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"It's better to go to Sochi." A traveler from Russia named the only reason not to vacation in Tbilisi
Former colleague Ivan Shestak from E1.RU went on vacation to the Caucasus. In this article, he shares his observations and talks about the capital of Georgia. Where to walk, where to feast, how much it costs and whether it is worth going there for Russian tourists in 2024. The conclusion, of course, is forward! The reason is indicated in the travel journal.
Firstly, if the work is worth it, you can save money this way. For example, in St. Petersburg, Tbilisi there is no concept of competition. Well, people are too lazy to do market research, and they leave it alone. The same dish with a difference of 2/4 or 3/4 can cost 10 lari cheaper (1 lari at the current exchange rate is about 35 rubles. - Ed.).
Also check out the Cloud 9 restaurant on Aleksandra Chavchavadze 11. If the evening is warm and you have a free table on the veranda, you can enjoy the beautiful view while sipping wine and eating the best draniki in the city. If you're lucky, you can do all this with live music.
The same as regular Georgian restaurants in Russia: khinkali, khachapuri, etc. Wine makes wine, and only wine, and a river flows here. But I don't like alcohol, so I can't say much, except that young homemade wine is definitely worth trying. It's like compote here.
I flew from Yekaterinburg to Vladikavkaz. The ticket there cost 7,000 rubles. At the stop, I bought a ticket for a minibus for 25,000 rubles. Here you can see how to get directly from the plane to the minibus, but I wanted to see Vladikavkaz too, so I stayed in the city for two nights.
The total cost of the trip, including transportation to the airport and accommodation, is about 50,000 rubles. Everything else - food, public transportation around the city and souvenirs - costs about 30,000 rubles. Public transportation in Tbilisi is cheap: buses and the metro cost 1 lari. But I still recommend walking, looking around and admiring the scenery.
Is Tbilisi right for you if you are from Russia?
There are many Russians and many immigrants here. This is especially true if you look at the night bars. By the way, not far from Svobody Square there is a bar called "Optimist", opened by Yekaterinburg residents. According to him, he did not know that a similar establishment with the same name existed in Yekaterinburg.
A separate difficult topic is the attitude towards Russians. If you read what is written on the wall (I can’t publish it for obvious reasons) and take it personally, I recommend going to Sochi. And if your goal is to talk about politics, then this is probably not a topic for Tbilisi either.
Georgia has long been a neighbor of Russia, but it is still a separate country with its own way of life and worldview. Tourists are loved, pampered and cherished by almost everyone here. Russians are pampered and cherished by a small part of the population. There are so many difficult moments in the common history of our country that it is better to give up the status of a Russian and accept the usual status of a tourist. This will make life easier for everyone.