Stepantsminda → Gergeti → Altihut

Sleeping Above the Clouds

Hiking: Full day
Difficulty: Moderate / Challenging
Highest point: 3,014 m
Overnight: Altihut

Today the adventure moves higher.

We begin from Gergeti Trinity Church, one of Georgia’s most spectacular mountain landmarks, standing high above Stepantsminda with Mount Kazbek dominating the skyline.

From Gergeti we leave the village behind and follow the classic mountain route towards the Kazbek glacier.

The landscape changes quickly.

Trees disappear. The valley opens. The trail climbs through increasingly barren alpine terrain, with the enormous walls of Kazbek and the surrounding peaks becoming closer with every step.

Our destination is Altihut, located at 3,014 metres and close to the first acclimatization zone on the route towards Mount Kazbek. The hut offers comfortable accommodation, food and a unique place to spend the night high in the Caucasus.

We arrive in the afternoon and have time to relax on the terrace, enjoy dinner and watch the mountains change colour as the sun disappears behind the peaks.

Tonight we sleep at more than 3,000 metres.

Overnight: Altihut 3014.

Altihut → Gergeti Glacier → Stepantsminda → Kakheti

From Glacier to Vineyard

Hiking: Full morning / early afternoon
Difficulty: Moderate / Challenging
Highest point: ~3,200–3,300 m
Overnight: Kakheti

We wake above the clouds.

After breakfast, we continue higher towards the Gergeti Glacier, following the route deeper into the high Caucasus.

The glacier lies approximately 2 km beyond Altihut. From here the views towards Mount Kazbek and the surrounding glaciated peaks become increasingly dramatic.

We spend time in the high mountains before turning around and beginning our long descent towards Stepantsminda.

This is the final mountain day — and a satisfying one. Within a few hours we move from the alpine world back into the green valleys below.

After reaching Stepantsminda, we meet our vehicle and begin the journey east.

The landscape changes again as we cross Georgia towards Kakheti, the country’s most important wine-producing region.

By evening we arrive at our accommodation among the vineyards.

The mountains are behind us.

The wine country begins.

he Wine Country of Kakheti

Sighnaghi, Bodbe & Qvevri

Activity: Cultural & wine experience
Overnight: Kakheti

After four days in the mountains, today is deliberately slower.

We begin in Sighnaghi, one of Georgia’s most beautiful historic towns.

Perched above the Alazani Valley, Sighnaghi is surrounded by historic defensive walls and offers spectacular views across the vineyards towards the Greater Caucasus.

We walk through the old town and along the historic walls before continuing to Bodbe Monastery, one of the most important religious sites in the region.

Then we get to the real reason we came to Kakheti.

Wine.

Instead of spending the day visiting large commercial wineries, we prefer to take guests into a traditional family cellar, where wine is still made using the ancient Georgian qvevri method.

The qvevri are large clay vessels buried underground in which the wine ferments and matures.

This is not simply a wine tasting.

It is an introduction to one of the oldest continuous wine-making traditions in the world. The Georgian qvevri tradition has been recognized by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage.

We meet the winemaker, visit the cellar and taste a selection of Georgian wines — including traditional amber wines and Saperavi.

And then we sit down for lunch.

Georgian wine is inseparable from Georgian food, so the tasting becomes a long table of local dishes, fresh bread, cheese, seasonal vegetables, grilled meat and, depending on the season, traditional Kakhetian specialties.

This is the moment to slow down.

After days of walking, there is nowhere else we need to be.

Overnight: Kakheti.

Tsinandali, Alaverdi & the Alazani Valley

The Story of Georgian Wine

Activity: Wine & cultural experience
End: Tbilisi

Our final day explores the heart of Kakheti’s wine country.

We travel through the Alazani Valley, with the Greater Caucasus rising dramatically on the northern horizon.

Our first major stop is Tsinandali, the historic estate of Prince Alexander Chavchavadze.

Tsinandali represents an important chapter in the transformation of Georgian wine and the introduction of European-style winemaking to Georgia. The estate also houses a historic wine cellar and extensive gardens.

From Tsinandali we continue through the wine country towards Alaverdi, an extraordinary 11th-century cathedral standing almost alone in the middle of the Alazani Valley.

The monastery has a long connection with Georgian winemaking and maintains its own traditional wine cellar.

After exploring Alaverdi, we continue to a carefully selected winery for our final tasting and lunch.

This final experience is less about ticking off another winery and more about finishing the journey properly — good wine, Georgian food, mountain views and time around the table.

In the afternoon, we begin our return journey towards Tbilisi.

As the vineyards disappear behind us, the journey comes full circle.

Six days earlier we left the capital heading towards the mountains.

Now we return from the Caucasus with muddy boots, a few bottles of Georgian wine and a completely different perspective on the country.

THE JOURNEY ENDS IN TBILISI.