Kazbegi with a Truso or Juta Valley Hike — 2-Day Private Tour

About 152 km and 3–3.5 hours of driving; 6–7 hours with stops.

1. 09:00

   Pickup in Tbilisi; Jvari Monastery viewpoint above Mtskheta

2. 10:15

   Ananuri fortress (45 min)

   • Ananuri FortressDay 1: Ananuri fortress above the Zhinvali reservoir, with two churches and a watchtower inside its walls (about 45 min).

     Day 1: Ananuri fortress above the Zhinvali reservoir, with two churches and a watchtower inside its walls (about 45 min).

     Ananuri is a 17th-century fortress of the Dukes of Aragvi above the turquoise Zhinvali reservoir, about 70 km (1–1.25 h) north of Tbilisi on the Georgian Military Highway. Inside its walls stand two churches, one with richly carved façades from 1689, and a square watchtower you can climb for a view down the reservoir. It is the usual first stop on the way to Kazbegi or Pasanauri, and 30–45 minutes is enough to see it.

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3. • Gudauri Ski ResortDay 1: the Friendship Monument viewpoint past Gudauri, then the Jvari Pass (2,379 m), the highest point of the road.

     Day 1: the Friendship Monument viewpoint past Gudauri, then the Jvari Pass (2,379 m), the highest point of the road.

     Gudauri is Georgia's largest ski resort, on the Georgian Military Highway about 120 km north of Tbilisi, just below the Jvari Pass. The resort village sits at about 2,200 m, and its lifts, including gondolas, run from about 1,990 m to 3,279 m, serving wide open pistes above the tree line and large freeride slopes. The ski season usually runs from late December to mid-April. In summer the same slopes are used for hiking and tandem paragliding, and Gudauri is a common stop on the way to Kazbegi.

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   • KazbegiNight in Stepantsminda (hotel, dinner and breakfast), the village below Mt Kazbek (5,054 m).

     Night in Stepantsminda (hotel, dinner and breakfast), the village below Mt Kazbek (5,054 m).

     Stepantsminda, still widely called Kazbegi, is the mountain town at about 1,740 m on the Georgian Military Highway, 152 km north of Tbilisi (3–3.5 h) and 15 km from the Russian border. Above it the 14th-century Gergeti Trinity Church stands at 2,170 m with Mount Kazbek (5,054 m) behind. It is the base for walks to Gergeti, the Gveleti waterfall and the Dariali gorge, and by 4x4 for the Truso and Juta valleys. Come as a long day trip, or stay a night or two to walk in the morning light.

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4. 12:00

   Khinkali lunch in Pasanauri (not included)

5. 13:15

   Friendship Monument viewpoint and the Jvari Pass

6. 15:00

   Check in at Stepantsminda

7. 17:30

   Gergeti Trinity Church in the evening light (drive or walk up)

   • Trinity Church GergetiDay 1 evening: the 14th-century Gergeti Trinity Church at 2,170 m, by car on the sealed road or on foot (about 1–1.5 h up).

     Day 1 evening: the 14th-century Gergeti Trinity Church at 2,170 m, by car on the sealed road or on foot (about 1–1.5 h up).

     Gergeti Trinity Church (Tsminda Sameba) stands alone on a grassy ridge at 2,170 m above Stepantsminda, about 152 km north of Tbilisi, with the glaciated cone of Mount Kazbek (5,054 m) behind it. The 14th-century church and its bell tower are a working Orthodox site and the classic view of the Georgian Caucasus. You reach it by car on the paved road from town or on foot in about 1–1.5 hours up through meadows, 430 m of climbing. Most people stay 45–60 minutes for the church, the views and the photos.

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8. Dinner at the hotel (included)

9. Overnight: Stepantsminda (hotel, breakfast and dinner)

Choose one valley. A local 4x4 drives the dirt road and a local hiking guide walks with you; about 3.5 hours' drive back to Tbilisi.

1. 08:00

   Truso (May–Oct): 4x4 to Kvemo Okrokana, passport check, about 3 h walk to the travertines and the Abano mineral lake and back; lunch in Gudauri on the way south (not included)

   • Truso ValleyDay 2 option, May–October: local 4x4 to Kvemo Okrokana, then a nearly flat walk of about 3 hours there and back to the travertine springs and the Abano mineral lake. Bring your passport for the border-police check.

     Day 2 option, May–October: local 4x4 to Kvemo Okrokana, then a nearly flat walk of about 3 hours there and back to the travertine springs and the Abano mineral lake. Bring your passport for the border-police check.

     Truso is a high valley of the upper Terek river, starting near Kobi on the Georgian Military Highway about 20 km south of Stepantsminda. From the village of Kvemo Okrokana a dirt track runs up the nearly flat valley floor past bubbling mineral springs, orange and white travertine terraces, the small Abano mineral lake, the abandoned village of Ketrisi and the towers of Zakagori fortress. You walk part of it or ride in a local 4x4. The upper valley ends at the occupation line of the Tskhinvali region.

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2. or 08:00 Juta (Jul–Sep): 4x4 from Sno to the road closure, 1 h walk into Juta, 3 h walk towards the Chaukhi peaks, 1 h back to the car; lunch in Stepantsminda (not included)

   • JutaDay 2 option, July–September: 4x4 from Sno to the road closure, an hour's walk into Juta, then about 3 hours towards the Fifth Season hut and the Chaukhi peaks (+360–400 m).

     Day 2 option, July–September: 4x4 from Sno to the road closure, an hour's walk into Juta, then about 3 hours towards the Fifth Season hut and the Chaukhi peaks (+360–400 m).

     Juta is a small mountain village at about 2,200 m at the head of the Sno valley, south-east of Stepantsminda (Kazbegi), under the jagged Chaukhi massif (3,842 m), often called the Georgian Dolomites. From the village an easy path climbs through meadows past the Fifth Season hut towards the foot of the peaks: about 10–12 km return with 360–400 m of climbing. Since a road collapse in June 2025, the last 2.6 km of road below the village has been closed, so you finish the approach on foot or by village taxi. Go from July to September.

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3. Easy option: a morning walk up to Gergeti and to the Gveleti waterfall

4. 15:00

   Drive back; 17:30–19:00 at your hotel in Tbilisi (Juta is the later option)