The short answer: a 5-day Georgia itinerary has room for the three places most first trips to the country are about, Tbilisi's Old Town, the Kakheti wine country and the Kazbegi mountains, plus the rock-cut town of Uplistsikhe on the way back. Sleep three nights in Tbilisi and one in Stepantsminda, under Mt Kazbek. You change hotels only twice, and no day has more than about 5 hours of driving. Below is the route with drive times, two variants, a winter version and what to leave for next time.
How many days do you need in Georgia?
- 3–4 days: Tbilisi plus day trips to Kazbegi and Kakheti, all from one hotel.
- 5 days: the same three regions, a night in the mountains, and Uplistsikhe and Gori. This plan.
- 7 days: add Borjomi and the Vardzia cave monastery, or Kutaisi in the west. See our 7-day Georgia itinerary.
- 10 days or more: cross the country to the Black Sea at Batumi and, in summer, Svaneti. See our 10-day Georgia itinerary.
Georgia itinerary for 5 days, day by day
Day 1: Tbilisi Old Town
Start at Metekhi Church above the Mtkvari, take the cable car from Rike Park up to Narikala fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue, then walk down to the brick domes of the Abanotubani sulphur baths. Carry on to Sioni Cathedral and Shardeni Street, and finish across the Bridge of Peace. It is 5–6 km on steep, polished cobbles, so wear shoes with grip.
An hour in a private sulphur-bath room is a good end to the day; book it ahead (our guide to the Tbilisi sulphur baths explains how the rooms work). The airport is about 17 km from the centre, 25–30 minutes by car. If you land in the afternoon, walk the short loop from the Bridge of Peace to Abanotubani this evening and keep the rest for day 5.
Overnight: Tbilisi.
Day 2: Kakheti wine country
East for 1.5–2 hours to Bodbe convent, where St Nino is buried, and the walled hill town of Sighnaghi above the Alazani Valley. Half an hour covers the church and gardens at Bodbe, a working convent where shoulders and knees stay covered and women cover their hair; the same applies at the churches on day 3. After lunch, the Tsinandali house-museum, 1.5–2 hours with a tasting, where the enoteca holds bottles from 1814. Then a family cellar that still makes wine in qvevri, the clay jars buried in the floor. The method has been on UNESCO's Intangible Heritage list since 2013. The loop is about 280 km with 5 hours of driving, back over the Gombori Pass by about 19:00.
Tsinandali's museum is closed on Mondays, so don't put this day on a Monday. For more on the cellars and what you taste, read our Kakheti wine guide.
Overnight: Tbilisi, or Sighnaghi if you want the sunset from the walls.
Day 3: Mtskheta and the Military Highway to Kazbegi
Leave at about 09:00 for Mtskheta, 30–40 minutes away: Jvari Monastery on its hill above the meeting of two rivers, and Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in the old town. Then north on the Georgian Military Highway: Ananuri fortress above the Zhinvali reservoir, where 30–45 minutes is enough, lunch in Pasanauri, a village known for its khinkali, the Friendship Monument viewpoint near Gudauri, and the Jvari Pass (2,379 m).
Tbilisi to Stepantsminda is 152 km, 3–3.5 hours without stops and 6–7 hours with them. Go up to the 14th-century Gergeti Trinity Church (2,170 m) in the late afternoon, as the day-trippers leave, with Mt Kazbek (5,054 m) behind it when the cloud allows. The road is paved, so a normal car manages it in dry weather. Most people stay 45–60 minutes, and photos aren't allowed inside.
Overnight: Stepantsminda. It sits at about 1,740 m, so bring a warm layer even in summer.
Day 4: Down the mountain to Uplistsikhe and Gori
From May to October you can start with the Gveleti waterfall, about an hour's walk there and back. Then back over the Jvari Pass and west to Uplistsikhe, a town cut into the rock above the Mtkvari, with uneven steps and no shade. Allow 1–1.5 hours there, in shoes with grip, because the sloping rock is slippery when wet. After lunch, the Stalin Museum in Gori, about 12 km away: 45–60 minutes is enough, and the exhibition says very little about the purges or the Gulag. This is the long day: about 290 km and 5 hours of driving, from 08:30 to about 18:30.
Overnight: Tbilisi.
Day 5: Tbilisi at your own pace, then fly
Keep the last day loose: the Georgian National Museum on Rustaveli Avenue (closed on Mondays), the Dry Bridge market, a cooking class, or the wine bars of Sololaki. Nothing on this day should depend on a mountain road.
Drive times at a glance
- Tbilisi → Mtskheta: about 25 km, 30–40 min
- Tbilisi → Sighnaghi: about 110 km, 1.5–2 h
- Tbilisi → Stepantsminda: 152 km, 3–3.5 h without stops
- Stepantsminda → Uplistsikhe → Tbilisi: about 290 km, 5 h of driving
Two variants
For couples: a night in the mountains and a night in wine country
Swap one Tbilisi night for Sighnaghi. Tbilisi and a private bath on day 1; Mtskheta and Kazbegi on day 2; sunrise at Gergeti, then south to Sighnaghi for the sunset and dinner on day 3 (5–5.5 hours in the car); Bodbe on the way back on day 4. That leaves day 5 free in Tbilisi. Our Romantic Georgia for two, 4 days follows exactly this plan.
For history: Kutaisi instead of Kazbegi
If churches and museums interest you more than mountains, go west. The Georgian National Museum and the Old Town on day 1. Mtskheta, Uplistsikhe and Gori on day 2, then on to Kutaisi on the Rikoti highway, about 270 km and 4–4.5 hours of driving in all. Gelati Monastery, Kutaisi's only UNESCO World Heritage site, and Motsameta on day 3, then back to Tbilisi (3–3.5 hours). Alaverdi Cathedral, Tsinandali and a night in Sighnaghi on day 4, and Bodbe on day 5. Expect scaffolding at Gelati, where conservation of the main church continues. This is our Heart of Georgia private tour, 5 days, and it also works in winter because it never crosses the Jvari Pass.
In winter
Most often from December to March, and sometimes in late autumn or April, the Jvari Pass on the way to Kazbegi can close for a few hours, or for 1–3 days, after heavy snow. The road up to Gergeti needs a 4x4 when it is snowy. Three rules:
- Put Kazbegi on day 2 or 3, never the day before your flight, so a closure can be absorbed by swapping days.
- Have a Plan B that doesn't need the pass: Mtskheta and a cellar tour at Château Mukhrani, or the Kutaisi variant above.
- Start early. Winter days are short, and when the Gombori Pass is icy, drivers take the lower Sagarejo road to Kakheti.
Our guide to the Kazbegi road in winter explains how closures work and how to check the road.
Mistakes to avoid
- Kazbegi on the last day. Weather, lorry queues on the road to the Russian border at Upper Lars and weekend traffic can add hours to the drive back.
- Squeezing in Vardzia. It is 4–5 hours each way from Tbilisi, and since the rockfall of 27 May 2026 about half the complex has been closed. Save it for a week or more.
- Adding Svaneti. Mestia is about 460 km and 8–10 hours by road from Tbilisi, and needs three days of its own.
- Changing hotels every night. Tbilisi is the natural base; one night in the mountains is enough on a short trip.
- Driving yourself after tastings. Kakheti means several glasses; with a driver-guide, nobody in your group has to stay sober for the road.
- Forgetting insurance. Since 1 January 2026 visitors need travel health insurance with at least 30,000 GEL of cover.
Five days with us
Our Georgia Highlights private tour, 5 days follows this route day for day: airport pickup and a welcome dinner, the Kakheti loop with Tsinandali and a family cellar, a night in Stepantsminda, then Uplistsikhe and Gori, with hotels and breakfasts. The Romantic Georgia and Heart of Georgia tours cover the two variants. All are private, with your own car and English-speaking driver-guide for 1–8 travellers; see each tour page for the current price. Or plan your own five days and we send you a route and a price. Nothing to pay now.
Sources
- Wander-Lush, "How to Travel From Tbilisi to Kazbegi": wander-lush.org
- UNESCO, "Ancient Georgian traditional Qvevri wine-making method" (2013): ich.unesco.org
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre, "Gelati Monastery": whc.unesco.org
- Wander-Lush, "Vardzia Cave Monastery: A Complete Visitor's Guide for 2026": wander-lush.org
- Civil.ge, "Rikoti Highway Completed" (December 2025): civil.ge
- US Embassy in Georgia, "Georgia to require insurance for all tourists starting 1/1/2026": ge.usembassy.gov
Last checked: September 2026. Winter closures of the Jvari Pass change day by day; we check the road before every Kazbegi trip.
