Discover UNESCO Treasures with optional visits to Uplistsikhe and the Stalin Museum - Private Tour

This tour is for travellers who want to travel back in time and enjoy the beauty of Georgia. Every step you take on this tour is full of history, you always learn something new about this amazing country.

We take you to the ancient capital Mtskheta which is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Here we visit 6th-century Jvari church with magnificent views and 11th-century Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. After that, we take you to Gori. All these destinations are magnificent with their views and architecture. While we are in Gori we would liek to take the opportunity to visit the museum of Joseph Stalin, as well as his birthplace, to gain further insight into his life and legacy. Naturally, we will be happy to take you there if that is your preference.

Itinerary:

Jvari church

Our first stop is Jvari church which is one of the oldest churches in Georgia, the name of the church translates to "cross." It overlooks magnificent views of the ancient capital Mtskheta and the confluence of two rivers, Aragvi and Mtkvari. Jvari church is listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO, along with other historic structures in Mtshketa. Jvari is the perfect place for those looking to travel back in time and enjoy the architecture of the Middle Ages.

Uplistsikhe

The next destination to visit and the highlight of the tour is Uplistsikhe which translates to "Fortress of God." Uplistsikhe is an ancient rock-hewn town on the left bank of the Mtkvari River. This is the one and only monument in Georgia that's left from the antique period and it is a historical-architectural museum reserve where you have the possibility to walk through the antique streets, squares, districts, caves, and the secret tunnel that leads to the river Mtkvari.

Stalin Museum (optional)

While we are in Gori we can visit the complex Stalin museum opened in 1957 near the house, where Joseph Stalin was born. The complex of the museum includes the memorial house, Stalin’s carriage, and the two-storey exhibition building.

If museums are not your cup of tea, no worries! We can visit the Gori fortress or walk around the city instead.

Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in Mtskheta

Our last stop is Mtskheta - the ancient capital of Kartli, the East Georgian Kingdom from the 3rd century BC to the 5th century AD, and was also the location where Christianity was proclaimed as the official religion of Georgia in 337. Although the capital was moved to the more easily defended Tbilisi in the V century, Mtskheta continued to be the coronation and burial place of Georgian kings, and the seat of the Patriarch, who is also known as the Bishop of Mtskheta.

In Mtskheta, we visit Svetitskhoveli Cathedral which dates from the 11th century - early in the golden age of Georgian church architecture. Svetitskhoveli is considered as the mother Cathedral of Georgia and is the burial of many kings of Georgia, their family members, and patriarchs from the great cathedrals although the holiest thing in this cathedral is the part of the robe of Jesus Christ which is believed to lie beneath the central nave, under a square pillar decorated with colourful, if faded, frescoes of the conversion of Kartli.