Kazbegi in winter

What winter in Kazbegi is like

Stepantsminda sits at about 1,740 m under Mount Kazbek. Snow usually covers the town and the slopes from December to March. Winters are cold but fairly dry, so many days are clear, and Kazbek shows best in the morning.

December to February are the coldest months. Average daytime highs are around 0 °C in December and -2 °C in January and February, and nights drop to -8 to -11 °C. The pass is colder and windier than the town.

The reward is quiet, with a fraction of the summer crowds. The price is the pass, which can close the road for hours or days. Leave room for that and winter is a fine time to come.

Tour

Kazbegi and the Georgian Military Road

1 day≈ 11 hfrom $300from €270from ₾785

The road over the Jvari Pass

From Tbilisi the Georgian Military Road passes the Zhinvali reservoir and Ananuri, then climbs from Mleta to Gudauri in a chain of hairpin bends. Beyond Gudauri comes the stretch that matters in winter, about 14 km over the Jvari Pass (2,379 m) down to Kobi. From Kobi it is another 17 km to Stepantsminda.

This stretch has five avalanche galleries, concrete tunnels over the road where slides come down. On risky days traffic goes only through the galleries, sometimes one way at a time, with waits of up to an hour. Stopping is then banned from Mleta to Kobi, so the photo at the Friendship Monument waits for a clear day.

From 1 December to 1 March winter tyres are compulsory from Mleta to Kobi, with the snowflake mark and at least 3 mm of tread. The fine is 100 GEL. In snowfall the police may also require chains and turn back cars without proper tyres.

A new road from Kvesheti to Kobi with a 9 km tunnel will bypass the pass, but the Ministry of Infrastructure expects it to open only in 2028. In winter 2026/27 all traffic to Kazbegi still crosses the pass.

When and why the Jvari Pass closes

The Roads Department of Georgia closes the Gudauri to Kobi section when the National Environmental Agency rates the avalanche risk as high, and in blizzards with poor visibility. Lorries and trailers are stopped first, often hours before cars. Gudauri itself usually stays reachable from Tbilisi.

Snow is not cleared at night because of the avalanche risk, so a road closed in the evening rarely opens before the next day.

A closure lasts from a few hours to several days. In winter 2025/26 cars could not cross for about two days from 13 January, three days from 2 February and almost four days from 26 February. Spring is no exception. In 2025 the pass was shut from 13 to 17 April, and in 2026 from 23 to 25 April.

The Kobi to Gudauri gondola, a little over 7 km long, was built partly as a way around closures, and in January 2021 it took tourists stranded in Kazbegi to Gudauri. It runs by day while the Gudauri lifts are open (10:00 to 17:00 in midwinter 2025/26) and stops in strong wind. An adult return ticket cost 45 GEL. Treat it as a fallback, not a plan.

How to check the Jvari Pass today

Check the evening before and again in the morning before you leave.

• The Restrictions page of the Roads Department of Georgia, the official source. Each notice says Traffic Restriction or Traffic Restored and gives the time.
• News on 1tv.ge, Georgia's public broadcaster, in English and Georgian.
• The Telegram channel @Verhniy_Lars, in Russian. It relays closures fast and warns when heavy snow makes one likely.
• Our drivers check the road the evening before and on the morning of the trip, and message you if anything changes.

Gergeti Trinity Church in winter

The church at 2,170 m is open all year, officially from 9:00 to 17:00.

The 6 km road up from Gergeti village ices over. In snow and ice only 4x4s drive it, and after heavy snowfall it can stay impassable until it is cleared. Local 4x4s wait on the main square. In 2026 a seat cost 15 to 25 GEL and the whole car up and back 50 to 100 GEL, with about half an hour at the top. On our Kazbegi tour the climb to Gergeti is part of the day. In snow the driver decides on the spot whether our Prado goes up or a local 4x4 is the safer choice.

On foot it is 3 to 3.5 km from the town centre and 400 to 450 m up, 1 to 2 hours in summer and longer in snow. If the path is buried in fresh snow, the forest route is easier to follow. Wear boots with a firm grip and bring microspikes and poles. The last steep climb and the ground by the church are often icy.

Shoulders and knees must be covered, and women wear a skirt and cover their hair. Wraps are handed out at the door, and photos are not allowed inside.

What else to see and do in winter

Everything along the paved roads can be visited in winter. Juta and Truso cannot, as their dirt roads lie under snow from about November to May.

• Gveleti waterfall, 7 km north of town, freezes into a wall of ice in cold spells. The 15 to 20 minute path ices over, so go in good boots with microspikes or with a local guide.
• Dariali monastery, 10 to 11 km north on the main road by the border. Allow 30 to 40 minutes.
• Sno, 10 minutes towards Tbilisi, where Merab Piranishvili's giant stone heads and a 16th-century fortress stand in the snow by a paved road.
• Sioni, a 9th to 10th-century basilica with a watchtower right on the main road, 9 km towards Tbilisi.
• Snowshoe walks. Snowshoes can be rented in the town centre, and Sno and the forest below Gergeti are popular routes. Off the road the avalanche risk is real, so go with a certified local guide, as for ski touring.
• A ski day in Gudauri. The lifts are due to run from 20 December 2026 (announced 9 October 2026) to mid-April 2027 (expected), and from Kobi the gondola rises straight into the ski area. See Gudauri in winter.

A day trip or a night in Stepantsminda

Our transfer from Tbilisi is 155 km and about 3 hours. In winter allow 3.5 to 4 hours, more if the galleries run one way at a time. In December the sun rises after 8:00 and sets around 17:30, so cross the pass back in daylight.

A night in Stepantsminda makes winter easier. You see Kazbek in the clear morning, and if the pass shuts you wait in a warm hotel, not in a car.

If you are heading on to Russia, note that the Upper Lars border also stops traffic while the pass is closed. See our guide to Upper Lars.

For a same-day return, plan roughly like this.

• 8:00, leave Tbilisi. A short stop at Ananuri around 9:15.
• About 11:00, Gudauri and the pass, with a stop at the Friendship Monument if stopping is allowed that day.
• 12:00 to 12:30, Stepantsminda. Gergeti by 4x4, about 1.5 hours.
• 14:00, lunch in town.
• 15:00, Dariali monastery or Gveleti waterfall, one of the two.
• 16:00 at the latest, head back. You cross the pass before dark and reach Tbilisi around 19:30 to 20:00.

If the pass closes on your travel day

If the authorities close the road on the day, we wait and drive later, move the ride to another day, or cancel without charge.

In winter our cars run on winter tyres and carry snow chains. For snow we recommend the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, with four-wheel drive and seats for up to four.

Booking a transfer or a tour

For a night or more, book the Tbilisi to Kazbegi transfer. From the airport you can go straight up with the Tbilisi Airport to Kazbegi transfer, 170 km and about 3 hours 15 minutes, longer in snow. The driver follows your flight and meets you in the arrivals hall. For a day trip, the Kazbegi and Georgian Military Road tour takes about 11 hours from your Tbilisi hotel and back.

The price is fixed per car, not per person, child seats are free, and you pay the driver after the ride. Groups of up to seven travel in the Mercedes-Benz V-Class. Book on the site or in our Telegram bot. It takes about two minutes.