Mtskheta and Uplistsikhe: Historic Exploration of Pre-Christian and Medieval Georgia
4.4
59 Ratings
T'bilisi
Embark on a historic exploration of pre-Christian and medieval Georgia in one day. Visit Uplistsikhe and Mtskheta to trace the country's journey from the ancient world to the era of early Christianity and the Middle Ages.
Duration: 9 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Jvari Church - Our walk begins A. Pushkin, M. Lermontov, P. Tchaikovsky, A. Dumas-father, L. Tolstoy and many others. Turning off the path, you will pass through the places where the events described by Lermontov in the famous poem “Mtsyri” developed, and go up to the Jvari temple of the VI century - from here you will see an enchanting view of Mtskheta: “… where the merging noise, hugging, as if two sisters , the jets of Aragva and the Kura … “
  • Mtskheta Church of the Holy Cross - Temples of Mtskheta
    You will visit Svetitskhoveli Cathedral (Pillar of Life-Giving) - the patriarchal cathedral of the Georgian Orthodox Church. Get acquainted with its history and significant events of the past. Here is the burial place of the shrines of Christianity - the tunic of Jesus Christ and the mantle of Elijah the Prophet, as well as the relics of St. Andrew the First-Called.
  • Uplistsikhe Complex Road - Pagan past in the caves of Uplistsikhe

A short road to the northwest - and you will find yourself in a cave city of the end of II - the beginning of the first millennium BC. e. I studied a lot of notes about this unusual place, and I will tell you all the most interesting. Exploring the stone labyrinths of living and utility rooms, you will imagine the life of the pagans and their cult rites. You will learn about the trade of Uplistsikhe with the ancient states of Urartu and Media, about its heyday and decline. It also offers wonderful panoramas of the Kura Valley. Additional ticket price 15 GEL

  • Stalin Museum - In the second part of the trip, at the request of the group, you can visit the Stalin Museum in his hometown of Gori. In the halls of the entire museum pantheon, you will see the preserved sculpture of Stalin, his personal belongings and furniture - the museum guide will conduct an excursion. Additional ticket price 15 GEL
What's Included
  • Comfortable service
  • Guide service
What's Not Included
  • Dinner
  • Uplistsikhi ticket is 17 GEL. Stalin Museum 17 GEL
Additional Information

In a single day, you’ll get the chance to explore two remarkable locations in our area: Uplistsikhe, a crucial touchstone for grasping Georgia’s pre-Christian, ancient era, and Mtskheta, indispensable for comprehending the early Christian times and the Middle Ages. As you experience these cities, you will visually follow Georgia’s journey from the early Bronze Age up to the adoption of Christianity.

Location
19 Wine Rise
Wine Rise
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.4
(59 Ratings)
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J8783mcfadia
May 7, 2024
Exceptional guiding! - Lisa was outstanding and she was guiding the trip in a professional manner and was able to act politely against people who disobey to the regulations. All in all, the trip was amazing and we had so many good photos out there.
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Yunpengd2
Mar 11, 2024
Nice short trip near Tbilisi - So many attractions in 8-9 hours! Visited two most import churches in Georgia. Great view of Mtskheta from the Jvari Church. The view of the nature from the Uplistsikhe is astonishing.
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Pinsbonbon
Feb 13, 2024
super-fun & informative George of Georgia - George of Georgia is the best - he’s not only informative but also making sure we’re all in good moods. He has extensive information about Georgia & also good taste of music We love having Georgie as our guide 🥳
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Q8973gmsamw
Dec 8, 2023
A great day trip from Tbilisi - Thank you Beso for your services. A great guide full of knowledge and history about Georgia and the locations we visited.
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617krn
Nov 29, 2023
Georgia trip- Usha’s travels - I write to thank Ushba travels in rendering their assigned service to our entire satisfaction. Both their guides, in particular Besa who played the role of driver plus guide, did commendable job. Definitely we do not hesitate in recommending this agency to those who wish to avail a reliable and quality service. Wish to return to Tbilisi once again in future to explore historical treasures of Georgia.
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414lathar
Nov 28, 2023
Excellent service - We enjoyed the trip,Besa's service was excellent,he covered all places in good time .we had really a good time in this trip with lots and lots of natural beauty, The good service given by Besa made our trip enjoyable.
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Slav86392
Nov 20, 2023
It was a great trip. - I would like to say thanks to USBA travel for interesting trip.In particular, our wishes were taken into account when choosing a bus.I especially wanted to say thank you to our guide Roland for interesting stories about the history of Georgia. Roland is a keen researcher of Georgian history
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Goplaces42559748252
Nov 14, 2023
A great experience - Great Informative experience. We got to see many important sites all in a timely manner. Giorgi was the best guide as he explained everything perfectly and was relatable!
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828dmitryv
Oct 10, 2023
Very good trip - Very good and supportive guide Levan with a friendly and experienced driver Tengiz. The trip was also good because they offered a very good place named Nikala in Gori for a lunch. Best wishes to you. Recommend this restaurant to other groups.
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F3293ydjohnr
Oct 31, 2023
A very disappointing tour that I had expected to be much better. - This was a tour I booked for my last day in Georgia and I was very much looking forward to it. I was told to meet at their offices at 08:45. I was running late and took a taxi as my hotel was quite far. There were only five people which seemed strange for a large bus and an all-day tour. Then I found out why. The bus spent the next hour picking people up from locations all over Tbilisi - including from hotels near to mine! Had I known this I would have asked to be picked up at another location and saved myself stress and money. The tour proper started about 10 by travelling to Mtskheta and Jvari Monastery which were short but interesting. Between the travel and the visits this took about two hours and we were then brought out to a restaurant in a remote location. But we did not have lunch then. We only ordered and this took the best part of 45 minutes. We then boarded the bus and drive to Uflistsikhe which is a collection of pre-historic cave dwellings which was meant to be one of the highlights of the tour. Despite this we were given only 45 minutes to explore the area which meant rushing from point to point. To appreciate this place requires at least twice that time. I was disappointed at having to leave so early. There was a cafe next to the car park which seemed to be very popular and the food looked good so I wondered why we just didn’t stop there for food. We returned to the restaurant for our orders. My food was good but I also ordered a glass of red wine which cost GEL12. It was small and not great and I expected more for the high price. The restaurant charged us 10% service charge and we were there for over an hour so, in total, we spent almost two hours at the restaurant when we could have spent it at Uflistsikhe. This is unacceptable. I paid for a tour and to spend more time in a restaurant than in some of the sights was very disappointing. The tour company needs to change this and stop trying to give business to restaurants from their tours unless requested. I would have preferred a short meal at the cafe at Uflistsikhe and more time exploring the caves. We travelled onto Gori to see the Stalin Museum. Our tour bus had two groups - English-speaking and Russian-speaking. We waited half an hour in the lobby for the Russian-speaking tour to finish and then we had a very quick tour through the museum that took about 20-25 minutes. The museum guide was good but it was very rushed and there was little time to absorb a lot of the exhibits. We had more time to look at Stalin’s personal effects and his birthplace and private train outside the building. We returned to Tbilisi and were caught in traffic for almost two hours until I asked to be let out. In summary, the guide was not very knowledgeable. A lot of his information I could have gleaned from basic information about the sights online and sometimes he could not answer simple questions about places we visited. He spent more time with the Russian-speaking group than us which meant I stopped asking him about stuff after our first stops. The stops were rushed and often we had little time to explore or appreciate the surroundings - especially at Uflistsikhe. But the worst thing was how much time we spent at the restaurant. For a tour that lasted eight hours to spend a quarter of this time in a restaurant is simply unacceptable. We did not need a formal meal in a high-end restaurant. Half an hour at a cafe or a bakery would have been enough. If tour companies are going to spend more time trying to make money from tourists by bringing them to such restaurants than giving tours then they will keep getting poor reviews like this. A very disappointing tour. I expected a lot more and it didn’t deliver. It cost me about GEL75 for the tour but the restaurant cost another GEL45 and also entrance to Uflistsikhe and the Stalin Museum. For this price I’d expect an experience far better than the one I got. Unless they seriously change their tour (and cut out the restaurant) I would strongly advise to give this tour a miss.
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
July 2024
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