The short answer: a week is the length most first-time visitors choose for Georgia, and a Georgia itinerary for 7 days is enough to see the east and south of the country properly: Tbilisi and Mtskheta, the Kazbegi mountains, the rock-cut town of Uplistsikhe, Borjomi, the Vardzia cave monastery and the Kakheti wine country. The route below makes one loop west and south and one day trip east, so you never cross Tbilisi more than you need to. If caves, canyons and Kutaisi appeal more than Vardzia, there is a western variant further down.
How many days do you need in Georgia?
The number of days decides which regions a Georgia travel itinerary can reach:
- 3 days: Tbilisi plus one day at Kazbegi and one in Kakheti or Mtskheta. See our three-day plan from Tbilisi.
- 5 days: Tbilisi, Kakheti and a night in Kazbegi. See our 5-day Georgia itinerary.
- 7 days: add Uplistsikhe, Borjomi and Vardzia, or the west around Kutaisi. This plan.
- 10 days: cross the whole country to the Black Sea at Batumi, or swap the south for Svaneti in summer. See our 10-day Georgia itinerary.
- 14 days: all of Georgia in one direction, with both Svaneti and Batumi. See our two-week route across the country.
A week does not stretch to both Kazbegi and Svaneti: Mestia is 8–10 hours by road from Tbilisi, and Ushguli needs a day of its own.
Georgia itinerary for 7 days, day by day
Day 1: Tbilisi and Mtskheta
The Old Town on foot in the morning: Metekhi Church, the cable car from Rike Park to Narikala fortress, the sulphur-bath domes of Abanotubani, Sioni Cathedral and Shardeni Street. It is 5–6 km on steep cobbles. In the afternoon, drive 30–40 minutes to Mtskheta for Jvari Monastery on its hilltop and Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in the old town. End with an hour in a private sulphur-bath room if you like.
Overnight: Tbilisi.
Day 2: The Military Highway to Kazbegi
North past Ananuri fortress above the Zhinvali reservoir, lunch in Pasanauri, then the Friendship Monument viewpoint and the Jvari Pass (2,379 m) to Stepantsminda: 152 km, 3–3.5 hours of driving and 6–7 hours with stops along the Military Highway. In the afternoon, the 14th-century Gergeti Trinity Church (2,170 m) as the day-trippers leave, with Mt Kazbek (5,054 m) behind it when the cloud lifts. A sealed road goes up in season, or it is 1–1.5 hours on foot. For what else there is to do up there, read our Kazbegi and Gergeti guide.
Overnight: Stepantsminda.
Day 3: Uplistsikhe and Gori to Borjomi
From May to October, start with a walk to the Gveleti waterfall, about an hour there and back. Then down the Military Highway and west to Uplistsikhe, a town cut into the rock above the Mtkvari. Allow 1–1.5 hours; the rock is uneven and there is no shade. Lunch in Gori and the Stalin Museum, then about 1.5 hours on to Borjomi, the spa town in a forested valley. About 290 km and 5–5.5 hours of driving, the longest day of the week.
Overnight: Borjomi.
Day 4: Vardzia, Khertvisi and Rabati
A morning walk in Borjomi's Central Park and a taste of the salty mineral water at the spring, then about 2 hours to Vardzia, the cave monastery of Queen Tamar's time. Since a rockfall on 27 May 2026 about half the complex has been closed: the visitor route now ends shortly after the Church of the Dormition and you return the way you came, with no reopening date yet. It is still worth seeing, but check what is open before you go (our Vardzia guide has the background). Then Khertvisi fortress above the river, a 30–45 minute stop, and Rabati Castle in Akhaltsikhe, where a church, a mosque and a madrasa stand inside the same walls. About 3.5 hours of driving.
Overnight: Akhaltsikhe.
Day 5: Back to Tbilisi
Akhaltsikhe to Tbilisi is about 210 km, 3–3.5 hours. Leave mid-morning and keep the afternoon free: the Georgian National Museum (closed on Mondays), the Dry Bridge market or a long lunch.
Overnight: Tbilisi.
Day 6: Kakheti wine country
East to Bodbe convent, where St Nino is buried, and the walls of Sighnaghi above the Alazani Valley, then lunch and a tasting at a family marani that still makes wine in qvevri, the buried clay jars of a method on UNESCO's Intangible Heritage list since 2013, and the Tsinandali house-museum (closed on Mondays), where a visit takes 1.5–2 hours. The loop is about 280 km with 5 hours of driving, back over the Gombori Pass in the evening.
Overnight: Tbilisi, or Sighnaghi if your flight on day 7 is late (Sighnaghi to Tbilisi airport is about 1.5 hours).
Day 7: A slow last day
Markets, a cooking class or one more walk before your flight. Keep it free of long drives.
Drive times at a glance
- Tbilisi → Stepantsminda, 152 km, 3–3.5 h without stops
- Stepantsminda → Uplistsikhe → Borjomi, about 290 km, 5–5.5 h
- Borjomi → Vardzia, about 2 h; Vardzia → Akhaltsikhe, 1–1.5 h
- Akhaltsikhe → Tbilisi, about 210 km, 3–3.5 h
- Tbilisi → Kakheti loop, about 280 km, 5 h
The western variant: Kutaisi, caves and canyons
Swap the south for the west if you would rather see Gelati and the Prometheus cave than Vardzia, or if you can fly home from Kutaisi, which has its own international airport:
- Days 1–2: as above.
- Day 3: Gergeti in the morning, back to Tbilisi (3–3.5 hours).
- Day 4: Kakheti, as day 6 above.
- Day 5: Uplistsikhe and Gori, then on to Kutaisi on the Rikoti highway, which was completed in December 2025. Night in Kutaisi.
- Day 6: Gelati Monastery, Kutaisi's only UNESCO World Heritage site (expect scaffolding on the main church), and the Prometheus cave, 30–40 minutes from the city. The boats stop after heavy rain.
- Day 7: the Martvili canyon, about an hour from Kutaisi (it opens at 10:00), then fly home from Kutaisi, or drive back to Tbilisi, 3–3.5 hours.
If you have seen the east before, Western Georgia in 6 days goes from Tbilisi to Kutaisi, up to Mestia and Ushguli, and down to Batumi, ending with the train or a flight from Batumi.
A slower week
Seven days of sightseeing is a lot for some travellers. Drop Vardzia (days 3–5) and use the time for a second night in Stepantsminda and two nights in Sighnaghi, with Telavi and Alaverdi Cathedral. You see less, but you spend far less time in the car.
In winter
From December to March, and sometimes into April, the Jvari Pass to Kazbegi can close for a few hours, or for 1–3 days, after heavy snow. Short daylight also makes the Vardzia day harder. A winter week works well like this:
- Tbilisi, Mtskheta and Kakheti, with a night in Sighnaghi.
- Uplistsikhe, Gori and Borjomi, none of which depend on mountain passes.
- Kazbegi early in the trip on a flexible day, never the day before your flight. See our guide to the Kazbegi road in winter.
- The western variant, since the Prometheus cave is the same temperature all year.
For the rest of the year, our month-by-month guide covers the weather by region and when the mountain roads open. If snow is the point, our winter private tour, 6 days combines Tbilisi with Gudauri.
Mistakes to avoid
- Zig-zagging through Tbilisi. Group the mountains and the south in one loop and do Kakheti as a separate day from the capital.
- Vardzia as a day trip from Tbilisi. It is 4–5 hours each way, a 12–14 hour day. Sleeping in Borjomi or Akhaltsikhe makes it easy.
- Kazbegi on the last day. Weather and lorry queues towards the Russian border can hold you up for hours.
- Mondays. The Georgian National Museum and Tsinandali's museum are closed.
- Forgetting insurance. Since 1 January 2026, travel health insurance with at least 30,000 GEL of cover is mandatory for visitors.
A week with us
Our Classic Georgia private tour, 8 days is this week plus an arrival day: Tbilisi and Mtskheta, a night in Stepantsminda, Uplistsikhe and Borjomi, Vardzia and Akhaltsikhe, and a Kakheti day, with hotels, breakfasts, tastings and two dinners. The seven nights are in 3–4 star hotels, four of them in Tbilisi, and the listed entrance fees and the 4x4 up to Gergeti are included. It runs April–October, with March and November on request. For history at an easier pace, Heart of Georgia, 5 days covers Mtskheta, Uplistsikhe, Gelati and Kakheti without the mountains. All are private, with your own car and English-speaking driver-guide for 1–8 travellers (a Russian-speaking guide on request); see each tour page for the current price. Or build your own week and we send a route and a price. Nothing to pay now.
Sources
- Wander-Lush, "How to Travel From Tbilisi to Kazbegi": wander-lush.org
- Wander-Lush, "Vardzia Cave Monastery: A Complete Visitor's Guide for 2026": wander-lush.org
- Georgia Today, "Rockfall damages footpath at Vardzia near Secret Tunnel" (May 2026): georgiatoday.ge
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre, "Gelati Monastery": whc.unesco.org
- Agency of Protected Areas of Georgia, Prometheus Cave: apa.gov.ge
- 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. The Vardzia route and winter mountain roads change; we check both before every trip.
