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Geotour

Borjomi

Samtskhe-Javakheti · Nature

Getting there
About 160 km (2.5 h) west of Tbilisi via the E60 motorway and Khashuri on paved roads
Best time
May–October
Recommended stay
Half a day–1 day

About Borjomi

Borjomi is a 19th-century spa town in a forested gorge of the Mtkvari river, about 160 km (2.5 h) west of Tbilisi, famous across the former Soviet Union for its salty, naturally carbonated mineral water. You can taste the warm water straight from the spring in the Central Park, ride the cable car above the town, bathe in the open-air sulphur pools higher up the valley, and walk into Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park from the visitor centre. It is the usual stop on the way to Vardzia and Bakuriani.

Tours Including Borjomi

See all 8 tours

Must-See Attractions

  • Borjomi Central Park

    The 19th-century park along the Borjomula stream, with the mineral-water pavilion where you drink the warm water from the spring; a short walk from the town centre.

  • Cable car

    Runs from the park up to a viewpoint above the town and the gorge.

  • Sulphur pools

    Open-air pools of warm sulphur water about 3 km up the valley from the park entrance, reached on foot along the stream.

  • Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park

    Marked trails from 1 hour to several days start near the visitor centre at the edge of town.

  • Likani Palace

    The Romanov summer palace of the 1890s, seen from outside only; it is a state residence and closed to the public.

Nearby

  • Bakuriani

    Ski and summer resort, about 30 km (40–45 min) up a mountain road. Green Monastery (Chitakhevi): A medieval monastery church of greenish stone in the forest, about 20 minutes from town plus a short walk.

  • Akhaltsikhe and Rabati Castle

    About 50 km (50 min) south-west.

  • Vardzia

    The 12th-century cave monastery, about 110 km (2 h) south.

Location41.8422° N, 43.3856° EView on map

Good to know

Getting there

About 160 km (2.5 h) west of Tbilisi via the E60 motorway and Khashuri on paved roads; about 50 km (50 min) from Akhaltsikhe.

Best time

May–October

Best time

Late spring to autumn is best for walks in the park and national park and for the outdoor sulphur pools, and autumn colours the forest in October, while winter is quiet and often snowy.

Recommended stay

Half a day–1 day

Fees

Central Park about 5 GEL; the sulphur pools about 5 GEL; the cable car is paid separately, and we confirm the current fare.

What to bring

A bottle to fill at the spring, and a swimsuit and towel for the sulphur pools.

Heads-up

The Kukushka narrow-gauge train to Bakuriani is not running; a restoration has been announced.

Walking

The path from the park to the sulphur pools is about 3 km each way, mostly gentle.

Time needed

1 hour for the park and spring; half a day with the pools or a national-park walk.

History & culture

Culture

The town still has the feel of an imperial spa, with wooden villas with carved balconies and sanatoriums where Georgians come for water cures. Drinking the water from the source is part of every visit, and locals bring bottles to fill.

History

Soldiers of the Russian Kherson Grenadier Regiment found the mineral springs in 1829, during the war with the Ottoman Empire, and the water soon became known for treating digestive complaints. In 1871 the Borjomi estate passed to Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich, brother of Tsar Alexander II, and the Romanovs turned the town into a fashionable spa with parks, villas and a bottling plant. In the 1890s his son Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich built a palace and park at Likani, just west of town. Borjomi water became one of the best-known mineral waters in the Soviet Union and is still bottled here.

Local Cuisine

Trout from the mountain rivers and farms of the gorge is on most local menus. Local honey and jams, including jam made from young pine cones, are sold at stalls near the park.

Accommodation

A wide choice: large spa and resort hotels, 19th-century villas converted into small hotels, and many family guesthouses in the town and in Likani. It is a comfortable overnight stop between Tbilisi and Vardzia.