Day Hikes Near Tbilisi: 12 Trails Without a Car (2026)

Trails

12

Length

2 to 16 km

City bus fare

1 GEL

Best months

Apr, May, Oct

Most Tbilisi visitors never learn that the hills they photograph from Rustaveli Avenue have marked trails on them, or that a 1 GEL bus reaches a hilltop village from which you can walk back down to the city through forest. This list is ours, from a half-hour climb to a canyon that needs a full day. Distances and timings were checked on 13 September 2026 against wander-lush.org's Tbilisi hiking guide (updated March 2026) and the national tourism board's Tbilisi National Park page, fares against the Tbilisi Transport Company's rules via our public transport guide and our bus stations guide, driver prices against gotrip.ge, and the Algeti trail facts against the Agency of Protected Areas (nationalparks.ge). USD figures use the National Bank of Georgia rate on 12 September 2026 (1 USD = 2.61 GEL).

All 12 hikes at a glance

Hikes that start in the city

These begin inside Tbilisi. No bus, no planning beyond shoes that are not sandals. Locals walk them daily, so you will share the path with grandmothers on a power walk, teenagers at the viewpoints and at least one dog who has decided to join you.

1. Mtatsminda from Rustaveli

The classic Tbilisi climb. The trailhead is the Church of Mikhail of Tver, tucked in behind Rustaveli metro; from there a part-paved, part-dirt path climbs for 30 to 60 minutes to the TV tower and the park, with the whole city below you and, on a clear day, the Greater Caucasus as a white wall to the north. A second route starts at the lower funicular station on Chonkadze Street and climbs 1.5 km entirely on pavement through the Mtatsminda Pantheon, the graveyard of Georgia's writers, which makes a good loop if it is still light.

To get back down, ride the funicular (12 GEL, plus 2 GEL for the park's own card, since Metromoney and bank cards do not work on it) or take the city bus that terminates at the park's main entrance for the standard 1 GEL. Late afternoon is the time: sunset from the terrace is the best free view in the city, and the funicular runs late in summer.

2. Turtle Lake and its ridge

Turtle Lake (Kus Tba) is the city's outdoor living room. The lake is small enough to walk round in 20 minutes; the point is the network of trails climbing the hills above it. Ride the 1 GEL cable car up from the edge of Vake Park (it takes Metromoney and bank cards like any bus) or walk the steep path from the park, then take the trail to the viewpoint above the lake for the look back over the city. Easy, family-friendly, with cafes at the water for afterwards. Weekends are busy by Tbilisi standards, which still means room to move.

3. Turtle Lake to Mtatsminda

The big urban walk: 8 km along the ridge between the city's two landmark hilltops, signposted, and about 3 hours without hurrying. Start at Turtle Lake, climb to the viewpoint, then follow the marked trail east through the Nightingale Forest, past the Open Air Ethnographic Museum and a cactus garden, to finish beside the Mtatsminda amusement park, where the funicular or a bus takes you down. Mostly forest, gently rolling, and the best walk you can do without leaving the city: long enough to count as a hike, scenic enough to justify it, and there is a cold Natakhtari at the top.

4. Botanical garden trails

Most visitors see the waterfall in the National Botanical Garden and leave. The upper paths behind it climb the hillside into forest that feels wilder than anything else in the centre, with a view of Kartlis Deda, the Mother of Georgia statue, from behind. Entry is 4 GEL. The lower paths are paved and flat; the upper ones are dirt and muddy after rain. Combine it with trail 5 for half a day on foot from the Old Town.

5. The ridge to Tabori monastery

A short ridge walk above the Old Town. Narikala fortress itself has been closed for restoration since late 2023 with no reopening date, so do not plan on going inside the walls; the ridge beside it is open. Walk up from Abanotubani or ride the cable car from Rike Park (2.50 GEL) to the viewpoint by the fortress, pass the Mother of Georgia and follow the rough trail south-east along the ridge to Tabori monastery, which has a full circle of views that almost no tourist bothers to reach. Loose rock and a little scrambling in places. Drop back down through the botanical garden for a loop of about two hours.

Under an hour from the centre

A short bus ride or a taxi, walking by mid-morning, back in the city for dinner.

6. Kojori to Tbilisi

The hike that turns city walkers into hikers. Bus 380 from Freedom Square climbs to the hilltop village of Kojori in about 40 minutes for 1 GEL (a Bolt is 25 to 30 GEL). Scramble up Azeula fortress, partly by metal staircase, walk through the village past its Soviet mosaics to Udzo monastery on the ridge, then follow the dirt trail downhill through forest and meadow all the way to Turtle Lake. It is 16 km and 4 to 4.5 hours, nearly all descending, which is why you do it in this direction. On a clear day the Greater Caucasus shows over the ridges, and the forest feels remote for somewhere inside the city limits. The path is well trodden but forks without signs, so load the route in Wikiloc or Maps.me first.

7. Tbilisi National Park

Georgia's first national park, from 1973, covers more than 21,000 hectares of oak and beech forest on the ridges north-east of the city between 600 and 1,700 m, and most residents have never been. The two marked walking routes the park promotes are the Saguramo Ridge loop, about 11 km and 4 to 5 hours, and the Zedazeni to Mamkoda route, about 15 km and 6 hours with steep sections, both rated moderate. Zedazeni is the 6th-century monastery on the ridge above Saguramo, with the confluence of the Aragvi and Mtkvari below it. Marshrutkas leave Didube for the park every 30 minutes and take about an hour; any Tskhvarichamia or Tianeti van passes the same way. The main entrance with the visitor centre is on the Gldani side, and there are picnic areas, campsites and toilets along the routes. Bring lunch; there is nowhere to buy food on the ridge.

8. Lisi Lake

The quieter alternative to Turtle Lake, west of Saburtalo: a paved loop round the water and dirt paths up the scrubby hills around it to views over the city's northern edge. An easy half day by city bus (check the live buses in Google Maps for the route from where you are staying) or a short Bolt ride. There is a cafe at the lake and the area has been cleaned up in recent years. Go in the morning, when the light on the hills is warm and the joggers have not arrived.

Day trips that earn the journey

These take more effort to reach and repay it with landscapes that do not belong near a capital. All are doable in a day from Tbilisi with an early start, and for the last two a driver booked in advance is the difference between a good day and a long wait on a highway.

9. Martkopi monastery from Norio

An easy way into the national park's eastern side. From Norio village, reached by marshrutka from Samgori metro for about 1.50 GEL or a Bolt at 25 to 30 GEL, an asphalt road climbs about 5 km to Martkopi monastery, founded in the 6th century by one of the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers; climb the tower beside it for the view, then continue 2 km uphill to a second monastery for the panorama over the forest. About 10 km return and 2 to 2.5 hours. With a whole day, keep going north-west through Sabaduri forest, the park's prettiest stretch of beech and oak, towards the bear sanctuary near Tskhvarichamia (5 GEL) and flag a van on the main road back.

10. Jvari from Mtskheta

Everyone goes to Mtskheta; almost everyone takes a taxi up to Jvari and photographs the confluence. Walk it instead: an unmarked trail from the town climbs to the 6th-century church in about 90 minutes, roughly 6 km one way, and the angle on Svetitskhoveli and the two rivers keeps changing on the way down. Marshrutkas to Mtskheta leave Didube all day for 2 GEL and take about 20 minutes; a GoTrip driver is 81 GEL per car each way if you want the car to wait at the top.

11. Birtvisi canyon

The most dramatic landscape within an hour of the city: a limestone canyon of cone-shaped rock towers in Algeti National Park, with the medieval Birtvisi fortress, Arsena's castle and the Sheupovari tower built into the cliffs. The trail starts from the village of Tbisi (not a typo), about 60 km south-west. It is well signed through the forest and confusing after it, so load the route in Wikiloc; the walk is 5 to 8 km one way depending on the variant and 2 to 4 hours, with very steep rock in places. This is for semi-experienced hikers in proper shoes. Taverna Tbisi in the village does a good lunch afterwards.

By public transport, take a Tsalka-bound marshrutka from the Navtlughi terminal at Samgori or from Ortachala and get out at Tbisi, then flag a van the other way to get home; they run only until about 16:00. A driver is easier and lets you add Samshvilde on the same day.

12. Samshvilde canyon

An ancient ruined city on a plateau above a deep gorge of the Khrami river, with a ruined cathedral, fortress walls and dig sites scattered across the top, and hardly anyone there. The site has been settled since the 4th millennium BC and excavations are ongoing. The walk is easy: about 5 km return from Samshvilde village on mostly flat ground, an hour or so, shaded and lined with stone walls past several small churches; the canyon edge is 800 m from the village. It suits families. Samshvilde village is 5 km from the town of Tetritskaro, 65 km from Tbilisi, and marshrutka connections to the village are scarce, so the practical answer is a driver, or a Tetritskaro marshrutka and a local taxi.

What to bring

Safety and the small print

Tbilisi's trails are used daily by locals and are as safe as anywhere in the country; the things that go wrong are terrain, heat and getting lost, not people.

When to hike

Transport cheat sheet

Guided and group hikes

Two Facebook groups run regular walks around the city, both listed in wander-lush.org's guide: Geo Hikers Tbilisi, with guided hikes three or four times a week in summer at different levels, and Weekend Travelers Georgia, which puts a couple of hiking days into its monthly programme. On GetYourGuide the Tbilisi hiking listings are day trips with transport included, useful for Birtvisi in particular: a six-hour Birtvisi canyon hike with pickup is $56 and a ten-hour version with a zipline and lake stop is $100 (prices read on 13 September 2026). We plan our own days, so compare pickup times, group size and how long you actually get on the trail before you book.

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