Upper Svaneti, the Greater Caucasus

Mestia

Stone towers, glaciers and the highest villages in Europe, at the end of the Enguri gorge.

Best time: June to September for the trails. December to April for skiing at Hatsvali and Tetnuldi. The road is open all year.
From Tbilisi: 8 h 30 min, 460 km

Mestia is the main town of Upper Svaneti, at about 1,500 m under the peaks of the Greater Caucasus. Medieval stone towers stand between the houses, the glaciers of Ushba and Tetnuldi close the valleys, and an hour and a half up the road Ushguli, at 2,100 m, is one of the highest villages in Europe and a UNESCO site.

The drive from Tbilisi takes most of a day: about 460 km west through Kutaisi and Zugdidi, then three hours up the Enguri gorge. From Kutaisi Airport it is four and a half hours, from Batumi about six. The road is asphalt all the way, and in winter we drive it in the Land Cruiser Prado.

Don't miss

The Svan towers and the museum
Towers from the 9th to the 12th century stand all over the town. The Svaneti Museum keeps the icons and manuscripts the villages guarded for a thousand years.
Ushguli
Four villages at 2,100 m under Shkhara, the highest mountain in Georgia. About 45 km and an hour and a half from Mestia on a concrete road with a few gravel stretches.
Koruldi lakes and the Chalaadi glacier
The lakes above the town mirror Ushba on a still morning, a 4x4 track or a long walk up. Chalaadi is a short walk from the end of the road up the Mestiachala valley.
The Enguri dam
The 271 m arch dam above Jvari, one of the tallest in the world, is the natural stop on the way up. The reservoir behind it runs along the road for half an hour.