Telavi and Batonis Tsikhe
The capital of Kakheti on a terrace above the Alazani Valley, with King Erekle II's residence and a nine-century-old plane tree.
- Time needed
- 3 h
- From Tbilisi
- 95 km · 1:45
- Road
- Paved
- Car needed
- Economy class
- Season
- All year
- Entry
- ~7 ₾
Telavi is the administrative and practical centre of Kakheti — the market, the hospital, the banks and by far the widest choice of accommodation in the region are all here. The town is built in terraces on the slope of the Tsiv-Gombori range, and from the main avenue the Alazani Valley and the Caucasus wall open out directly ahead. This is the natural base from which Alaverdi, Ikalto, Tsinandali and Gremi can all be reached in a single day.
In the centre stands Batonis Tsikhe, the royal residence of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries: Erekle II's palace, two small court churches, a bathhouse and the enclosing wall. The complex has been restored and works as a museum, with a historical exhibition, the royal rooms and a walk around the courtyard perimeter. In front of it is the well-known equestrian statue of Erekle II, and the terrace beside it gives the town's best panorama.
A short walk away, in its own small enclosure, stands the Telavi plane tree — an oriental plane estimated at around nine hundred years old, with a trunk some eleven metres around. The town market, five minutes from the castle, is worth a stop in its own right: churchkhela, Telavi cheese, fruit, and local wine sold by the bottle or straight from plastic canisters.
Gallery
Practical advice
Telavi makes a sensible overnight base if you are giving Kakheti two days; room rates here run below Sighnaghi. The ticket at Batonis Tsikhe covers the museum, while walking into the courtyard is normally free. Leave the car near the Erekle statue, where parking costs nothing. Three hours covers the castle, the plane tree and the market. Cafés and ATMs line the central avenue, but bring cash for the market itself.
How to get there from Tbilisi
The quickest route is over the Gombori Pass: out of Tbilisi via Vaziani, Ujarma and Gombori, about 95 km and an hour and three quarters. The road is asphalt but narrow and winding at the top, and it can close briefly after heavy winter snowfall. The alternative is the Kakheti Highway through Sagarejo and Gurjaani — 120 km and over two hours, but flat and untroubled. An economy car is adequate on either. Fuel up in Sagarejo or in Telavi itself, where several stations sit on the approach road.
Click a marker for details. Coloured lines are ready-made road trips.
Nearby places
Tsinandali Estate
The Chavchavadze family house, a landscaped English-style park and the first European-style winery in Georgia.
Ikalto Academy
A sixth-century monastery with the ruins of a medieval academy where, by tradition, Shota Rustaveli studied.
Alaverdi Cathedral
An eleventh-century cathedral rising fifty metres out of the Alazani plain — for centuries the tallest building in Georgia.
Part of these road trips
- Kakheti Wine Loop 3 days · 420 km
- Kakhetian Table and Cellar 3 days · 360 km
- Kakheti Cycling and Wine Road 5 days · 470 km
- Kakheti One-Day Cycling Loop 1 days · 58 km
Best car for this trip
Guides
- The Road to Tusheti: the Abano Pass, Segment by Segment Asphalt to Pshaveli, then 70 km of single-lane gravel over the Abano Pass at 2,850 m to Omalo. Classed 4x4-onl
- Driving in Georgia: What the Distances Actually Cost You Georgia is a small country with slow roads. Here is what 267 measured drives from Tbilisi say about how long y
Pickup locations
Car Rental at Tbilisi Airport — 51 km (straight line)