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Geotour

Tsinandali

Kakheti · Wine

Getting there
About 105 km (about 2 h) from Tbilisi over the Gombori pass via Telavi on paved roads, or about 10 km (15 min) from Telavi
Best time
April–October
Recommended stay
1.5–2 hours

About Tsinandali

Tsinandali is the 19th-century country estate of Prince Alexander Chavchavadze, about 10 km south-east of Telavi in Kakheti, with a house museum, a large landscaped park and one of Georgia's oldest wineries. A visit takes 1.5–2 hours: tour the family house, walk the park under old plane trees and cedars, go down to the enoteca, whose collection starts in 1814, and taste the estate's wines. In early September the estate hosts the Tsinandali Festival of classical music.

Tours Including Tsinandali

See all 9 tours

Must-See Attractions

  • Chavchavadze house museum

    The family's rooms, portraits and furniture, with the story of the poet and his circle.

  • Estate park

    A 19th-century landscape garden with old plane trees, cedars and a long alley, good for a shady walk.

  • Enoteca and old winery

    The cellar with the historic bottle collection, including an 1841 Saperavi.

  • Wine tasting

    Estate wines in the old winery, for an extra charge.

Nearby

  • Telavi

    Kakheti's main town with the fortress of Erekle II, about 10 km (15 min).

  • Alaverdi Cathedral

    The 11th-century cathedral in the Alazani Valley, about 30 km (35 min).

  • Gremi

    The 16th-century royal citadel, about 25 km (30 min).

  • Sighnaghi

    The walled town above the valley, about 60 km (1 h).

Location41.8947° N, 45.5756° EView on map

Good to know

Getting there

About 105 km (about 2 h) from Tbilisi over the Gombori pass via Telavi on paved roads, or about 10 km (15 min) from Telavi.

Best time

April–October

Best time

The park is at its greenest in May and June, and September brings the festival and the grape harvest; in winter the garden is bare but the house and cellar can still be visited.

Recommended stay

1.5–2 hours

Fees

Entry about 10 GEL; the enoteca and tastings cost extra.

Hours

Museum opening hours vary; we plan around them and confirm when you book.

Time needed

About 1.5–2 hours with a tasting.

Heads-up

During the festival in early September, parts of the park may be closed for concerts and the hotel is full; book early if you want tickets.

History & culture

Culture

The Tsinandali Festival brings international classical musicians and the Pan-Caucasian Youth Orchestra to the estate's amphitheatre for about ten days in early September. Tsinandali is also a protected wine appellation: a dry white blend of Rkatsiteli and Mtsvane from the villages around the estate.

History

Alexander Chavchavadze (1786–1846), a poet, general and the father-in-law of the Russian writer Alexander Griboyedov, turned the family estate into a meeting place of Georgian and Russian society. In the 1830s he founded a winery here that combined European methods with Georgian grapes, and the enoteca still holds bottles from 1814 onward. In 1854 raiders of Imam Shamil sacked the house and took women of the family hostage; they were exchanged months later. In 1886 the estate passed to the Russian imperial family's appanage department. The house later became a museum; after a recent restoration the estate also has a hotel and an amphitheatre, which has hosted the Tsinandali Festival since 2019.

Local Cuisine

Try the Tsinandali appellation white (Rkatsiteli and Mtsvane) where it is made, and Kakhetian qvevri wines at the estate or family cellars in the villages around it; the estate hotel and nearby wineries have restaurants serving Kakhetian food.

Accommodation

The Tsinandali Estate, a Radisson Collection Hotel, sits inside the historic park. Otherwise stay in Telavi or at the wine guesthouses and estate hotels in the surrounding villages, 15–20 minutes away.