Georgia
Edited by:
Massimo Martini
Access
Georgia can be reached from Italy mainly by air: Tbilisi-Shota Rustaveli International Airport (TBS) is the main airport, with flights via Vienna, Istanbul, Dubai, Warsaw or Riga; direct flights from Italy are rare. Batumi-Shota Rustaveli International Airport (BUS) on the Black Sea coast serves European destinations more frequently in the summer season. The overland route is long and complex: from Italy, the most direct route goes through the Balkans and Turkey to the Georgian border at Sarpi on the Black Sea, or Romania, Moldova and Ukraine (inadvisable from 2022 due to the ongoing conflict) or via Russia via the Caucasian crossings (subject to political restrictions). In practice, air travel is almost always preferred for Italian visitors. The Georgian road network consists of a Georgian Military Highway connecting Tbilisi with Caucasian Lapland via the Kazbegi-Gudauri-Stepantsminda pass; this road may be closed in winter due to heavy snowfall. The roads to the Svaneti are particularly challenging (travelled on dirt roads in large sections) and require vehicles with four-wheel drive. The railway network connects Tbilisi with Batumi, Kutaisi, Zugdidi and the crossings to Armenia and Azerbaijan.
.Introduction
Georgia is a state in the South Caucasus, located on the eastern shore of the Black Sea at the crossroads of Europe and Asia. Geographically, the location is debated: the northern regions are crossed by the Great Caucasus watershed, conventionally placed as the boundary between the two continents. Politically, historically and culturally, Georgia considers itself part of Eastern Europe and has applied for membership of the European Union in 2022. The territory covers 69,700 km² and is home to a population of around 3.9 million (excluding the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which are not actually controlled by the central government). It borders Russia to the north, Turkey and Armenia to the south, Azerbaijan to the south-east and overlooks the Black Sea to the west. The country is characterised by an extraordinary geographical variety: from the subtropical Black Sea coasts to the perennial snows of the Great Caucasus, with peaks exceeding 5,000 m. Mount Shkhara (5,193 m) is the highest peak in the country and the second highest in the entire Caucasus range. The Georgian language is one of the four Cartelic languages, unrelated to the surrounding language families (Indo-European, Turkish, Semitic), and has its own alphabet of ancient origin. The capital is Tbilisi.
Description
The Georgian territory is about 87% mountainous or hilly. To the north is the Great Caucasus range, with the highest sector in the central-western part of Georgia: the Shkhara (5,193 m), Janga (5,074 m), Kazbek (5,047 m) and Ushba (4,710 m) are the benchmark peaks of Caucasian mountaineering. To the south, the Lesser Caucasus, of mainly volcanic origin, reaches lower altitudes (Didi Abuli, 3,301 m). The Kolkhida Plain in the west is the lowest depression in the country and the region with the mildest and most humid climate, the historical site of the ancient Colchis of the Argonauts myth. To the east, in the Kakheti region, the floodplain opens up towards Azerbaijan. The main rivers are the Rioni (towards the Black Sea) and the Kura (towards the Caspian). Lakes are modest in size; the largest is Paravani (37.5 km²) in the Lesser Caucasus.
The history of Georgia is among the oldest in the Caucasus and the eastern Mediterranean. The Greek myth of the Argonauts and the Golden Fleece is set in Colchis, the western region of present-day Georgia. The kingdoms of Colchis and Iberia (4th-1st century BC) were important historical-political states in the Transcaucasian region. Conversion to Christianity took place in the first half of the 4th century (313-337), around the same time as the Edict of Milan, making Georgia one of the oldest Christian states in the world. The Middle Ages saw its heyday under Queen Tamara (1184-1213): the reunified Georgian kingdom stretched from Anatolia to the Caspian Sea and produced a cultural flowering of extraordinary richness, with the construction of rock monasteries and castles. The Mongol invasions (13th century) and then the Ottoman and Persian invasions (15th-18th centuries) marked the long decline of the medieval kingdom. Annexation to the Russian Empire took place in 1801; independence was proclaimed in 1918 and then suppressed by Soviet annexation in 1921. Independent Georgia since 1991 has gone through ethnic conflicts (Abkhazia, South Ossetia), a war with Russia in 2008 and a long process of democratisation and European rapprochement, interrupted by internal political tensions in 2023-2024.
The Georgian economy is based on agriculture (walnuts, blueberries, citrus fruits, viticulture - Kakheti produces more than 80 per cent of Georgian wine and Georgia claims 8,000 years of wine history - and animal husbandry), tourism (which is growing strongly), the service sector and hydropower. The Silk Road, which historically crossed the Caucasus, gave Georgia a role as a commercial and cultural crossroads. Georgian gastronomy is considered to be among the richest in the Caucasus: khachapuri (bread stuffed with cheese), khinkali (ravioli stuffed with meat), satsivi (chicken in walnut sauce), churchkhela (walnut and grape juice cake) and amber wines made by the traditional method in buried amphorae (kvevri) are the most recognisable expressions of the local cuisine.
The Georgian cultural heritage registered by UNESCO includes the Upper Svaneti Village with its medieval towers and the UNESCO World Heritage Village of Ushguli (2,100 m, the highest permanently inhabited village in Europe), the rock churches of Vardzia and the site of Mtskheta with the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. The system of protected areas includes the Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park (the largest in Eastern Europe, 76,000 hectares), the Lagodekhi National Park, the Tusheti National Park and the Kolkheti Reserve. The Caucasian fauna includes the Caucasian chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra caucasica), the Caucasian ibex (Capra cylindricornis), thebrown bear (Ursus arctos), the Caucasus leopard (Panthera pardus saxicolor, a critically endangered species) and the tur (Capra caucasica).
Walking in Georgia is mainly concentrated in the Svaneti and Kazbegi regions. Svaneti, in the upper Enguri River basin at the foot of the Shkhara-Ushba range, is the most developed trekking region: the Mestia-Ushguli Trail (approx. 55 km, 4 days) is the most popular trek in the country, linking two historical centres of Upper Svaneti through glacial landscapes and villages with medieval towers. The Transcaucasian Trail (TCT), which is still under development, is a long-distance route that will cross Georgia and Armenia for more than 3,000 km; the Svaneti segment is already practicable. The Kazbegi National Park - in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region on the Russian border - offers trekking around Kazbek (5,047 m) with the base in the village of Stepantsminda (1,750 m) and the Trinity Church of Gergeti (2,170 m) as an iconic panorama.
The mountaineering history of Georgia is intrinsically linked to the great peaks of the Caucasus. Kazbek (5,047 m), an extinct volcano with an extraordinary visual presence, is the first mountaineering destination for those approaching the Caucasus: the normal ascent (PD/AD) is made from the base camp of Meteorologicheskaya Station (3,650 m) in 5-8 hours with ice equipment. Shkhara (5,193 m), the highest peak in Georgia, is technically more challenging and requires experience on ice and mixed terrain. Ushba (4,710 m), nicknamed the "Matterhorn of the Caucasus" due to its characteristic double peak shape and vertical walls, is considered the most dangerous mountain in the Caucasus. Michael Khergiani (1932-1969), a fading mountain guide, is the most iconic figure in Georgian mountaineering: he established dozens of routes in the Caucasus and the Alps and died from a climbing fall in the Dolomites in Italy.
Trail running in Georgia is growing rapidly, driven by the increase in adventure tourism. The Kazbegi Ultra Trail (KUT), a race in the mountains around Kazbek, and the Mestia Ultra Trail in Svaneti are the main events. Georgia offers exceptional terrain for alpine trail running - high altitude trails above 3,000 m, summer pastures, glaciers and medieval villages - with a tourist infrastructure that is progressively developing thanks also to international interest in the Transcaucasian Trail.
Information
General Data
Capital: Tbilisi
Area: 69,700 km²
Minimum elevation: 0m (Black Sea coast)
Maximum elevation: 5.193m - Mount Shkhara (Greater Caucasus)
Number of inhabitants: 3,914.000 (2024 census, excluding Abkhazia and South Ossetia)
Official name: Sakartvelos Respublika
Name of inhabitants: Georgians
Regions: 9 mkhare + 2 autonomous republics (Abkhazia, Adjara)
Bordering countries: Armenia - Azerbaijan - Russia - Turkey
Institutional site: https://www.gov.ge