An Exploration of Old Town Tbilisi
Tbilisi, a city in the vicinity of the southern Caucasus Mountains on the border of Eastern Europe and western Asia, becomes one among the hot spot in the tourism map of 21st century. This capital city is also the biggest in the whole of Georgia. The city is in the eastern part of Georgia which beautifully lies in the banks of MtKvari river aka Kura river. The country offers visa-free entry and visa on arrival to many nationalities and that’s what makes this country in the top list among the tourist. Once I came to know about it I decided to travel there to see myself what this beautiful city have to offer to tourists and digital nomads like me. So let me take you along with me to the streets of Tbilisi.
What's Ahead
Tbilisi, my first impression
After a long eight hour journey with a stopover in UAE I reached the Shota Rustaveli international airport in Tbilisi around 4.30 in the evening. A 30 min drive from there and I reached the main city. When I enter the streets my mind was just jumping with joy because of the beauty of it and I become sure that it’s going to be some wonderful experience in the coming days.
After a quick shower I unleashed myself into the street of Tbilisi with an eagerness to know what she has to offer me. Spend some time walking some of the main streets in the night just to familiarize the neighborhood and to prepare myself for the next day into the heart of Tbilisi.
Read also : “Things to do in Tbilisi at night”
Exploring the Old Town of Tbilisi
Most of the major attractions on a city tour are in the Old Town. From Rustaveli avenue I headed towards freedom square and the first destination I set is the Bridge of peace which was an iconic architecture we can be found on every search on the internet about Tbilisi.
Things to do in Tbilisi: Strolling through the Stone paved streets
The best way to explore most of the Tbilisi Old town is by walk through some of the walking-friendly streets near the central square because of the beauty of those streets and the experience it will offer.
Our Georgian friend joined us for the day and he picked us from our hostel. We decided to park his car near the central square near the Loane Shavteli street and from there starts the exploration of old Tbilisi on our foot.
The first stop was one of the oldest surviving church in Tbilisi, Anchiskhati Basilica. You can feel the authentic spirit of ancient Christianity.
Strolling through the Erekle II street which has the same name as my Georgian friend who was accompanying us and he was very proud about it. Many cafes and bars are on both sides of these alleys and the ambiance of those places are perfectly made to the satisfaction of anyone visiting.
Music is everywhere and they even used it to decorate their places. A public piano with some graffiti artwork is what attracted me most. Artworks and music are always my weakness.
The food street is the best attraction on the Erekle st. and you cannot move ahead without having a bite of some Georgian cuisine from there. So we decide to have our breakfast from there with the famous “Khachapuri”
As it was early morning we opted for some fresh orange juice only and also my travel buddy will not consume alcohol. But anyone who want to have a taste of some Georgian wine or some beer has a lot of option to choose from.
The ambiance of this place is more than enough to light up your day.
Things to do in Tbilisi: The Bridge of Peace
A happy tummy made us more energetic and we continued to our planned destination which was just a few steps only from there, The bridge of peace.
It’s an eye-catching architecture built in the shape of a bow which connects the old Tbilisi with the new district. It also holds a position in the list of “Amazing Bridges, that are the definition of architectural Masterpieces”.
The bridge stretches over the beautiful MtKvari river providing an amazing view of the river and the Metekhi Church (It’s our next stop).
The streets on the river banks are maintained well with walk ways and decorated by manicured trees and also beautiful lamp posts.
Buildings on the old town side are holding its head above the trees to exhibit the elegance.
There is a Casino on the old town side near bridge of peace, Try your luck on a blackjack or poker table.
From the Erekle street on the old town side the bride directly connects the other side of the river to the Rike park.
Rike park is one of the newest and artistically constructed park in Tbilisi. A birds eye view of the park has the shape of the Map of Georgia. Park is decorated with beautiful landscapes and fountains. Also one of the unique and iconic construction in Tbilisi is also in the park itself, the Rike concert hall.
Things to do in Tbilisi: Metekhi Church & Monument of King Vakhtang Gorgasali
The winding walkways in the Rike park will lead you to many points of the new district. And this is the best way to reach the Virgin mary Metekhi Church which we saw from the Bridge of peace.
The church is situated on the banks of Mtkvari river elevated on a small hill and overlooking the old Tbilisi town. This orthodox church was originally built in 1270s and undergone many attacks and restorations in the following centuries.
The arch welcomed us inside silently tell the tales of attacks it survived. One of the ancient architecture which survived there to tell us the history of the city.
The dome of the church resembles medieval structure which may have undergone some recent restoration work i feel . Inside the church we will get an essence of art, culture and Christianity of ancient Georgia.
Outside the church on the same complex is the Monument of King Vakhtang Gorgasali. He laid the foundation to the capital city Tbilisi.
As per a legend the king Vakhtang was on a hunting trip in the forest and his falcon chased a pheasant and the bird fell into a hot water spring. He was surprised to see the steam coming out of the water spring and with the abundance of it. He then ordered to build a city around the site and named it Tbilisi, meaning “site of warm springs”.
The monument built in such a way that he is always on a watch to the beautiful city he made and is blessing his people.
From up there we will be also able to see what the King is watching.
Things to do in Tbilisi: The mother of Georgia and Narikala fortress
After enjoying the beautiful view of Old town we climbed down again to the Rike park and to the cable car station, a glass structure which we spotted from the church complex.
We grabbed tickets for the cable car which have a glass bottom also and it will give you a 360 degree view of the town while going up to the Narikala fortress.
Spending one lari for the ticket is an easy way to reach top the top of the hill and will treat you with an amazing view of the Old town. Metro cards are also accepted for the cable car ride.
From the drop off point atop the hill we walked to the right on the paved path. Our aim was to get an up-close view of the famous Mother of Georgia statue.
Mother of Georgia – an up close view and view from the town
It’s not possible to get a full view of the statue from there but the size and beauty of it will make us wow. The Mother of Georgia stands there as a protector of the city with Sword on one hand and a bowl of wine on the other. It’s a representation of the hospitality and the courage of people in the country that they will welcome their friends with so much love and affection (wine) and the enemies will be welcomed by their sword. Georgians are so proud and passionate about their country.
Not only the statue but the view of the entire Tbilisi from the top is mind-blowing. Many public binoculars are placed there to enjoy the city view.
Views from the top
Music is everywhere you travel in Tbilisi and pathways near The Mother of Georgia statue is also no exception. Stop and enjoy the street musicians backing the wonderful views.
A hilly path from there leading all the way down to the Old town so we decided to take that descend on foot instead of the cable car and that was a wise decision. The hilly path lead to some narrow alleys between buildings which made it an interesting walk.
The buildings on the cliff definitely will take your breath away
The path leads us to a small 22 meter waterfall named Legvtakhevi Waterfall. Above it is a botanical garden and the Tsavkisi river creates this waterfall which then further flows and join the Mtkvari river.
Things to do in Tbilisi: Old Town of Tbilisi
While reaching the old town from the waterfall we crossed the “love lock bridge” which is a smaller version of the one in Paris.
Even though it started in Paris we can spot such bridges nowadays in the touristy areas of many countries all over the world. And recently the authorities in Paris started to remove those locks from the Pont des Arts.
A series of bridges which resembles the Arabic architecture styles are connecting the old town roads.
And the famous sulfur baths are just next to it.
You can have a bath here if you want to rejuvenate your body after a whole day of exploring Tbilisi. It’s the same natural hot springs which motivated king Vakhtang to build the beautiful town of Tbilisi. Private and shared pools are available inside the bathhouses.
The old town area is always active with tourists. Also it’s a photo stop for many tourists in front of the “I love Tbilisi” sign.
Now it’s time to walk back and we passed through yet another beautiful street in Tbilisi, The Bambis Rigi Street. The street is famous for it’s bars and restaurants. Even some popular night clubs are also there. It is one of the pedestrians and historical street of ancient Tbilisi which is along with the Erekle II street.
There is also a famous bakery there which is know as the “Bakery near seminary” running on an old and beautiful old building. Just follow the smell and you will reach.
Georgia is considered as the first place to ever made wine and they have their own traditional methods to do it. That’s why Georgian wines are among the finest in the world and the Georgians take that responsibility so seriously.
The board outside a small wine shop run by two young Georgian girls on the walking street catches my attention which says that “ save the earth, it’s the only planet with wine”. Their creative thinking is so hilarious. I promised them that I will come back for a drink there but didn’t kept my promise 🙁
Almost toward the end of that long walk we rested a little bit near the Puppet theater and enjoyed the beauty of the clock tower of puppet theater with some lemonade in our hands.
The clock tower is constructed in a way that it looks like it will collapse any time. It’s one of the most unusual buildings in Tbilisi and the perpetual brink of falling down and a steel beam holding it in place makes it unique. Even though it is in the old town area of Tbilisi, it’s not an old structure. It was recently attached to the puppet theater. A must see thing in Tbilisi.
We ended our old town of Tbilisi exploration there but the Tbilisi town has a lot more to offer. Before marking an official end to the city tour we decided to Visit the Holy Trinity cathedral which caught our attention even from a far distance from the top of the Nrikala fortress.
Most popular Tbilisi tours for you !
Things to do in Tbilisi: The Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi
Holy Trinity cathedral is the main cathedral of the Georgian Orthodox churches and the biggest in Georgia. It is the third tallest eastern orthodox cathedral in the world and one of the largest religious building in the world by total area. Traditional Georgian church architecture was adapted for its construction.
The church overlooks the Tbilisi town from top of St. Ilya hill. The entire town can be seen from a different perspective.
The construction is so magnificent , modernism mixed with the traditional Georgian style. The high raised dome of the cathedral stands on 8 gigantic pillars and a 7.5 meter tall gilded gold cross is right beneath it.
The cathedral has 9 chapels in which 5 are under the ground at around 13-meter depth.
Main Church and a chapel outside
The bell tower on the left side of the cathedral has total of 9 bells representing the 9 chapels and they are specially made in Germany for this cathedral. The biggest bell on the upper part is of 8 tonnes.
Things to do in Tbilisi: Shopping
Some window shopping is a good thing to spend your time in the evening and also to explore some of the shopping areas in the city. Many malls and shopping streets are all across the city, but most of the malls are away from the city center.
Marjanishvili street is a good place for some shopping within the town itself and it has easy access by taxi and metro from the city center.
The street will be active by dawn only. Many eateries are also available alongside the street.
A power nap after the morning city tour adventures made us prepared for our evening exploration and decided to do a shopping mall exploration which is a good place to understand the latest trends of the youth and also to know the average lifestyle of the locals. “East Point Mall” which is almost 8 km away from the city center on the way to Tbilisi airport was the one recommended by the locals.
Unlike other shopping malls, it’s not just inside a building , the shops are built all-around a beautiful stone-paved square with some beautiful fountains. World-class clothing and accessory brands are available there and it’s a paradise for shopaholic travelers.
If you are a movie lover then there is an IMAX theater also there. As hardcore movie lovers the urge of watching a movie there was irresistible.
After watching the movie we were almost done for the day and retired back to the hostel, a little tired from the day and excited more about the adventures waiting for us in the coming days.
Facts: Never expect the vibe of a modern European city in Tbilisi, but its an experience you never want to miss.
Things to know before you start
How long it will take for a city Tour: A not so early morning start will make it until past noon.
Best Time to visit: All the places mentioned here can be visited round the year. But it’s recommended to do it before the start of winter.
Tips: Entering the country is easy as the visa rules are liberal. Citizens of many countries can have visa on arrival and those who have a resident card in any GCC country can have a Visa-free entry here. Even though you need to carry your Travel insurance, confirmed hotel booking and return flight tickets with you for a smoother pass through the immigration.
May your holidays be a picture-perfect one.
Interested ? This wonderful city of Tbilisi was explored along with my travel buddy and my best friend. Check out her adventures around the globe at The Sane Adventurer
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[…] the country give an essence of art culture and Christianity of ancient Georgia. The capital city of Tbilisi itself holds centuries-old history to it while embracing all the changes of […]
Thats a detailed travel guide. Need to explore the place. Lovely pictures.
Thank you. Hope this will help you to plan your trip.