| Tips for getting around Georgia posted by real travelers and Georgia locals. Map |
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 Canyon to the left Hill to the
right..OK? -Georgia by GroverdeanLeave a Comment Theme: Bus
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Marshrutkas are the way to get around cities and the country cheaply, and relatively efficiently. They are minivans, and ply all different routes, of varying distances. They can be used on short trips, day trips, or, long distance hauls, for example, between Batumi and Tbilisi, a 7.5 hour journey.
They are not the most comfortable means of transport ever. They tend to pack people, and their stuff, in and keep picking up passengers when you just swear that there's no way to hold any more of them and all their stuff.
As I said in my Tbilisi page, there never seemed to be a consistent way to determine when you pay, but all you have to do is make sure the driver know when you want to get off. (Easier said than done if you don't speak Georgian, but other passengers were consistently helpful on letting us know when we should depart, and telling the driver for us.)
The other problem is that the route plied by these minivan things is written in Georgian. If we needed to take one, we would either say the name, in Georgia to people, hoping they would direct us, or would show the name of our destination written in Georgia from our Lonely Planet. Somehow, everything always worked in Georgia! Leave a Comment Theme: Other
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 A desert tortoise and our
car-Georgia by Groverdean
Train travel- Incredibly slow, reasonably comfortable and priced.
Bus-If you like being in an uncomfortable slow moving vehicle, sometimes quite crowded, you'll love Georgian buses. Incredibly cheap though.
Marshrutka/shared taxi-Georgian roads are some of the worst I've encountered in the world. More potholes by far and sometimes bigger than those craters on the moon. The upshot is they are quickest way to travel anywhere by far. That's because they all drive like today is the last day of their lives and at times I felt like it may be the last day of mine! Still quite inexpensive though. My suggestion is just close your eyes and try and sleep for some of the trip-less stressful!
Car-If you hire a car, you'll be in for alot of fun and games. Not just the treacherous road conditions, but the lack of signage, and those everpresent extorting police. We hired a car and driver for some trips which is obviously the most expensive, but does give you a chance to enjoy the journey alot more. Georgia does have some fantastic scenery so make sure you get the chance to see it! Leave a Comment Theme: Other
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 Cooling the engine of the
heavy car. by MalenaN
For Kazbegi the chared taxi is leaving from Didube. They leave when the taxi is full (four passengers) or with less people if they are willing to share the price. I paid 10 lari for the drive Tblisi - Kazbegi. Can't remember how long it took. Maybe four hours.
The family sharing the taxi had a lot of laguage (they were shopping big bags of haselnuts and other things at the market before we took off). Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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This is probably one of the easiest ways to get to Georgia. Most people type tips on VT or in the LP forum but I will try and make this very easy to follow and my information is up to date as of September 26 2006. First, take a bus to Hopa on the black sea and you will arrive at the small but chaotic bus terminal. Walk directly out of the terminal and walk left down the road for about 3 minutes. You will see a small shack on the left side of the road with some small minivans with the English name Sarp in the window. The cost is 3 Turkish Lira and they will take you to Sarp. Get off the bus at the border and look to your right for a building that says Passports. Go inside and get your passport stamped. (small stamp) Next, walk straight and go through the four checkpoints #1 is a small hut with a guard and he will check to see if your passport is stamped. #2 is to go to the small window on the left with the woman and she enter your passport info onto the computer. #3 Go through the carwash looking terminal (look up and for the picture of a man walking) and get in line. You dont have to fill in the Russian or Georgian forms as tourists are not required to fill them out. #4 Go through the final posting and go to the NEW tourist information center!!! They speak English too!!! They will even manage to find you a hotel and taxi for about 10 $ US dollars and the taxi brings you to the hotel doorstep. Hope this helps! Cheers Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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Marshrutkas aka minibuses zip around the country but they lack sufficient space meaning you will probably end up with your huge backpack on your lap for a very long time. One tip I found by chance is that arriving 45 minutes before the departure time means you can usually put your backpack in the back of the bus under the back seats if you ask nicely. But remember to keep an eye on your bags if you are up the front! If you cant get your bags under the back seats then it will be a long and uncomfortable ride. Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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 Tbilisi by MalenaN
Getting the visa was easy. I filled in a form and paid 30 dollars, they put the data in the computer and stamped the visa. There was no comments about my Azeri visa.
In Stepanavan the marshrutka stopped outside an office for money exchange and I changed my last laris into drams.
The bus ride took between 5 - 6 hours and the price was 16 lari.
In Vanadzor the bus stopped at the bus station, next to the train station. Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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 Metekhi Church, Tbilisi by MalenaN
Marshrutkas to Qax is not leaving from the bus station by the market in Seki, but from another place. A taxi to the marshrutka from the hotel was 1 Manat (1 dollar was 0,87 Manat). I took the 10.30 marshrutka to Qax. It was 1 Manat and took 1 hour and 15 minutes.
In Qax they told me to buy the ticket for Tbilisi on the marshrutka, but they called to reserve a seat for me. The marshrutka for Tbilisi arrived at Qax just before 13.00, and only a few minutes later we left.
At the border the gates were closed and we had to wait for our turn. There was no problems for me on either side of the border and I got my stamps quickly. A woman asked me if I had to pay anything, but no. For everyone to cross the border it took one hour.
The landscape along the road to Tbilisi was very nice. In Tbilisi the marshrutka was going to Ortachala Bus Terminal, but the driver told me it was best for me to get of before, near Isani metro stop, at a place where there was a lot of exchange offices. In this way I could take the metro to Marjanishvili where I was going to stay.
The trip between Qax and Tbilisi took 5 hours and 45 minutes (including an hour at the border) and it was 5 Manat. According to the time table on the wall at the bus station in Qax (where the hours were not correct) there were four buses a day from Qax to Tbilisi. I don’t know anything about the opposite way, but it should be about the same. Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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There is no public transport to Davit Gareja, but you could take a marshrutka to Gardabani or Sagarejo and from there take a taxi. I was told though, by a few people, that there might not be possible to find a taxi in those two small places. It is better to share a taxi with some others from Tbilisi and that’s what I did.
A tour to Davit Gareja with Nasi’s (Nasi’s Homestay) neighbour was 100 lari (July 2006).
The road to Davit Gareja was very scenic and I many times thought we should stop on the way back to take photos. Guess if I was disappointed when I noticed we were taking another road back, not as beautiful as the first. Going to Davit Gareja we took the main road towards Sagarejo. On the way back we passed Gardabani and Rustavi. In Rustavi we stopped at a cafeteria for lunch.
The whole tour took about seven hours (I think). Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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 the train station in tblisi. by cachaseiro
the train system works kinda OK, if mabye a bit slow.
slow trains are not too bad as a tourist though as they allow you to get a better view of the passing scenery. Leave a Comment Theme: Train
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