Armenia and Georgia
- Thread starter frogwoman
- Start date
frogwoman
No amount of cajolery...
planetgeli
There's no future in England's dreaming
I get around a bit but I've never been to either of those. Will be interested to learn how it goes. Is it a family connection thing?
miss direct
misfungled
I will probably be going to Georgia in April, so remind me after..
frogwoman
No amount of cajolery...
not-bono-ever
meh
where to start?
Its a beautiful country, really stunning, Its pretty cheap as well
Tbilisi obviously, lots of hills, plenty of fantastic old architecture, flea markets with pinched oil paintings of Stalin. you can also pop up to gori, where the old bastard was born. It is gonna be hot, so be prepared.
The black seas beaches are coasts are tropical at that time of year- Batumi is a days train ride from tbilisi- worth the ride if you can get a decent hotel - could be busy though. trains for any long distance travelling are cheap
armenia is an overnight sleeper train south - never went this time, but My travelling companion did say it was "quiet" in yerevan, but lots of decent archiecture where earthquakes have not destroyed them. nagorno will require a good slog in a hire car or taxi from yerevan
depending on how adventurous, you could pop into Abkhazia, but you need to plan ahead in the summer, as it will be awash with russians who go there rather than the other resorts up the coast as its cheaper. its russia lite without the visa expense
anywaty - with minimum hassle, you could do beach, city and mountains- elbrus and the other caucusus ranges are not too far out. i have all the guide books if you want them, but most info is on the net these days.
Its a beautiful country, really stunning, Its pretty cheap as well
Tbilisi obviously, lots of hills, plenty of fantastic old architecture, flea markets with pinched oil paintings of Stalin. you can also pop up to gori, where the old bastard was born. It is gonna be hot, so be prepared.
The black seas beaches are coasts are tropical at that time of year- Batumi is a days train ride from tbilisi- worth the ride if you can get a decent hotel - could be busy though. trains for any long distance travelling are cheap
armenia is an overnight sleeper train south - never went this time, but My travelling companion did say it was "quiet" in yerevan, but lots of decent archiecture where earthquakes have not destroyed them. nagorno will require a good slog in a hire car or taxi from yerevan
depending on how adventurous, you could pop into Abkhazia, but you need to plan ahead in the summer, as it will be awash with russians who go there rather than the other resorts up the coast as its cheaper. its russia lite without the visa expense
anywaty - with minimum hassle, you could do beach, city and mountains- elbrus and the other caucusus ranges are not too far out. i have all the guide books if you want them, but most info is on the net these days.
not-bono-ever
meh
will update later. manter went there as well, and a few others iirc
planetgeli
There's no future in England's dreaming
No no. Just a holiday
Cool, nice one. I've never considered it before but you and not-bono-ever have peaked my interest. Beach and mountains (and hot sun) are right up my street.
To which...a couple of questions of my own if anyone is reading. Cost of living (accomodation)? What's the food like? And how easy is it for an English-only speaking tourist? Thx in advance...
not-bono-ever
meh
Food is meat or cheese based- fairly stodgy.Soup in a loaf is a staple it seems. The vegetables- oh my fucking christ- I forgot hoe good vegetables tasted- in the smaller places/ Abkhazia- the veg is garden grown - its truly shocking how good a cucumber tastes out there. I was shocked.a slab of a meal and drink is less than a fiver- often much much less
beer is ubiquotis and cheap c 50p a pint
accomodation is good and resonable in tbilis, less so elsewhere- its often shiny gold mega hotel for $100 a night - usually the vanity project/ laundering operation of a local face. Or decent little pensions or small hotels - a tenner a night or so for the pensions.
English in Tbilisi, much less so elsewhere. german seems to work more . Russian probabaly would also, but its a *touchy* subject obviously.very touchy.
Transport os either marshrutka or train really. a o/n sleeper from zugdidi to Tbilis late last year was about £20. Same for the Armenia overnighter.
beer is ubiquotis and cheap c 50p a pint
accomodation is good and resonable in tbilis, less so elsewhere- its often shiny gold mega hotel for $100 a night - usually the vanity project/ laundering operation of a local face. Or decent little pensions or small hotels - a tenner a night or so for the pensions.
English in Tbilisi, much less so elsewhere. german seems to work more . Russian probabaly would also, but its a *touchy* subject obviously.very touchy.
Transport os either marshrutka or train really. a o/n sleeper from zugdidi to Tbilis late last year was about £20. Same for the Armenia overnighter.
not-bono-ever
meh
you got a provisional schdule mapped out ?
a couple of days in tbilisi is about enough for me. its pretty hilly, so be prepared for walking.
Wild dogs everywhere. they are no hassle & not dangerous but found I had an aged bitch following me around Zugdidi all day, ensuring no other hounds came close, just so she could get some random food when we stopped. sorta my dog bodyguard
not-bono-ever
meh
it is very safe but not straightforward to get to, so maybe more of backpacking than holiday with mum.
tbilisi
mountains- kazeberg/ shatili/svaneti
batumi
then you have beach/city /mountains. maybe not all doable in a short trip but I would definately go to the mountains
tbilisi
mountains- kazeberg/ shatili/svaneti
batumi
then you have beach/city /mountains. maybe not all doable in a short trip but I would definately go to the mountains
frogwoman
No amount of cajolery...
is it safe for female travellers btw? i imagine it is but just get a bit para sometimes
not-bono-ever
meh
I think it is pretty safe - its not like you will be camping near chechnya or anything. I woukd book train tickets asap - not sure when they are available but the coastal sleepers fill up early in the summer
frogwoman
No amount of cajolery...
nice one
we'll be there for about 17 days btw (georgia for 10 and armenia for like a week)
have you been armenia? what's it like?
not-bono-ever
meh
have not been. we decided on abkhazia for longer instead + issues with possible travel to azerbaj later this year if we went to nagorno kara
frogwoman
No amount of cajolery...
spartacus mills
let's wee on each other
I'm looking at going to Armenia in the spring. I've not been there before.
little_legs
Поехали!
I've only been to Tbilisi and Yerevan, both have a lot to offer but for me Tbilisi beats Yerevan all day long.
Tbilisi is well connected by buses, underground metro and shuttles marshrutki, and there is funiculer which was working when I was there. The whole city is like a mix of old beautiful ruins and modern stuff, it's got this unique vibe about it. There are also water spings everywhere in the city streaming from the caves and people drink from the them without any worries. What to see: Old Tbilisi, Botanical Garden, Museum of Art. What to eat: every Georgian thing on the menu and you will be blown away especially meat skewers, grilled veg, traditional cheese and wine. I still remember cheese pastry khachapuri and I would go back just to have it again. You will also see traditional bakeries where Georgians buy bread, massive airy discs, oh my God, they are so good.
I would strongly recommend getting a car ride if you will be going to Yerevan from Tbilisi and vica versa. I was with 1 other person, we paid USD50 one way, whizzed through mountains, had an amazing lunch, and arrived in Yerevan in like 4 hours.
Everywhere we went the locals were super nice.
Whatever you end up doing, the Caucasus is great, so embrace it and enjoy.
Tbilisi is well connected by buses, underground metro and shuttles marshrutki, and there is funiculer which was working when I was there. The whole city is like a mix of old beautiful ruins and modern stuff, it's got this unique vibe about it. There are also water spings everywhere in the city streaming from the caves and people drink from the them without any worries. What to see: Old Tbilisi, Botanical Garden, Museum of Art. What to eat: every Georgian thing on the menu and you will be blown away especially meat skewers, grilled veg, traditional cheese and wine. I still remember cheese pastry khachapuri and I would go back just to have it again. You will also see traditional bakeries where Georgians buy bread, massive airy discs, oh my God, they are so good.
I would strongly recommend getting a car ride if you will be going to Yerevan from Tbilisi and vica versa. I was with 1 other person, we paid USD50 one way, whizzed through mountains, had an amazing lunch, and arrived in Yerevan in like 4 hours.
Everywhere we went the locals were super nice.
Whatever you end up doing, the Caucasus is great, so embrace it and enjoy.
spartacus mills
let's wee on each other
Where you flying from? I'm still hoping to get over there in May or June. There's no direct flights from UK to Tbilisi or Yerevan. The quickest cheapest option I've found so far with Atlas from Luton with a stop over in Istanbul.
Was that a taxi and how does that price compare with the marshrutkas?
little_legs
Поехали!
Yes, it was a taxi, marshrutka at the time would have cost us USD5/person. Currently you should expect to pay USD15/person for the same journey and you should be ok with:
- sharing the ride with other people
- waiting at the station before the marshrutka fills up
- travelling a little bit slower
spartacus mills
let's wee on each other
not-bono-ever
meh
Good man!
spartacus mills
let's wee on each other
I'll do a few day trips but I'll mostly be aimlessly wandering the city streets gawking at buildings, visiting museums, tramping through cemeteries and lounging in parks.
not-bono-ever
meh
I trudge all day long when i go somewhere new- one of the most interesting things in Tbilis was the state of some of the buildings - its an earthquake hotspot- and some of the older , grander structures, are seriously malformed.
