Svaneti Expedition
Five days in Upper Svaneti: Kutaisi, Zugdidi, the Enguri dam, Mestia and Ushguli.
- days
- 5 / 4 nights
- Total distance
- 1050 km
- Total driving
- 21:00
- Car needed
- Off-road 4x4
- Season
- June–September
- Difficulty
- Hard
Click a marker for details. Coloured lines are ready-made road trips.
Upper Svaneti is the most remote and the most memorable corner of Georgia. Tbilisi to Mestia is 470 kilometres and eight and a half hours — a full day behind the wheel — which is why this route is built around five days: two on the road, three in the mountains. Rushing it makes no sense.
The drive changes character as you go. First Kutaisi and the Colchis lowland, then Zugdidi with the Dadiani palace, then the Enguri Dam, a 271-metre arch wall with a turquoise reservoir behind it. From the dam the Enguri gorge begins and climbs for seventy kilometres, narrowing until the stone towers of Mestia appear. From Mestia nothing is far: the Chalaadi glacier is a ninety-minute walk from the road bridge, the Hatsvali cable car opens a full panorama of Ushba, and Ushguli is 45 kilometres and roughly two hours away — one of the highest permanently inhabited villages in Europe, under the wall of Shkhara.
This trip demands preparation. The Mestia-Ushguli road is partly gravel and crosses shallow fords that rise with the meltwater, so a genuine four-wheel-drive vehicle is not a suggestion. The season runs June to September; from October the passes start catching snow. Conditions for off-road vehicles are set out on our pricing page.
Day-by-day plan
Day 1 · Tbilisi → Kutaisi → Zugdidi (320 km, 4 h 50 min) - 08:00 Leave Tbilisi on the E60. - 11:30 Kutaisi: Bagrati Cathedral and lunch (2 h). - 15:30 Zugdidi, the Dadiani Palace and its botanical garden (1 h 30 min). - Overnight in Zugdidi.
Day 2 · Zugdidi → Enguri → Mestia (150 km, 3 h 20 min) - 09:00 Set off towards Jvari. - 09:45 Enguri Dam and the reservoir viewpoint (1 h). - 11:00 Up the Enguri gorge; stop and lunch at Khaishi (1 h). - 15:00 Arrive Mestia: Svan towers and the museum (2 h). - Overnight in Mestia.
Day 3 · Mestia and Chalaadi (30 km, 1 h) - 09:00 Drive to the Chalaadi bridge, then a 1 h 30 min walk to the glacier. - 13:00 Lunch in Mestia (1 h). - 15:00 Hatsvali cable car and the Ushba panorama (2 h 30 min). - Overnight in Mestia.
Day 4 · Mestia → Ushguli → Mestia (90 km, 4 h) - 08:30 Leave for Ushguli — gravel sections and fords. - 10:30 Ushguli — the towers of Chazhashi and Lamaria church (2 h). - 13:00 Lunch in Ushguli with the Shkhara view (1 h 30 min). - 16:00 Drive back through Ipari and Kala. - Overnight in Mestia.
Day 5 · Mestia → Tbilisi (470 km, 8 h 30 min) - 07:30 Early start down the Enguri gorge. - 11:00 Zugdidi: coffee and fuel (45 min). - 13:30 Lunch in Kutaisi or Samtredia (1 h). - 18:00 Break at the Rikoti pass (30 min). - 20:30 Back in Tbilisi.
Stops on this route
Bagrati Cathedral and central Kutaisi
The cathedral on Ukimerioni hill and the old streets of Kutaisi spread out below it.
3 hDadiani Palace, Zugdidi
The residence of the princes of Mingrelia set in a botanical garden — Napoleon's death mask and the family collection.
2 hEnguri Dam and Jvari Reservoir
A 271-metre arch dam on the road to Mestia, with a long turquoise reservoir stretching behind it.
1 hMestia and the Svan Towers
Upper Svaneti's main town at 1,500 m — medieval stone defence towers, two strong museums and the trailhead for every route in the region.
4 hChalaadi Glacier
The most accessible glacier near Mestia — a short drive up the valley and a two-hour walk to the ice tongue.
4 hUshguli
One of Europe's highest permanently inhabited settlements at 2,100 m, under Mount Shkhara — UNESCO-listed as part of Upper Svaneti.
4 hTips
- The Mestia-Ushguli section is gravel with river fords — 4x4 only, about two hours each way.
- The season is June to September; in May and October snow can close the Ushguli road without warning.
- Refuel in Zugdidi and in Mestia — there is almost nothing in between.
- Mobile coverage drops out in the gorge; download offline maps before you leave.
- Mestia beds sell out early in July and August; Ushguli guesthouses are simpler and colder.
- Mountain weather turns fast — a rain shell and warm layers are needed even in midsummer.