Climate

 

Tbilisi has a humid subtropical climate with considerable continental and semi-arid influences. The city experiences hot, humid summers and moderately cold winters. Like other regions of Georgia, Tbilisi receives significant rainfall throughout the year with no distinct dry period. Average temperature in September varies between 15C (60F) - 25C (80F).

 

Banking / Currency

 

The currency in Georgia is Georgian Lari (Gel).

Currency exchange rate:
1 Lari = 0.34 USD
1 Lari = 0.34 Euro
1 Lari = 0.29 GBP
(as of July 18th, 2022)

Banks, Micro Finance Organizations and Private Currency Exchange Points. You can exchange currency at any Bank, Micro Finance Organization (MFO) or Private Currency Exchange points that are located all over the city; however, they all have a bit different currency values, usually MFO’s and Private Currency Exchange points have better exchange values than banks. ATM’s are located mostly in every hotel and all around the city, you can ask your hotel reception desk and they will direct you to the nearest ATM machine. In Georgia ATM’s accept all major cards (Mastercard, VISA, AmEx etc.).

 

Business Hours

 

In Georgia opening hours for businesses are usually as follows:

Banks:                                      10:00 – 18:00
Authorities & Public Offices:      09:00 – 18:00
Shops and Markets:                  10:00 – 19:00

Unified Emergency Number: 112

112 is the Emergency Response Center that receives emergency calls from all over Georgia via unified emergency number - 1-1-2 during 24-hours. 112 service is free of charge from all fixed line and mobile networks even if the number is disconnected from both sides or there is no SIM-card in the mobile phone. The number is intended for emergency situations, when human lives, their health, private or public property are in danger. You have to dial 112 When: There is a Fire; Your relative or you have a health problem; Person suddenly lost consciousness; Person has a serious bodily injury; Person has a heavy bleeding; Witnessed the suicide attempts; Witnessed a suicide; Witnessed the car accident; Witnessed a robbery; Witnessed a theft; Noticed the wanted person; Noticed suspicious item; Witnessed an explosion.

Time Zone: GMT+4
Dialing Code: +995
Power voltage & Electrical outlet / plug: In Georgia the power plugs and sockets are of type C and F. The standard voltage is 220 V and the standard frequency is 50 Hz.

 

Driving in Georgia

 

The fundamental rule of the road in Georgia is to drive on the right. Seat belts must be worn by driver and only the passenger who is sitting next to the driver.

Religion: According to a 2014 census, 83.4% of the Georgian population identified themselves as Eastern Orthodox Christian, 10.7% Muslim, 3.9% Armenian Apostolic, and 0.5% Catholic.

Smoking: Smoking in enclosed spaces is illegal in Georgia; however, you can smoke in any open space.

Water: Tap water is absolutely safe in Tbilisi. It means that drinking water quality complies in full with the WHO recommendations and requirements of National regulations; however, it should be noted that Georgia is also famous with its mineral and spring waters (Borjomi, Nabeglavi, Likani, Bakuriani, Sno etc.), which you can buy in any market or restaurant.

Transport: It should be noted that all transportation from IAP partner hotels (Sheraton Grand Tbilisi Metechi Palace, Radisson Blu Iveria, Biltmore, Marriott Tbilisi, Marriott Courtyard, Ambassadori, Mercury, Museum) to Plenary Sessions, Social Events and Accompanying Partners Events and back will be done by Conference Busses; however, there is quite well organized municipal transport available throughout Tbilisi.

Website links for the transport available in the city:
·       Taxi App: Bolt (App Store)
·       Airport Taxi - www.flytaxi.ge
·       Subway, Bus, Mini Bus - www.ttc.com.ge
·       Airport Bus - #37
·       Railway - www.railway.ge
·       Local Flight Tickets - www.ticket.vanillasky.ge
·       Tbilisi City Tour Bus - www.findouttbilisi.com/tbilisi-tour

Tickets: There are two main websites for purchasing tickets in Georgia, where you can purchase tickets for concerts, festivals, theatre performances, cinema, various events, railway, city tours, regional tours, flights, etc.:
·       www.tkt.ge
·       www.biletebi.ge

Office of the Prosecutor General:
Website: https://pog.gov.ge/
Address: 24 Vakhtang Gorgasali Str., Tbilisi 0114
Hot Line: + (995)322405222

 

Banks

 

Currently there are 12 Banks in Georgia, two of which - TBC Bank and Bank of Georgia are listed on London Stock Exchange and are the largest banks in Georgia, two are Georgian Banks Cartu Bank and Liberty Bank, one is branch of Kazakh bank - Halyk Bank, two are Turkish Banks - IsBank and Ziraat Bank, one is Azerbaijan Bank - Pasha Bank, one is owned by Chinese Holding - Basis Bank, one is owned by Dhabi Group - Tera Bank, two are owned by European Holdings - Credo Bank and Procredit Bank. All of them receive international transfers and have large number of branches and ATM’s throughout the city, which accepts all standard VISA, Mastercard, AmEx cards.

 

Healthcare

 

Emergency Services:
Central University Clinic 29 Vaja Pshavela Ave.
Aversi Clinic 27b Vaja Pshavela Ave.
Medi Club Georgia 22a Tashkent Str.
New Hospital (PSP) 12 Krtsanisi Str.

Covid Laboratories:
Labmix 45 Kote Apkhazi Str.
Med Diagnostics 31 Shota Rustaveli Ave.
Megalab 23 Petre Kavtaradze Str.
Synevo 29/81 Giorgi Chubinashvili Str.
 
Embassies and Representations:
Website: https://mfa.gov.ge/MainNav/EmbassiesRepresentations/ForeignEmbassiesMissionsGeorgia.asp
Traditional Georgian Market:
Bazaar on Orbeliani
3a Vekua Str.

The market on Orbeliani is a new space, the concept of which envisages the revival of the collective farm market in the historical part of the capital, which has existed since 1886, in a modern and comfortable environment. The market on Orbeliani is an integration of a modern type of agrarian market and a food hall. It combines 35 restaurants - with both traditional Georgian and international cuisine.

Dry Bridge – “Mshrali Khidi”
"Dry Bridge" is famous for its exhibitions, sale of paintings and antiques and "trade exchange".

 

Museums

 

The National Gallery (11 Rustaveli Ave.)

The Georgian National Gallery was established in 1920. Dimitri Shevardnadze, a well-known Georgian painter, contributed significantly to the development of the gallery. Since its foundation, the gallery has served the development of Georgian fine arts.
Nowadays, the Gallery is one of the central exhibition spaces of the National Museum, where one can find temporary exhibitions such as "Georgian fine art masterpieces of the early 20th Century.
 
Open Air Museum of Ethnography (Turtle Lake Str.)

The Giorgi Chitaia Open Air Museum of Ethnography is an open-air museum in Tbilisi, Georgia, displaying the examples of folk architecture and craftwork from various regions of the country. The museum is named after Giorgi Chitaia, a Georgian ethnographer, who founded the museum on April 27, 1966.
Art Palace Museum (6 Kargareteli Str.)

Georgian Art Palace

Museum of Cultural History is a depository of Georgian cultural objects. The Palace was designed by a well-known architect of the time, Paul Stern, and is an example of gothic and Islamic architecture. In 1882, German Prince Constantine Oldenburg met Agraphina Japaridze in Kutaisi. At the time she was married to Georgian nobleman from the House of Dadiani. Prince Oldenburg confessed his love for her. Prince Oldenburg's confession turned Agraphina Japaridze's head; they eloped and left Kutaisi and went to settle in Tbilisi. Prince Oldenburg commissioned the building of the palace for his beloved as a token of his great affection for her. The museum has more than 300,000 objects that provide information on the development of Georgian theatre, cinema, circus, folklore, opera, and ballet, as well as providing insight into the lives of figures in respective fields.

Some museum exhibits date back to the classical era. Of particular note is an antique mask which was excavated by archeologists in the town of Vani.

Museum of Fine Art (7 Rustaveli Ave.)

The museum allows visitors to explore 3500 Georgian artworks that have been created by over 100 artists in the past 70 years. The permanent collection is distributed over three floors with a suggested tour beginning from the top floor. Based on chronological development from 5th, 4th and 3rd Floors, visitors can explore sculptures, paintings, graphic works, drawing-objects and collages. On all three floors, in terms of historical and political periods, a very diverse image is created - socialistic realism, the period of the Iron Curtain and the Cold War, the period of warming, the collapse of the Soviet regime, Civil War and Independent Georgia.

The Museum of Georgia (3 Rustaveli Ave.)

Oldest of Georgia operates as a scientific-educational institution that preserves and exhibits a unique collection of natural and human history. The collections of the museum cover the history of the country, starting from animal re-parents dated back to 40 million years. One of the most amazing artifacts at the museum is the prehistoric human re-parents found in Dmanisi which date back to 1.8 million years and are oldest sign of human existence outside of Africa. Most importantly collections of the museum is the collection of Treasures that contains a big number of unique objects from the second half of the III millennium B.C. through XIX c. A.D. The collection features gold and silver artifacts and jewelry from the pre-Christian period from various regions of the country.

 

Art Galleries

 

If one is interested with Georgian Fine Arts, private galleries can provide you with this excellent opportunity. There are dozens of renowned galleries in Tbilisi, some of which are: Gallery Erti (19 Ingorokva Str.), Gallery iArt (13 Uznadze Str.), Gallery Shardeni (13 Rustaveli Ave.), Art Gallery Vake (47 Abashidze Str.), Gallery Vanda (14 Chonkadze Str.), Gallery Baia (19a Ingorokva Str.), Gallery Gamrekeli (14 Ingorokva Str.) and Art Gallery Line (7 Bambis Rigi Str.)

 

Theatre and Conservatoire

 

Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre (25 Rustaveli Ave.)

The Georgian National Opera and Ballet Theater of Tbilisi, formerly known as the Tiflis Imperial Theater, is an opera house situated in the heart of Tbilisi. Founded in 1851, Tbilisi Opera is the main opera house of Georgia and one of the oldest such establishments in Eastern Europe and Western Asia. Since 1896, the theater has resided in an exotic neo-Moorish edifice originally constructed by Victor Johann Gottlieb Schröter, a prominent architect of Baltic German origin. Although definitively Oriental in its decorations and style, the building's layout, foyers and the main hall are that of a typical European opera house. The opera house is one of the centers of cultural life in Tbilisi, which besides opera also houses the State Ballet of Georgia under the leadership of internationally renowned Georgian ballerina Nina Ananiashvili. In recent years it has hosted opera stars such as Montserrat Caballé and José Carreras.

Rustaveli National Theatre (17 Rustaveli Ave.)

Rustaveli National Theatre is the largest and one of the oldest theaters of Georgia, located in its capital Tbilisi on Rustaveli Ave. Housed in an ornate Rococo-style edifice, the theatre was founded in 1887 and since 1921 has carried the name of Georgia's national poet Rustaveli.

Kote Marjanishvili State Academic Drama Theatre (8 Marjanishvili Str.)

Kote Marjanishvili State Academic Drama Theatre is a state theatre in Tbilisi, Georgia. It is one of the oldest and most significant theatres in the country, coming second perhaps only to the national Rustaveli Theatre. The theatre was founded in Kutaisi in 1928 by Kote Marjanishvili. It moved to Tbilisi in 1930 to the former Brothers Zubalashvili philanthropic "Public House", the building it still occupies. The theatre's art nouveau edifice was thoroughly renovated and reopened in 2006 with the premiere of Bertolt Brecht's The Threepenny Opera.

Tbilisi State Conservatoire (8-10 Griboedovi Str.)

The Tbilisi Conservatoire was founded on 1 May 1917. The original building was designed by Alexander Szymkiewicz and built in 1901-05. Unlike most buildings of the same style in the given period, the conservatoire's column decorated main portal is not centrally located. Rather, along with the main facade it is built near the left corner of the building in order for it to face the main entrance from the Rustaveli Avenue. The style of the building is eclectic in nature. While original two-story building was built with elements of renaissance and baroque, the exterior of the present four-story building is neoclassical and somewhat less ornate. The exterior displays the statue of Anton Rubinstein, a Russian pianist and composer who in 1891 donated an entire income from one of his concerts for the opening of the original conservatoire building. The building has two auditoriums, the main auditorium and the small auditorium. The small auditorium of the conservatoire is known for its richly decorated walls. Among the first teachers in Conservatoire were students of leading musicians such as Franz Liszt, Henryk Wieniawski, Antoine Marmontel, Tchaikovsky, and Ignaz Moscheles, as well as Joseph and Rosina Lhévinne – later founder-teachers at the Juilliard School of Music; Georgian musicians, former alumni of the Moscow Conservatory and St. Petersburg Conservatory – including Dimitri Arakishvili and Zachary Paliashvili (composers, and founders of modern Georgian music);

 

Recreational Areas

 

Tbilisi has many recreational areas. One of the largest recreational area is the National Botanical Garden of Georgia, which is located next to the Old Tbilisi district. Some of the favorite places for Georgians to spend time in nature two parks around lakes, Turtle Lake (Kustba) and Lisi Lake and newly rehabilitated parks Mziuri Park and Dedaena Park.

Mall

Tbilisi has shopping malls both in the center of the city (Gallery Tbilisi – 2/4 Rustaveli Ave. and City Mall - 1 P. Kavtaradze Str.) and a bit far from the center, but also with larger choice of brands (East Point – 2 A. Tvalchrelidze Str. and Tbilisi Mall – 16th km D. Agmashenebeli Str.). Besides shops, all four locations have cafes, restaurants, bowling centers and cinema.

Georgian Designers

Georgian designers are famous internationally, many you could have probably heard of, for example Demna Gvasalia currently the creative director of Balenciaga and the co-founder of Vetements or Georgia-born and London-based fashion designer David Koma, who is an artistic director of the Maison Mugler since 2013; however, besides these internationally acknowledged designers, one can find many more in the streets of Tbilisi, some of which are: Anouki, Ingorokva, Dalood, Mach & Mach, Datuna Sulikashvili, Janashia, Avtandili, Bessarion, Materiel, Lako Bukia, More Is Love, Giorgi Keburia, Tamta Shindelishvili, Giorgi Shaghashvili, Shavdia, Crosty etc. Besides clothing Georgian Designers are also working on watches designs. One of the most famous Georgian watch Designer is Tsikolia (7 Bambis Rigi Str.), who produces watches both in Georgia and Switzerland on Traditional Georgian motives.

Georgian Traditional Clothing

The traditional costumes in Georgia were formed by the influence of nature and way of life in this country. National men costumes tend to be comfortable and warm and women costumes in Georgia tend to be hooded and modest, but very beautiful and feminine. There are two main stores that produce high quality Georgian National Costumes, Samoseli Pirveli at City Mall and Papanaki at 37 P. Ioseliani Str.

Georgian Jewelry and Georgian Handmade Cloisonné Enamel Art

Georgian Jewelry is quit unique with its production technology that counts ages. One of the most famous Georgian Jewelry and Art Style is Georgian Handmade Cloisonné Enamel Art. One can find good examples of Cloisonné Enamel Art at Gallery Ornament at 7 Erekle II Str., Pokany at 7 Bambis Rigi, Cameo Gallery at 11 Rkinis Rigi. In Tbilisi you will also find quit famous Georgian Jewelry Brands that are sold internationally, some of which are: Zarapxana, Eshvi and Chkhira.

Georgian Wine

Georgia is the cradle of winemaking. The fertile valleys and protective slopes of the Transcaucasia were home to grapevine cultivation and Neolithic wine production for at least 8000 years. Due to the many millennia of wine in Georgian history and its prominent economic role, the traditions of wine are considered entwined with and inseparable from the national identity. In 2013, UNESCO added the ancient traditional Georgian winemaking method using the Kvevri (clay jars) to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists. Few shops that can provide large variety of Georgian Wines are: 8000 Vintages (27 Tabukashvili Str.), Wine Gallery(39 Tsinamdzghvrishvili Str.) and Winery Khareba (50/1 Rustaveli Ave.)

 

Wellness Centers

 

Bioli Wellness Resort (1 Bioli Str., Kojori)

Inspired by the clean mountain air in the rugged scenery outside Tbilisi, this medispa specializes in rigorous programs backed by cell-health research. The team here will assess everything from your current fitness to stress levels and immune system, then advise on a personalized program of activities, healthy diets, IV therapies and spa treatments. Accommodation is in sharp, glass-fronted lodges so you’re always surrounded by the verdant view.

Sam Raan Spa and Wellness Center (14 Ialbuzi Str.)

This specialist Tbilisi spa is a veritable buffet of wellness whimsies: Himalayan salt saunas, Turkish hammams, Far Eastern herbal baths, Thai massage, shiatsu… City locals pop in for a day spa within the Southeast-Asian-styled walls, but you can stay overnight, in comfy rooms with velvety headboards, chaise lounges and heavy fabric drapes – some rooms have a private terrace too.

Tbilisi Balneological Spa Resort (9 Gorgasali Str.)

Tbilisi Balneological Resort is a modern medical diagnostic, rehabilitation and healing institution equipped with natural factors - healing - mineral-sulfur water and healing mud. It is Located in the old part of Tbilisi, the resort offers a wide range of services: The center treats and rehabilitates diseases of cardiology, peripheral neurology, urology, endocrinology, dermatology, pediatrics, gynecology, bone and joint system. Here patients can perform biochemical, clinical laboratory, X-ray and ultrasound examinations. The resort is equipped with modern equipment and, most importantly, has a qualified, professional team.

Georgian Sulfur Bath

Visiting Tbilisi’s Mineral Sulfur baths is one of the most pleasant and memorable experiences you can have in Georgia’s capital city. The name “Tbilisi” comes from the word for “warm place,” and the widely taught myth of the city’s founding involves these natural hot springs. In the Abanotubani neighborhood in Old Tbilisi, a dozen different sulfur bathhouses are clustered together. They are all below ground level and some have semi-circular domed ceilings that allow natural light to stream through. The ceilings also function like little chimneys, for sulfur steam and fresh air circulation in the baths. The sulfuric water is not only gloriously warm; it is also therapeutic. Aside from simply being a relaxing experience, they are also thought to help with various skin ailments like acne and eczema, as well as digestion, insomnia, and arthritis. The leading sulfur baths locations are: Chreli Abano, Bath N5 and Gulo’s Bath. All of them are located next to each other in the same Abanotubani District.

 

Golf

 

Tbilisi Hills Golf Course (Lower Teleti, Tbilisi Hills)

Tbilisi Hills Golf Course is located at the foot of the Caucasus mountains, just 15 minutes of the old town of Tbilisi. The course opened in November 2017 as the country’s first 18-hole golf course and boasts captivating views of the surrounding area, including the historic city center. The parkland layout is designed by Tilander Golf Design, which is responsible for the production of 20 golf courses across five countries in Europe, including Estonia Golf Club. Created as an inclusive golf course for a nation which is relatively new to the sport, it features four tees on each hole, varying in distance to cater for all levels. From the back tees, the course measures 6,223 meters or 6,086 yards.

 

Other

  

Handmade Ceramic Studio - White Studio 17 Rustaveli Ave.