Borjomi
Borjomi (ბორჯომი bohr-joh-mee) is a town in central Georgia as well as the name of a natural reserve and of the famous volcanic salty spring water. The source of this spring water lies in the Borjomi gorge.
Understand
[edit]
Borjomi is a famous resort town, popular for its distinctive mineral water. The water from the well here is several times stronger than the Borjomi water you can buy in the shops. Borjomi has many hotels and was very popular in soviet times, of which you will still find many buildings in the city. Above the centre of the city there lies a plateau with a Ferris wheel and further hotels, providing a great view over the region and mountains. Furthermore, the nearby Borjomi Kharagauli National Park is the largest in Georgia and a popular hiking destination.
- 1 Tourist Information (next to the white bridge towards Borjomi Central Park), Ticborjomi@gmail.com. The tourist information is staffed by Artur who is super helpful, speaks fluent English and will give you a map of town and an overview of places to go. At the tourist office you can also arrange day tours to Rabati Fortress in Akhaltsikhe and Vardzia.
Get in
[edit]By bus
[edit]From specific destinations:
- Bakuriani – 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 15:00, and 17:00. 3 lari. (most buses will go further to Tbilisi)
- Batumi – 10:00. 17 lari. 4.5 hr.
- Kutaisi – Every hour. 2 hr. 6-8 lari.
Furthermore, the following is a time table for leaving Borjomi (verified Oct 2019). For the vice-verse trip similar times can be expected.
- Tbilisi: hourly from 07:00-14:00 and at 14:30, 15:30, 16:00, 16:45, 17:15, 18:00 (8 lari)
- Batumi at 09:00 (17 lari)
- Akhaltsikhe at 09:00 and 14:45 (the second departure is still unverified)
The red minibus leaves from a small bus stop on the main road, it does not wait inside the bus station. (5 lari, Apr 2023)
- Chobiskevi at 08:20, 11:00, 14:00, 17:00 (1 lari)
- Dviri at 10:15, 11:45, 13:15, 14:30, 16:30 (1 lari)
- Gori at 10:45 (5 lari)
- Khashuri every hour between 09:30 and 18:30 (September 2024: 3 lari, leaving from 2 Khashuri Marshrutka)
- Mzetamze at 16:00 (1 lari)
- Poti at 06:45 (15 lari)
- Rustavi at 16:00 (9 lari)
- Sachkhere (for Chiatura) at 11:00 (7 lari)
- Tadzrisi at 12:00, 16:00 (1.50 lari) and 15:00, 18:00 (2 lari)
- Tsagveri at 11:15, 14:30, and 17:00 (1 lari)
- Tsemi at 11:00, 14:30, 17:00 (1 lari)
- Tsikhisjvari at 14:00 and 17:00 (3.50 lari)
- Zugdidi at 16:30 (15 lari)
Unverified:
- Andeziti at 16:00 (3.50 lari)
- Bakuriani at 09:00, 10:30, 12:15, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00, 17:00 (3 lari)
- Chitakhevi hourly from 08:30 to 18:30 (0.8 lari)
- Kvabiskhevi at 12:00 and 14:00 (1 lari)
- Timotesubani at 10:30, 13:30, 17:00 (1.5 lari)
By train
[edit]Trains leave from two different train stations:
- From 3 Borjomi Parki, the main station in the centre of town, trains leave to Tbilisi at 07:05 and 16:45 (2 lari). From Tbilisi, trains to Borjomi leave at 06:40 and 16:15. The journey takes between 4 and 5 hours.
- From 4 Borjomi Freight, the 2nd station 2.5 km east of the centre. This line is not operating as of August 2024.
Get around
[edit]
The centre of Borjomi is small enough to walk.
Otherwise, there is a city bus going along the main road through Borjomi for 0.20 lari to accomplish longer distances, e.g., to the Borjomi Freight railway station (see below).
City bus no. 1 goes from Borjomi‘s central square all the way to Likani and back. It doesn’t leave from where the other city buses leave from but from a bus stop on the other side of the road about 100 m north.
City bus no. 3 goes from Borjomi’s city bus station at the small outdoor market all the way north into Kvibisi and finds it final stop there in its small center.
City bus no. 4 goes from Borjomi’s city bus station at the small outdoor market towards the south into Atskuri (needs confirmation).
See
[edit]- The Borjomi Museum of Local Lore is located at Tsminda Nino 5. Admission 3 lari, tour in English or Hebrew 15 lari. Opening hours Jun-Sep 10:00-19:00, Oct-May 10:00-17:00.
- 1 Romanov Palace (Likani Villa). An official residence of the President of Georgia with a beautiful garden.
- 2 Blue Palace "Firuza" (The House of Mirza-Riza-Khan). A unique cultural monument built in 1892 by the Iranian consul. The house combines Persian, Georgian and European styles.
- 3 Timotesubani monastery.
Do
[edit]- 1 Borjomi Central Park (1.5 km southeast of the centre). Stretched along the Borjomula river, the park contains the 4 source of the Borjomi mineral water. First part of park contains park amusements and cafes. The second part of the park is great for a walk, and reveals a high waterfall including sculpture, great for pictures. 5 lari.
- 2 Natural Hot Pools (Tsar Sulphur Pools) (about 2.8 km from the central park entrance; if you have a car, you can enter through the road on the plateau to the east; from the road a track leads down to the pools). A set of three natural hot pool that's popular with locals for a picnic. This was one pool before, which was quite hot. Nowadays, it has been converted to three pools, which are semi-warm and not hot enough to heat you up sufficiently. Some local businessmen try to make money off its remote location, and running an expensive "taxi service" to bring you back to the park entrance. Don't give em a reason. 10 lari, but at night there might not be anyone there.
- 3 Borjomi Cable Car. Near the entrance of the central park there is an option to use cable car to get up to plateau, where there's a Ferris wheel. If you don't want to do it both ways, it will be cheaper to get a taxi back to the bottom than to get the return ticket. You might be able to see the winding house at the top, which is just above the ticket office. 15GEL each way.
- 4 Cross Mount walk. For an excellent view of the city and the plateau. Get in at the 1 (830 m above sea level) of the eastern extension of Pirosmani Street. From there go in the small road and follow the marker. You should reach the top at 1140 m above sea level after 30-60 minutes with a great view if you are lucky and there is no rain or fog. Afterwards, following the path further and down again, after 30-45 min you will reach the ruins of 5 Gogia Fortress. From there follow the small track (north)east and exit 2 near the west end of Pirosmani Street, which is much harder to find, so better walk a proposed, east to west.
- Further Walks around the city – There are nice, excellently sign-posted walks from the centre worth doing. One goes to the natural pools and returns via the plateau. The second part is free from the crowd and the vendors present in the park (~3 hr). The other circular path climbs up to the ruins of a tower and further up to the top of Cross Mountain across from the city park. It is quite a climb, but in pleasant forest and with a great view (~2 hr).
- 5 Libani. a small village, can be reached by taxi (Bolt cost 30 lari). There is an abandoned Soviet sanatorium from which you can take a walk along a nice trail to the abandoned Libani Train Station (1 km). You can then walk along the narrow-gauge railway through a pine forest to the village of Tba, from where you can take a bus or marshrutka to Borjomi.
- 6 Waterfall Tshala (near Village Sadgeri).
Borjomi Kharagauli National Park
[edit]This park is Georgia's largest, covering about 8% of the country's territory. Its diversity of physical, geographical and especially climatic conditions set the stage for a wide variety of flora and fauna. Apart from the largely untouched nature of Borjomi-Kharagauli, there are numerous cultural monuments. In particular, there are two easily accessible churches, built in 9th century. There are 8 tourist trails in the national park. They vary in length, duration and complexity. Open from April until October.
Plan your trip by going to the administration of the office, which is a bit to the west of Borjomi (23 Meskheti st.), and get a free access permission and a map of the area with all the routes and shelters as well. There are well-marked hikes of 1, 2 or 3 days, through forests and meadows.
If you want to take a hike in the national park, get enough supplies, water, and some basic sleeping gear with you, as the cabins are very basic. You can rent sleeping bags for 5 lari a day, but no mattresses, and the shelter beds are wooden planks. You pay a small fee for staying in the shelter (10 lari) or camping (5 lari). The permit to the park is free, but make sure to have it on you since rangers might ask for it.
It is also possible to take a 1-day hike from Borjomi to Qvabiskhevi (or the other way around) and then hitchhike, take a local bus or taxi back to Borjomi. Or do multiple day hikes. That way you can even get to go to the higher parts (up to 2,600 m).
Buy
[edit]Near the entry to the city park, locals sell home-made jam from pine tree cones. It is claimed that the jam is useful when curing upper respiratory tract infections and is good for improving immunity.
Eat
[edit]- 1 1+2 bar (1+2 caffe), 2 9 Aprili St (by the entrance of the mineral water park). With nice wines and slow service.
- 2 Inka Cafe, ☏ +995 595302077. Some Western-style dishes and pastries.
- 3 Metropoli, Kostava St. You might expect this location, right inside of the beautiful train station building and next to the touristy epicenter, to be particular expensive. But actually this restaurant is decently inexpensive—Adjaruli Khachapuri 7 lari. It has a large kitchen which does prepare everything listed in the menu. And the menu is even offered as picture book. What else can you require? (edit Sep 2024: didn't seem to be open, but didn't look permanently closed either - perhaps this closes outside of the summer season or was closed due to renovation at the railway station?) Beer 2-3 lari.
- My House, Kostava st. N31 (near the cathedral), ☏ +995 591 21 21 47, info@myhouse-borjomi.com. 09:00-01:00. Serves breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks and coffee. Good for groups, parties and children. Walk-ins welcome. Street and car parking.
- 4 Old Borjomi, 19 Kostava St, ☏ +995 367 22 33 20. Excellent quality food, nice interior, WiFi. Though kebab, khatchapuri and pizza is not quite haute cuisine. They make perhaps the best khachapuri in Georgia and are famous for their chkmeruli (chicken in garlic sauce). ~10 lari per dish.
- 5 Pesvebi, Erekle street N3, ☏ +995 367 22 17 02, +995 571900467, tsitskishvili99@gmail.com. 11:00-24:00. Old Georgian style, national Georgian dishes, degustation of Georgian house-wine, hall for 60 customers, free water, parking, WC and WiFi. Mushroom with sugulni, baked trout with white wine, baked apple with walnut, for 24 lari.
- 6 Cafe Imerti (იმერეთი). Unpretentious with the usual selection of traditional Georgian dishes. One of the few places open before 10:00 if you're looking for an omelette for breakfast. Perhaps a bit cheaper than average for Borjomi.
- 7 Bergi Terrace. Right in the centre of the park opposite the railway station. Seems to be popular with Russian tourists. Extensive menu, perhaps a little bit more expensive than average.
Drink
[edit]- 1 Omo's Bar (ომოს ბარი). The only place in Borjomi with "hip"/"modern" vibes, a bit like the kind you otherwise only seem to find in Tbilisi. A small shack blasting some kind of IDM with a reasonable selection of beers and other drinks. Very limited seating both inside and out. Seems like the kind of place which is going for the vibe of a buzzing standing-room-only bar but we never saw it that busy (including on Friday night)
Sleep
[edit]The tourist information can also arrange a guest house for you, and will organize for the host to pick you up at the tourist office. Otherwise, just walk along Pirosmani Street, north-west of the main road in the centre, and you will find plenty of options between 15 and 25 lari.
- Hotel Borjomis Kheoba. 28 comfortable rooms, mineral water spas, outdoor swimming pool, bar and restaurant. Prices from 65-250 lari including all meals.
- Borjomi Hostel - The dorm has no electricity. If you don't mind spending the night in a pitch black room with no heating or electricity, the rate is 15 lari a night.
- Hotel Meidani - Very nice clean rooms with good heating, a nice on-suite with a hot shower, comfortable twin/double beds, tv, and wifi. Excellent location in the middle of Borjomi. 40 lari a night (Mar 2016).
- Marina's Guesthouse: Cozy guesthouse near the center of town and a popular way station for expats, backpackers and tourists. Marina's son and daughter both speak fluent English.
- Hotel Borjomi. Elegant, wooden Tsarist-era house located in central Borjomi, next to the Museum of Local Lore. Bed and breakfast available. Prices start from 70 lari. English and Russian spoken.
- Leo's Homestay, 18 Pirosmani (turn right onto the street after the Borjomi museum of local lore - the home is on the left side of the street.), ☏ +995 574861516, +995 593981595, +995 551414422, jango.geo@gmail.com. Leo and his mother have 2 rooms that can accommodate 7-8 or so people. The price for the night is 20 lari a person, and for 5 lari more Leo's mother will make breakfast, which often features a substantial number of pancakes. Leo is also a great source of information about Borjomi and the surrounding area, and regularly arranges excursions for his guests, such as trips to Vardzia and horseback riding in the Borjomi-Kharagauli national park. He also speaks excellent English.
- Hillside Guesthouse, Gogias Tsikhe St 4 (turn right onto the street after the Borjomi museum than straight; you can see Borjomi TV station and then you can see the guesthouse's sign), ☏ +995568737361, bob1ka@mail.ru. Central location but very quiet, due to being at the end of a dead end street. Sitting in front of the guesthouse can be very relaxing, especially when Nick's two cats are around. Nick and his mother are very friendly, helpful and socialising. Nick speaks English quite well. The local breakfast prepared by Nick's mother was always very yummy and filling. Also it was easy to get in contact with other travellers here, which added to the traveller friendly atmosphere. WiFi worked very well and washing service can be provided. From 20 lari.
- RiverSide Hostel (10-15 min walk from the centre of the city). Nice, clean hostel with good facilities. It's on the main road so can be a little noisy at night, but there isn't much traffic so this is not a huge problem. Owners friendly and helpful. 18 lari.
- 1 Green Rose Guest House, ☏ +995599901117. Cute guest house, clean and well maintained with reasonable prices. Nice view, no road noise, but a very short walk from the railway station, restaurants, tourist information etc. Owner very helpful and friendly and speaks decent English. Laundry for 20 lari, great (in taste and quantity) breakfast for 22 lari per person. Some hot food available although we didn't try. Some rooms have access to a kitchen. Contact the owner directly on whatsapp for a better deal than through booking sites.
- 2 Tamarioni, ☏ +995599773928.
- 3 Fridon, ☏ +995555122133.
Go next
[edit]- Train to Tbilisi leaves at 05:50 in the morning and 16:35 in the afternoon. Leaves from Borjomi Parki station. Buy tickets on the train with exact change. Journey takes around 4 hours. There are also marshrutki which should be faster but more expensive.
- Vardzia – The most famous cave monastery in Georgia besides David Gareja Monastery Complex, near the border with Turkey and Armenia.
- The tourist information offers a 70 lari day trip, including a stop at the Green Monastery, the Akhaltsikhe fortress with a very nice museum (6 lari), and Khertvisi Fortress (5 lari). Ask for the natural sulphur spring and bath (45°C) to be included in the tour!
- Akhaltsikhe – Popular for its beautiful and newly renovated fortress, but not one of the main attractions in Georgia.
- Bakuriani – A famous ski resort. Used to be served in by a scenic narrow gauge train from Borjomi freight, but as of September 2024, the tourist information office say that the train is not running while repairs are made. If the train is running it will be from the freight railway station, a couple of km downstream along the river from the more central "Parki" station.
- There are several direct bus connections to other places in Georgia, like Tbilisi, Kutaisi, and even Batumi. The timetable in the image gives an overview. The prices can be different while the departure times are quite stable even for years (according to the Marshrutka drivers).