chakandrila. We prepared khinkali filled with a pork and beef mixture. It was great to have some tips about how to prepare and fold the dough. And also what to do if some the liquid starts to leak out. I’ll post the recipe sometime soon!

Next, we made Adjaruli khachapuri, which is filled with cheese and topped with an egg yolk. Chef Irina had prepared the dough the night before, because it needs to rise in the refrigerator.

During the cooking, which takes place in her home, I met all of her sons and her cat. I also enjoyed some Georgian white wine. It was a wonderful experience!

Bakeries and Dessert

Just around the corner from my hotel, I passed by Lumier’s chimney cakes a few times and could not resist trying them. I’ve had chimney cakes before in Poland, Hungary, France and even England. However, these were made even better by turning them on their side and filling them with soft serve ice cream. There was also an option to add toppings. Definitely the fancier version of chimney cakes!

Interestingly, several of the ice cream shops on GoogleMaps were no longer there when I went to the location. Luckily the Cone Culture was there and open. I enjoyed trying two unique flavours, lavender and honey, and black tea and brownie. Yum!

La Desserte Royal Georgia is a cute, cosy dessert cafe in the Old Town. It has a beautiful variety of cakes and other treats. Although it didn’t quite open at the 9AM opening time listed on Google, it does stay open very late compared to a normal bakery.

Madame Choux Patisserie was a bit hidden back from the road, but worth finding. As the name suggests, their main desserts are choux, cream puffs. Those were delicious! I had pistachio and matcha flavours. The lemon sesame seed cookie was also very tasty.

Wine

I’ll write a lot more about Georgian wine in the post about the Kakheti wine region. However, while in Tbilisi I visited the Karalashvili Wine Cellar. They also have a wine shop in Tbilisi. It was great to sit in a cosy lounge to taste a few wines, and the staff were all very friendly and knowledgeable.