Beyond the Standard Circuit
Almost every traveller to Georgia discovers Tbilisi, Kazbegi, and Kakheti. More adventurous visitors add Svaneti and Batumi to their itinerary. But Georgia has another layer of extraordinary destinations that most travellers never reach — places where tourist infrastructure remains minimal, landscapes are exceptional, and the sense of discovery is still intact.
These are the ten places I return to whenever I want to experience Georgia away from the crowds.
| Best for | Repeat visitors and travellers with a rental car or 4WD |
| Access | Mostly requires a car, private driver, or specialised tour — public transport is limited |
| Time needed | Several can be visited as day trips; Tusheti and Racha require at least one overnight stay |
| Best season | Late spring to early autumn for high-mountain destinations such as Tusheti and Truso; year-round for Chiatura, Vardzia, and Sighnaghi |
| Difficulty | Ranges from an easy day trip such as Vardzia to a genuinely demanding mountain road such as Tusheti's Abano Pass |
1. Tusheti — The Last Medieval Kingdom
Accessible only via the Abano Pass, one of Europe's most extreme mountain roads, Tusheti is a collection of medieval stone-tower villages perched between 1,700 and 2,100 metres above sea level. There is no permanent year-round population.
In summer, families return from their winter homes in the lowlands to their ancestral mountain villages. In autumn, they descend once again. This seasonal cycle has continued for centuries.
The villages of Omalo, Dartlo, Shenako, and Diklo are unlike anything found in the mountain heritage of Western Europe. The architecture is built from rough stone, the towers were designed primarily for defence, and the surrounding landscape remains wild and open.
Reaching Tusheti is genuinely difficult. Being there is genuinely extraordinary.
2. Racha — Georgia's Secret Wine Region
In the northern highlands, Racha produces some of Georgia's rarest and most culturally significant wines.
Among them are Khvanchkara, a semi-sweet red made from Aleksandrouli and Mujuretuli grapes and rarely found outside the region; Tvishi, a semi-sweet white; and a variety of natural wines produced by small family wineries among terraced vineyards clinging to mountain slopes at elevations of more than 1,000 metres.
Very few international tourists make it to Racha. The roads can be challenging. The wine is exceptional.
The small town of Ambrolauri is charming, quiet, and still almost entirely absent from the international tourist map.
3. Chiatura — Soviet Cable Cars Above a Manganese Mining Town
The cable-car city of Chiatura in Imereti offers one of Georgia's most unusual travel experiences. Original Soviet-era cabins still operate above a working industrial town, creating a surreal combination of history, industry, and everyday Georgian life.
Combine the visit with Katskhi Pillar, a roughly 40-metre limestone monolith topped by a medieval church, and you have a full day of genuinely extraordinary sights.
See our Chiatura post for the full picture.
4. Lagodekhi — Pristine Caucasus Wilderness
In Georgia's far east, near the Azerbaijani border and where the Greater Caucasus meets the Alazani Plain, Lagodekhi Nature Reserve protects some of the most pristine temperate forest in the Caucasus.
The Black Lake hiking route is approximately 20 kilometres round trip and requires a full day. The trail passes through ancient beech and hornbeam forests, clear mountain streams, and landscapes that have remained remarkably untouched.
Wildlife in the reserve includes species such as lynx and brown bear.
This is not a conventional tourist destination with extensive infrastructure. It is a true wilderness experience that happens to be accessible from Tbilisi in around three hours.
5. The Truso Valley Near Kazbegi
Most visitors to Kazbegi hike to Gergeti Trinity Church. The Truso Valley, accessible by 4WD from Kazbegi along the Terek River, receives only a fraction of those visitors.
That is remarkable, considering that Truso may offer one of the most dramatic landscapes in the region.
The valley follows the Terek upstream through a gradually narrowing gorge, passing travertine terraces created by mineral springs, sulphur springs that turn sections of the river orange, abandoned medieval Georgian villages, and eventually the Georgian–Ossetian border area.
The landscape feels almost otherworldly — mineral colours, abandoned settlements, and extraordinary geological formations combine to create an atmosphere unlike anywhere else in the region.
And remarkably, the valley remains almost entirely free of crowds.
6. Vardzia — The Cave City of the Georgian Queens
Built in the 12th and 13th centuries by Georgian rulers and most closely associated with Queen Tamar, Vardzia is a cave-monastery city carved into a volcanic cliff in the Samtskhe region.
The scale is extraordinary: hundreds of cave chambers arranged across multiple levels, with a fully frescoed cave church at the heart of the complex.
Vardzia appears on most lists of places to visit in Georgia, but it remains relatively under-visited because it requires a substantial detour from the standard Tbilisi–Kazbegi–Kakheti circuit.
The additional driving is well worth it. Vardzia can be combined with Borjomi and Rabati to create a rewarding journey through southwestern Georgia.
7. Ushguli in January
Most travellers visit Ushguli in summer.
Considered one of Europe's highest permanently inhabited settlements, Ushguli is surrounded by glaciers and the dramatic peaks of the western Caucasus. It is spectacular at any time of year.
But in January, when the snow is deep, the towers are covered in white, and much of the population has descended to lower-altitude winter homes, Ushguli becomes something even more extraordinary: a medieval landscape wrapped in winter silence.
The access road — a rough 4WD route even under favourable conditions — becomes considerably more challenging in winter.
The guesthouses that remain open are warm and welcoming, often serving remarkable homemade food.
Visiting Ushguli in winter requires careful planning and appropriate equipment. The experience, however, can be unforgettable.
8. Katskhi Pillar
A roughly 40-metre-high freestanding limestone monolith, Katskhi Pillar is topped by a ninth-century church complex accessible via a steep metal staircase of around 280 steps.
For centuries, the pillar was used by hermit monks, who took advantage of its extraordinary isolation.
Rediscovered by archaeologists during the Soviet era, the site is now technically accessible but remains lightly visited.
Located just 15 kilometres from Chiatura in Imereti, Katskhi offers sweeping views across the surrounding hills and gorge.
Yet it is the sheer improbability of the site — a medieval church perched on top of a freestanding rock column — that makes Katskhi one of Georgia's most remarkable historical landmarks.
9. Sighnaghi in the Off-Season
The fortified wine town of Sighnaghi, perched above the Alazani Valley, can be busy during the summer months. In winter and the shoulder seasons, however, the town transforms completely.
The cobbled streets, panoramic views across the valley towards the Caucasus, wine bars, and intimate guesthouses take on a different character once the tourist buses have disappeared and the visitors are mostly those who have deliberately sought the town out.
Spend two nights in Sighnaghi in October or April, when the vineyards are either golden with harvest colours or beginning to turn green with the first leaves of spring.
Enjoy breakfast on a terrace with the mountains in the distance.
It is one of Georgia's quiet pleasures.
10. The Sno Valley Near Kazbegi
Less remote than Truso Valley but equally beautiful, Sno Valley stretches south from the Georgian Military Highway near Kazbegi through a broad, open mountain landscape.
The valley is home to several traditional Caucasus villages and offers exceptional views of the surrounding peaks. Yet it receives only a fraction of the visitors heading towards Gergeti Trinity Church.
A half-day walk through Sno Valley takes in the medieval defensive tower in the village of Sno, the wide valley floor bordered by stone walls, and the dramatic mountain backdrop.
It offers the quintessential Kazbegi mountain experience — with almost complete solitude.
Why These Places Are Still Hidden
Georgia's tourism boom during the 2010s and early 2020s was real, but it was geographically concentrated.
Tbilisi's tourism infrastructure developed rapidly. Kazbegi became firmly connected to Tbilisi's tourism ecosystem. Kakheti's wine country became a standard day trip. Svaneti found its place on international trekking itineraries.
All of these destinations are genuinely remarkable. They are also genuinely popular.
The places on this list require more effort: more planning, more time on challenging roads, and a willingness to arrive somewhere without a tourist information office or a restaurant that accepts card payments.
That extra effort filters visitors more effectively than a formal access restriction ever could.
As a result, Tusheti still has the sense of genuine discovery that Kazbegi offered twenty years ago. Racha's wineries remain largely unknown outside a small circle of Georgian natural-wine enthusiasts.
On a summer weekend, the Truso Valley may see only a few dozen visitors, while Gergeti Trinity Church can receive several hundred.
This will change.
In fact, it is already changing. Georgian tourism authorities have identified most of these destinations and are actively developing their infrastructure.
Visit now, while the infrastructure still serves the experience rather than replacing it.
