Things to Do in Kakheti: A Practical Guide to Georgia’s Wine Region

Location	Eastern Georgia, ~1.5–2 hrs from Tbilisi
Days needed	2 days
Best time to visit	September–October (grape harvest)
Places Covered	Telavi, Sighnaghi, Winery Khareba, Lagodekhi Park
Don’t miss	Winery Khareba, Lagodekhi trek, Telavi city walk
Ideal for	Couples, adventurous travellers, non-drinkers

Most people visit Kakheti for the wine. And while that’s reason enough, what stayed with me had very little to do with tasting rooms.

It was walking through Telavi’s quiet streets lined with grapevines, discovering small, everyday details like local supermarkets and neighbourhood homes, and unexpectedly finding myself stomping grapes in a vineyard while traditional songs played in the background.

In this Kakheti travel guide, I’ve put together everything you need to plan your trip, from the best things to do in Kakheti and a simple 2-day itinerary, to how to get there from Tbilisi, where to stay, and whether it’s worth visiting even if you don’t drink wine.

I’ve also included experiences that most blogs miss so that you can see a different side of this region.

If you’re looking for a slower, more grounded way to explore Georgia, Kakheti might surprise you.

Planning a trip to Georgia? Read my Georgia travel guide to plan your trip.

Where is Kakheti? Are Kakheti and Telavi the same?

Kakheti is a large administrative region in Georgia. You can consider that as a state.

On the other hand, Telavi is the administrative capital of the Kakheti region.

Both are not the same; instead, a capital city and its state.

How to Travel to Kakheti from Tbilisi

Telavi, the main town of Kakheti, is approximately 1.5 to 2 hours from Tbilisi by car. A private driver is the most practical option, especially if you are planning to stay there. (Book here)

The many wineries and monasteries that you might want to visit are spread across the region and not easily connected by public transport.

However, if you are on a budget trip, you can use public transport, which is cheaper but takes more time. (Detail ahead)

Private taxi (fastest)

• Time: ~2 hours
• Cost: higher than public transport
• Best for: comfort

Bus + taxi (budget)

Best for: backpackers, budget travellers

Time: ~3–4 hours

Alternatively, guided tours are among the best ways to explore a new city.

Here are two tours from Tbilisi that I would highly recommend for a thorough understanding of this wine region:

Kakheti Full Day Tour with Wine Tasting – A comprehensive tour covering wine tasting, monastery, and Sighnaghi

Kakheti Culture Day Tour – Explore the monasteries, fortress, and the charming town of Telavi.

What is Telavi like?

Kakheti is essentially a wine city. Almost every building you pass has its own grapevines growing overhead, on porches, along fences, across the rooftops of homes.

It was not surprising that kids growing up here interned at wineries and studied wine production as a career. It was not something people did there occasionally. It was simply the texture of their daily life.

Telavi, the main town, is small and laidback in the way that small towns usually are. But unlike the small towns I have imagined or visited in India, it had a quiet sense of luxury running underneath everything.

The roads in Telavi were wide and clean, with well-structured footpaths and benches on every major road in the city.

We explored the entire city on foot, walking for hours, without feeling tired.

Even though our hotel was pleasant to spend time in, the city itself was pleasant to move through and was beautiful enough to walk around.

And then there was the style.

I was genuinely unprepared for how well-dressed everyone was. The young women, especially, carefully coordinated outfits, sharp shoes, and long hair. I couldn’t stop myself from envying their good looks and fashion sense.

The men had their own thing going with a noticeable fascination with cars, speed, and loud music.

Every time we thought it was safe to cross or stroll, a car would come blasting past at speed with speakers turned all the way up.

Things to Do in Kakheti That Most Lists Skip

In Telavi, you won’t find a lot of major monuments or places to visit. But many unique and cute places were a delight to discover and visit.

1. Telavi City Walk

We spent more time simply walking around Telavi than doing anything else over the two days. We circled the main square and its surrounding streets two or three times at different times of day and kept finding new things.

Almost every home has grapevines or pomegranate trees.

While walking, we found things we would have completely missed otherwise: houses with Persian-style architecture and blue wooden balconies indicating inspiration from Turkish architecture.

We also saw the Palace Museum of King Erekle II, which looks opulent but quiet. It was not something that could be added to places to visit, but it was a treat to stroll around it during one of our walks.

2. The Giant Plane Tree in Telavi

One area of the town had noticeably more tourists huddled together with a guide than the rest. We followed it and found a unique tourist spot- a single ancient plane tree, reportedly over 900 years old, with a trunk so wide it has a hollow large enough to walk into.

It sounds like a minor thing until you are standing in front of it.

The tree is fenced for preservation now, and there is a small fort nearby, well-maintained for its age, overlooking cobbled streets and a park.

It is located right in the center of Telavi, near the Batonis Tsikhe fortress.

3. The Local Supermarket of Telavi

One of our rituals when visiting any new country is going to a local supermarket. We typically don’t shop but love to look at its constituents: the snacks, the chocolate flavours, the fruits and vegetables, the small everyday items that tell you more about daily life than any tourist attraction can.

We found the supermarkets in Kakheti smaller and quieter than what we’d seen in Tbilisi. But it somehow matched the vibe of the city, smaller, quieter, and more content.

We also discovered here that Coke still comes in the old glass bottles in Georgia, with a yellow cap, the kind I remember from childhood. Also, fruits are consumed here in abundance.

Places to Visit in Kakheti

1. Alaverdi Monastery

Of all the monasteries and churches I visited in Georgia (and believe me, I visited many), this was the most memorable experience for me.

While I loved Holy Trinity Church in Tbilisi for its opulence, Alaverdi Monastery had a spiritual vibe to it that made it look like a place that people relied on for their devotion and true intentions.

Alaverdi Cathedral was built in the 11th century and is set against the stunning backdrop of the Caucasus Mountains and surrounded by lush vineyards. In the photos, it looks absolutely gorgeous and a must-visit, if you visit at the right time.

We arrived at Alaverdi Monastery in the late afternoon, while it was still hot.

We loved it then too, but if you want to see its real beauty, go early morning or early evening to avoid the sun.

You would also enjoy the route towards the monastery. The roads are lined with mountains and green grasslands on both sides. The blue peaks of the Caucasus were visible in the distance and are breathtakingly gorgeous.

Alaverdi Monastery is known to have preserved the tradition of qvevri winemaking, producing wine in large clay vessels buried underground. (It is also a UNESCO heritage site).

What does Alaverdi Monastery look like from the inside?

The main altar of the Alaverdi Monastery looked and felt different than all the worship places I had visited in Georgia so far, maybe because it is a functioning monastery.

It was dark, with all windows shut, and a prayer was going on.

On both sides of the main hall were tall, unusual chairs, each with a low seat and a high back, a rosary bead chain hanging from each one. A priest sat on one of them to the left. Another priest, dressed in the black coat and cross necklace common to Orthodox clergy, stood at a podium reading a prayer in a low, singsong voice.

His voice was deep and reverential with no variations in note or scale.

It reminded me of the azaan, the Muslim call to prayer, in its quality of being simultaneously public and intensely private.

I later realised this was what had been reverberating through the loudspeakers on the main gate outside when we reached.

But the overall effect was one of genuine, unperformed solemnity. Just old, sincere, and still in use.

The lack of construction or development around the monastery gives it a solitude that makes it calming and pure.

Is Alaverdi Monastery worth it?

Yes, definitely, even if you are not interested in photographs or grandeur.

I genuinely felt that even in rush hours, when it was packed with tourists, the atmosphere and surroundings would have given it the same serene feel.

It is worth it for the quiet, and the peek it can give into Georgia’s religious practices.

How to reach Alaverdi Monastery?

If you are in Tbilisi, you can book a guided tour, as they include the monastery and are one of the easiest ways (Check prices for Kakheti private tours here).

If you are already in Telavi, you can arrange a car from your hotel or take a taxi from the main city area, which will take 25 mins and cost 20-40 GEL.

Dress Code for Alaverdi Monastery

It is an active religious site, so you are required to strictly follow a modest dress code.

For Women: Ensure your legs and head ( carry a scarf) are covered. Either wear long skirts or carry a sarong to cover your legs, even over trousers.

Ensure you carry these everywhere. The dress code is strictly applicable to all the churches and monasteries in Georgia.

For Men: Men should wear full trousers and avoid shorts.

Pro Tip:
If you arrive without appropriate attire, you can rent clothing like scarves or skirts at the entrance.

Entry Fee: There was no entry fee for the monastery.

2. Sighnaghi

Sighnaghi is a small hilltop town with about 1,500 residents, built entirely inside a fortress whose brick walls still enclose the old streets.

It is cute, pretty, and beautiful with cobblestone lanes, winding roads, and church towers. We took a tour in an electric vintage open car. (Our guide-cum-driver told us that he cannot take us around due to the local drivers’ union arrangement.) It costs us 150 GEL for half an hour.

I felt it was expensive, but because it was extremely hot, we had no choice. But if you travel in winter or are okay with walking a few kms, I would suggest exploring this city on foot.

However, if you are travelling from Tbilisi, most tours include Sighnaghi in the itinerary.

Haven’t planned the Tbilisi itinerary yet, check out my Tbilisi travel guide.

Places to see in Sighnaghi

The tour guide took us to three places.

Border viewpoint: From this viewpoint, we could see a large sweep of the Kakheti region, and if you knew where to look, the border of Azerbaijan in the distance.

Sighnaghi City wall: A small fort with a watch tower and a section of the original fortress wall. Tourists could climb the wall and look beyond at the entire Sighnaghi city with its fortress wall and minarets.

Kakheti viewpoint: The driver stopped at a restaurant, which had a different viewpoint, with mountains in the background. This gave a clearer view of the three, with blue skies melting over blue mountains and the greenery below flagged by a brick wall.

All of it would have been lovelier at sunset, in cooler weather. In the afternoon heat, it was difficult to appreciate anything properly.

The real beauty was in roaming the streets with cobbled streets and brick walls.

It was only after I returned and explored the city more that I found that there were other places to see in Sighnaghi. You could also go to :

Monastery of St. Nino at Bodbe: A picturesque monastery that draws thousands of tourists. Surrounded by blue mountains and lush greenery, I felt it was worth a visit.

Sighnagi National Museum: If you are a history buff, you might also like to explore the artifacts at this museum.

The city also has some local cellars for wine tasting options, the most famous being Pheasant’s Tears (book here), but if you are doing a winery tour in Telavi, you can skip this and head back.

Is Sighnaghi worth a visit?

It is a pretty place for sure, but it won’t offer you anything unique unless you are looking for a romantic getaway. So, if your schedule is packed and you need to choose between Batumi and Sighnaghi, you can skip this.

How to reach Sighnaghi from Telavi?

There are two ways to go to Sighnaghi from Telavi

Van: You can take a marshrutka van from the New Bus Station in Telavi, which will drop you at Tsnori, and then you will have to take one more van to Sighnaghi. It will take approx 3 hrs and cost you between 20 and 30 Lari.

Taxi: If you can afford it, it is best to take a taxi that will take you approx 1 hour to reach Sighnaghi at 50-60 GEL.

How to Reach Sighnaghi from Tbilisi:

It is highly unlikely for a public transport to take you from Tbilisi directly to Sighnaghi.

So you have three options:

Private Car:

You can take a private taxi that would pick you up from your hotel and drop you in Sighnaghi.

Guided Tour:

Join a guided tour to Sighnaghi, where you can learn about the places you are visiting from an English-speaking guide and cover other places you might not know.

Self-Drive

If you love driving, you can also rent a car and drive from Tbilisi or Telavi towards Sighnaghi. (Find a car here)

Pro Tip: Sighnaghi is commonly visited as a day trip from Tbilisi, but spending a night here lets you fully experience its romantic charm, especially when the town is softly lit after dark.

3. Winery Visit and Tasting

Being in the wine district, visiting a winery in Kakheti can be the highlight of your trip. For us, it was.

We visited the winery Khareba, which is a huge commercial establishment and is spread over acres of land.

When we reached the reception, a 23-year-old girl was assigned as our guide, offering us three options: a tunnel tour, a wine tasting, or a winemaking experience. The prices were 10, 35, and 50 GEL, respectively. We had already done a wine tasting in South Africa, so we chose the tunnel tour and the winemaking.

The Tunnel

Once inside the tunnel, she gave us a tour of the entire winery, explaining the process and various awards the winery has won over the years for its produce.

She also told us about wine-making history in Georgia, how winemaking moved from hobby to industry in Kakheti, and the traditional methods still in use.

The Vineyard

After the tunnel, while the other guests did their wine tasting, we were taken by golf cart to the adjacent vineyard, spread across many hectares of grape harvest, where we plucked our own grapes.

The Stomping

Then came the most exciting part, the stomping of the grapes.

As we started stomping, a group of singers appeared nearby, dressed in traditional Georgian black coats with buttons, and began singing the traditional song of grape crushing, the one that accompanies the harvest ritual in Kakheti.

It was one of the most exhilarating experiences of my entire trip. So if you get a chance, you must try the experience at Winery Khareba.

However, it can be a little expensive as it is widely famous. You can also opt for other family-owned wine tasting places

How to reach Winery Khareba?

You can arrange a cab from your hotel or take a taxi from the main market area, if staying in Telavi. Many guided tours from Tbilisi cover Khareba or similar wineries that you can book.

How to book an experience in the winery Khareba?

You can book directly on their official website or walk in during off-peak season. During harvest season (September–October), book at least a week in advance.

Or you can opt for guided tours from Tbilisi that includes winery Khareba experience. ( Check rates for guided tour here)

We went in off-season, and it was not very crowded. Although we did book the experience beforehand. But during harvest season, you must book the experience in advance to avoid missing out on it.

If this interests you, you would love to read my detailed review of Khareba winery and my honest experience.

Lagodekhi National Park Trek: For the Adventurous

If you have a day to spare in Kakheti and are comfortable with a challenging hike, the Lagodekhi National Park trek is one of the most memorable things you can do in Georgia.

The park is approximately an hour from Telavi. The shortest trail to the waterfall takes around 2.5 hours each way through dense forest, and it is the best way to explore the natural wealth of the area.

When we reached the registration desk, a guide helped us with the different treks according to their difficulty. We chose the shortest one, which was 10 km return.

We started under a thick ceiling of trees where the light filtered in only as thin rays between the leaves. The path started wide and rocky, then narrowed as it went deeper into the forest.

After around 3 hours of trek, we reached the small waterfall nestled below the dense jungle. It was beautiful and relaxing.

Honestly, you might get disappointed if you expect a grand or extraordinary waterfall. But if the jungle is quiet, the greenery and the calmness of nature attract you, you would love it.

Where to stay in Kakheti?

There are many good hotels and guesthouses in Kakheti that give a boutique, homely feel.

Hotels in Telavi are extremely affordable, as compared to India or even European countries, considering the property’s look and amenities provided.

We stayed at Seventeen Rooms, a boutique hotel in Telavi, which is one of the best hotels for couples, highly recommended.

These are some options for the best hotels in Telavi. (They are highly rated or have been recommended by friends)

Budget Hotel: Dzveli Galavani -Old Wall ( Book here)

Semi -Luxury Hotel: Seventeen Rooms ( Book here)

Boutique Luxury hotel: Schuchmann Wines Chateau, Villas & SPA ( Book here)

Practical Kakheti Information

How many days should you spend in Kakheti?

Two days is ideal. One day, you can go around Telavi city and visit Sighnaghi. On the second day, you can visit the Lagodekhi park and explore the nearby monasteries.

You can also do a day trip from Tbilisi, but it will be a rushed experience. You must stay a night to experience the slow-paced life in Telavi.

When is the best time to visit Kakheti?

The best time to visit Kakheti is September and October for the grape harvest, as the vineyards are at their most atmospheric, and the stomping experience is most meaningful when the harvest is fresh.

However, the country can be more crowded at this peak time, and the flight tickets would be higher than usual.

Kakheti is worth visiting in summer as well, even though it’s not harvest season, and also in months like April–May for green landscapes. We went at the end of August, and while it was still beautiful, it was quite warm, so avoid travelling in August.

What’s the best way to get around in Kakheti?

A private driver is the most practical for moving between the winery, monasteries, and Sighnaghi. ( Book a taxi here) Telavi itself is walkable. Or you can rent a car and self-drive. (Rent a car)

Is it worth it for non-wine drinkers?

Kakheti is completely worth visiting. The wineries, the monastery, the trek, and the city walk all stand entirely on their own.

Is (Telavi) Kakheti Worth Visiting?

Yes, if you are travelling to Georgia, you must visit Telavi, even if you are a non-wine drinker.

Kakheti is the part of Georgia that hasn’t been polished for tourism yet. The monastery still looks and feels like a genuine place of worship, and the city streets are mostly empty.

You must spend a day or two in Telavi if you are looking for a slow travel experience in this quiet, charming city.

Planning your full Georgia trip? Here’s the 10-day Georgia itinerary we followed, including Tbilisi and Kazbegi.

Just arrived in Georgia? Start with our Tbilisi travel guide.

Have questions? Drop your itinerary questions in the comments below

Questions You Might Have