Tbilisi is the capital and largest city of Georgia, a 1,500-year-old city strung along the Mtkvari River between steep hills in the South Caucasus. Its crooked Old Town of carved wooden balconies, sulfur bathhouses, Orthodox churches and hillside fortress sits beside Art Nouveau boulevards, Soviet-era landmarks and a fast-growing café, wine-bar and club scene. Visitors come for Georgian food and natural wine, easy day trips to monasteries and mountains, and some of the lowest prices of any European capital.
Best souvenirs
Authentic items worth bringing home.
Qvevri wine and saperavi
Amber (skin-contact) white wines and deep red saperavi made in clay qvevri; buy from specialist wine shops in Sololaki and Chavchavadze Avenue
Price: GEL 25-120 per bottle (approx USD 10-46)
Where: Wine shops in Old Tbilisi and Sololaki, Dezerter Bazaar
Chacha
Strong grape pomace spirit, often sold in decorative bottles or infused with fruit; check that the bottle is sealed for flights
Price: GEL 20-80 per bottle (approx USD 8-31)
Where: Wine shops, Dezerter Bazaar, Meidan Square
Churchkhela and tklapi
Strings of walnuts coated in dried grape must, and sheets of dried fruit leather
Price: GEL 3-10 each (approx USD 1-4)
Where: Dezerter Bazaar, Dry Bridge area, street vendors on Shardeni
Svanetian salt and Georgian spices
Blue fenugreek, marigold petals (imeretian saffron), coriander and the Svan salt blend used in many Georgian dishes
Price: GEL 4-15 per bag (approx USD 2-6)
Where: Dezerter Bazaar, Meidan Bazaar
Cloisonne enamel jewellery
Georgian cloisonne (minanqari) enamel has been made for a thousand years; modern designers sell pendants and rings
Price: GEL 60-600 (approx USD 23-229)
Where: Dry Bridge Market, jewellery shops on Aghmashenebeli Avenue and in Sololaki
Felt and wool crafts
Hand-felted slippers, hats and the Georgian chokha-inspired shawls made in rural workshops and sold in craft shops
Price: GEL 30-250 (approx USD 11-95)
Where: Dry Bridge Market, Fabrika boutiques, Meidan Square craft shops
Soviet-era memorabilia
Soviet badges, cameras, watches, medals and ceramics sold at Dry Bridge Market; export of genuine antiques over 50 years may require a permit
Price: GEL 5-300 (approx USD 2-115)
Where: Dry Bridge Market
Paintings and prints
Original works by local painters and prints of Old Tbilisi balconies and Pirosmani-style scenes
Price: GEL 30-500 (approx USD 11-191)
Where: Dry Bridge Market, Gudiashvili Square, Fabrika
Ceramics and Georgian drinking horns (kantsi)
Pottery from Shua Mta and Imereti and horn drinking cups used at the supra
Price: GEL 15-100 (approx USD 6-38)
Where: Meidan Bazaar, Dry Bridge Market
Georgian-language and English books
Georgian literature in English translation and the Georgian alphabet primers
Price: GEL 15-60 (approx USD 6-23)
Where: Prospero's Books and Caliban's Coffee House on Rustaveli Avenue
Traditional markets
Where locals shop and travellers find treasures.
Dry Bridge Market
Soviet antiques, art, crafts, jewellery
Where: Dry Bridge, near Marjanishvili Metro, Tbilisi
Hours: Daily about 10:00-18:00 (busiest on weekends)
Meidan Bazaar
Georgian crafts, ceramics, wine, spices
Where: Meidan Square, Old Tbilisi
Hours: Daily about 10:00-20:00
Dezerter Bazaar
Fresh produce, cheeses, spices, churchkhela, chacha
Where: Near Station Square, Tbilisi
Hours: Daily about 8:00-19:00
Fabrika Tbilisi
Design boutiques, cafes, art studios, hostel
Where: Egnate Ninoshvili Street, Ortachala/Vera area
Hours: Courtyard open daily; shops about 11:00-21:00
Galleria Tbilisi
International brands, cinema, cafes
Where: Rustaveli Avenue, Freedom Square
Hours: Daily about 10:00-22:00
Prospero's Books and Caliban's Coffee House
English-language books, Georgian literature, coffee
Where: Rustaveli Avenue
Hours: Daily about 10:00-21:00
Shardeni Street shops
Souvenirs, craft shops, cafes, wine bars
Where: Old Tbilisi, near Abanotubani
Hours: Daily about 10:00-23:00
Aghmashenebeli Avenue
Cafes, antique shops, art boutiques, jewellery
Where: Sololaki to Marjanishvili
Hours: Shops mostly 10:00-20:00