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Photos: Bernard Gagnon (CC BY 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons

Ikalto

Kakheti · History

Getting there
About 100 km (about 2 h) from Tbilisi over the Gombori Pass, or about 10 km (15 min) from Telavi, on paved roads
Best time
April–October
Recommended stay
30–60 minutes

About Ikalto

Ikalto Monastery stands among old trees on a slope above the village of Ikalto, about 10 km west of Telavi in Kakheti. Founded in the 6th century by St Zenon, one of the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers, it later housed one of medieval Georgia's two great academies, where tradition says the poet Shota Rustaveli studied. You see three churches, the roofless academy building and the remains of its wine press and qvevri, a reminder that the monks taught viticulture as well as theology. A quiet 45-minute stop, often combined with Alaverdi and Telavi.

Tours Including Ikalto

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Must-See Attractions

  • Khvtaeba (Transfiguration) church: The main domed church of the 8th–9th centuries, built over St Zenon's burial place.

  • Academy ruins

    The long roofless hall of the 12th-century academy, where lessons were held.

  • Wine press and qvevri

    A stone grape press and clay qvevri jars in the academy grounds.

  • Sameba and Kvelatsminda

    Two smaller churches, Sameba (Trinity) and Kvelatsminda, within the monastery walls.

Nearby

  • Telavi

    The Kakheti capital with Batonis Tsikhe fortress and the old plane tree, about 10 km east (15 min).

  • Alaverdi Cathedral

    An 11th-century cathedral, one of the tallest in Georgia, with a monastery winery, about 15 km north (25 min).

  • Shuamta monasteries

    Old and New Shuamta in the forest on the Gombori road, about 10 km (15 min).

Location41.9370° N, 45.3810° EView on map

Good to know

Getting there

About 100 km (about 2 h) from Tbilisi over the Gombori Pass, or about 10 km (15 min) from Telavi, on paved roads.

Best time

April–October

Best time

Spring is green and quiet, and from mid-September to October the grape harvest is under way in the surrounding vineyards; the site is open all year.

Recommended stay

30–60 minutes

Fees

Entry is free.

What to wear

Shoulders and knees covered; women cover their hair.

Getting there

A short paved lane leads up from Ikalto village to a car park at the gate.

Time needed

30–45 minutes.

History & culture

Culture

Ikalto is an active monastery with a small community of monks, and qvevri winemaking continues in Kakheti villages around it.

History

St Zenon founded the monastery in the 6th century, and he is buried there. In the early 12th century King David the Builder made Ikalto an academy, led by the theologian Arsen Ikaltoeli, teaching theology, philosophy, astronomy and practical subjects such as winemaking and pharmacy; Gelati in western Georgia was its counterpart. The main church, Khvtaeba, was built in the 8th–9th centuries over the older church where Zenon was buried. The academy was burned during the invasion of Shah Abbas I in 1616 and never reopened.

Accommodation

No accommodation at the monastery. Telavi, 15 minutes away, has family guesthouses, mid-range hotels and several winery hotels in the surrounding villages.