Mgvimevi Western Side Gate Zelkova Tree State Museum of Art
Planning a side trip from Kutaisi and wondering what to do in Chiatura? Looking for up-to-date information on whether the Chiatura cablevision cars are closed or open? My 2022 guide has everything you need to know – including detailed info about the new cable cars and other exciting things to do in Chiatura.
Known for its extensive network of Soviet-era cable cars, Chiatura is a favourite destination in Georgia for urbexers and photographers. But for the past 3 years, the Chiatura cable cars accept been closed.
Now, 'Air Venice' (every bit i person recently described information technology to me) finally has her wings dorsum. In September 2021, a make new prepare of French-built ropeways opened in Chiatura, replacing some of the old lines.
I've been lucky enough to visit Chiatura twice now: Once in 2017 when the erstwhile cable cars were still running and over again a few weeks after the new cablevision cars opened. This guide draws on both experiences.
While it's true that Chiatura will never be exactly the same again, information technology's wonderful to run across this new infrastructure making life a lot easier (and safer) for the people who rely on the cable cars to get around.
Chiatura still remains one of my favourite side trips from Kutaisi and is absolutely worth including on your Georgia itinerary, especially if you lot're interested in Soviet history and compages.
This Chiatura travel guide is the most comprehensive resource currently available online. Information technology covers the new cable cars, the onetime ropeways and stations, plus all the best things to do in Chiatura and nearby (including Katskhi Column).
At the end, you'll find detailed send instructions for getting to Chiatura from Kutaisi or Tbilisi, food and hotel recommendations, and everything else you need to program a trip.
2022 update: Are the Chiatura cable cars airtight?
As of September 2021, aeriform tramways are again running in Chiatura.
Just these are not the sometime Chiatura cablevision cars: This is a brand new, modernistic transportation network with 4 two-style lines, new gondolas, and new upper and lower station buildings.
Some of the original stations built in the 1970s accept been replaced. Others prevarication abandoned, and others still are sealed off with barricades and cannot be entered. Majority of the old wagons take at present been removed from their lines.
The one-time cable car network is classed as an endangered heritage site and will eventually be restored – but it's unclear whether the sometime wagons will ever return to normal service. If y'all're interested, you lot can read about my experience riding the former cablevision cars back in 2017 at the finish of this guide.
Please notation: This post contains affiliate links, meaning I may earn a committee if y'all brand a buy by clicking a link (at no extra cost to you). Larn more.
Looking for a Chiatura 24-hour interval bout or a private transfer?
While it'southward possible to get to Chiatura from Kutaisi using public transport, it's much more user-friendly to hire a commuter for the day. I recommend using GoTrip. Prices start from every bit piddling as $37 per car including as many stops along the mode as you like.
→ Build your own GoTrip itinerary here.
If you're coming from Tbilisi, I recommend joining a tour for ease and efficiency. Friendly.ge, my preferred day trip provider in Georgia, runs a 10-hour bout that covers all the highlights (including Katskhi Pillar). Guides are friendly and extremely knowledgeable.
→ Book a day trip to Chiatura with Friendly.ge via Get Your Guide.
About Chiatura
The story of Chiatura starts with manganese, a mineral used to manufacture atomic number 26 and steel. If not for this mineral, the town wouldn't exist.
Chiatura was founded when Georgian poet Akaki Tsereteli discovered manganese and iron ore deposits in the expanse during a 1879 trek. Heavy investment followed, and past 1905, Chiatura's mines deemed for sixty% of global output.
Some 4,000 workers toiled for up to 18 hours a day in mines set forth the sheer cliffs that rise above the city. But information technology wasn't enough.
In 1956, reportedly on orders from Joseph Stalin himself who favoured Chiatura (1 of the few Bolshevik strongholds in Georgia), a kanatnaya doroga (rope road) was erected to shorten the miners' daily commute, thus boosting productivity.
In its heyday, up to 20 passenger ropeways and two cargo lines totalling more than 6,000 metres in length plied Chiatura's skyline. This included the outset heavy reversible bi-cablevision cablevision car in the Soviet Union (with the offset simple reversible mono-cable having been built downwards the road in Zestafoni a few years earlier in 1946).
The network ferried miners and commuters alike up and down the valley, and was vital for connecting the mines with the city centre and Chiatura'south upper neighbourhoods, now dominated by Soviet-way apartment blocks.
When the Soviet Union collapsed, most of Chiatura's mines were decommissioned. Only a couple are still in use today. Many families lost their source of livelihood and moved abroad as a upshot.
At the fourth dimension of our first visit to Chiatura in 2017, only a handful of the precariously strung, rusted cable cars remained operational. There were rumours that all of Chiatura'south 'iron coffins' would be retired past the cease of the year.
Now that the new lines are running, Chiatura almost feels similar a unlike metropolis. There are lots of structure projects going on, including a new sidewalk along the river, new gardens in front of the museum, and the restoration of some facades in the downtown area.
14 things to do in Chiatura: One-time rope roads, the new cable cars & more
Aside from the famous ropeways, Chiatura is a cornucopia of Soviet throwbacks, stunning architecture, mosaics, and abased buildings. In that location are several notable monasteries and churches in the vicinity besides.
Here are my recommendations for what to exercise in Chiatura.
1. Ride the new Chiatura cablevision cars
At that place are four new cableways in Chiatura with a total length of almost 3,500 metres. All of them depart from a new, modern lower station edifice called Primal Cablevision Car Station. It's located in the centre of town, about the museum.
Built by French company Poma, these are reversible cable cars with new twin gondolas that seat viii-10 people comfortably. One of the biggest contrasts to the old cable cars (apart from the obvious) is the add-on of supporting poles: Each line has 2-4. Having recently ridden the Khulo-Tago cablevision car, one of the longest unmarried-line cablevision cars in Europe, these new ones are much smoother and feel a lot safer.
While the old cable cars were complimentary to ride, the new ones are ticketed. The cost is 50 tetri per person one-way. Newspaper tickets can be purchased from the cashier booth underneath Central Station.
Tip: Although in that location are cash desks at the upper stations, at the time of our visit y'all couldn't buy a ticket at the top. I recommend buying every bit many tickets as you need at the bottom (at least ii if you're going up and back). Locals seemed to be buying tickets in bulk.
The cable cars run everyday between 8am-8pm with a intermission from 2pm-3pm. Those times were written in erasable marker, and so I assume they will modify with the seasons.
Visiting Chiatura a few weeks after the new lines had opened, information technology was busy with daily commuters and joyriders akin. We decided to ride all four to compare.
Hither'due south a quick run-down of the different lines: Sanatorium, Mukhadze, Lezhubani and Naguti. Some of the upper stations are non on Google Maps even so – you tin can see the locations on my Chiatura Map.
Sanatorium Cable Car
The Sanatorium line besides runs southward-e and replaces the erstwhile line of the aforementioned proper noun. Information technology now departs from the top floor of the Central Station edifice.
This line is 862 metres and terminates at an upper station adjacent to the Former Pioneer Palace.
Mukhadze Cable Machine
At 640 metres, this is the shortest of the new lines.
Departing Primal Station in a south-easterly direction, the gondola sails directly over the train station, giving y'all a great view of the railway tracks.
After a few short minutes yous attain the upper station, located in a residential expanse close to Central Hospital and in the shadow of some impressive flat blocks. Off to the due east you tin can encounter the Sanatorium line upper station on a nearby hill.
Lezhubani Cable Car
Spanning 845 metres, the line is roughly the same duration equally Sanatorium just runs in a north-westerly direction to the opposite side of the river valley.
The highlight is passing over the tiptop of one of the old cable car stations well-nigh the marketplace. Y'all can see the cantilevered arms and the green sprigs emerging from cracks in the concrete roof.
Lezhubani upper station, a royal blueish metallic structure, is the most hitting of the smaller station buildings.
Naguti Cable Car
Finally, this line runs almost directly due west into upper Chiatura'south Naguti residential district. At one,081 metres, it's the longest of the iv. It also replaces an old line of the same name.
Gondolas depart from a pocket-sized annex station that's accessible by pedestrian bridge from the main Central Station building. The upper station is close to the highway that brings you into Chiatura.
Nearby, yous'll find the Church of the Announcement in Naguti and the Chiatura Memorial.
If you only take fourth dimension to ride i of the cable cars, I recommend either Sanatorium or Naguti. Sanatorium is the highest station with overnice views on the style up and the Sometime Pioneer's Palace at the top (see more than details below).
Naguti is likewise fun considering it's the longest. The memorial is very much worth visiting too (see more than details beneath).
2. Photograph the old cablevision car stations
Even though the new cablevision cars now reign supreme, you tin can yet encounter and photograph some of Chiatura'south now abandoned Soviet-era infrastructure.
Having visited in 2017 when the old lines were however operating, I tin tell you it's not quite the same with no passengers about and none of the wagons running. But the pros of having new tramways far outweigh the cons – then make the almost of it.
At least i station building has been demolished – the onetime 3-fashion cablevision car station (designed by Otar Turkia in 1973) that used to sit where Central Station is now located. Other abased stations are in various states of busted.
As I mentioned, these are classed as heritage monuments and will eventually be restored. Work has already started on the lemon-coloured station building. The Stalin-Lenin insignia on the exterior is still visible from the footpath between the scaffolding, only the entry is barricaded so you can't go inside to meet the Dr Love landscape.
Sadly the aureate-coloured carriages that used to run over the river are no longer on their lines. (They were dismantled a few weeks subsequently my visit.) The adjacent line'southward twin blue wagons are suspended at either stop simply are hard to spot.
The other lower stations in town are similarly abased just withal have their de-commissioned wagons floating mid-air. The operator booths have been emptied out, simply there are no barricades or signs, so yous tin can nonetheless scale the stairs. The exact locations for these are plotted on my map.
At that place are dozens of upper stations scattered in the forest around Chiatura. If you take a car, you can try scouting more than of them out.
3. Chiatura Regional Museum
Established in 1962, Chiatura's local museum is located in a stately collonaded edifice on the main road, next door to the new Central Cablevision Auto Station.
Piece of work is currently underway on the building and the gardens. The front end door was ajar when nosotros arrived, and a security baby-sit kindly led us upstairs to the museum entrance where a staff fellow member met us and afterward turning the lights on, showed united states of america through the pocket-size, single-room exhibit.
The first role is pretty standard: Archaeological items displayed in drinking glass cases, costumes, musical instruments, dirt Qvevri and artworks by local painters. There are ii impressive paintings in the stairwell exterior, then don't forget to look up as you're walking in.
The nigh interesting displays are at the front end of the museum: Archival photographs from the 1920s that show Chiatura's miners at work, original oil lanterns and equipment, and an old-school map showing the extent of Chiatura's manganese exports around Europe and Asia.
Subsequently a very detailed narration (in Georgian, listen you – I just understood about 10% of what was beingness said), I felt bad lingering on the one role of the museum that wasn't included in the tour: The two massive murals at either end of the hall.
I don't know when they date to or who authored them, but they are spectacular and very Soviet-style. At first I idea they were mosaics, but they appear to exist painted onto a thick canvas-similar textile.
At that place are signs saying no photography within, but after request permission our guide was happy for me to accept photos.
The museum is officially open from Tuesday to Saturday (closed Sundays and Mondays) between 10am and 6pm. When nosotros left, the security guard had to unlock the door for us, and when we returned later it was withal shut – then I'one thousand not sure if the museum is technically open at the moment or if it was just closed that day and we got lucky.
The ticket price noted on the door was 1.five GEL per person, but it'due south more than of a donation that you lot place inside a wooden box. We left a bit actress as a thanks to our guide and signed the guest book on the way out.
4. Temur Maghradze Stadium & swimming pool mosaic
This is a semi-abandoned sports stadium on the south-western side of boondocks. I say semi-abandoned because the grandstands are well by their prime number and missing nearly of their wooden benches, merely the playing field and the adjacent gymnasium are still very much in utilize.
This the homeground of FC Chiatura, 1975 Georgian Soviet Champions and Liga finalists in 2020. As I later read, the guild used to be known every bit Magaroeli ('miner'), a tribute to the boondocks's main industry.
The main gates were open when we arrived so nosotros strolled in, following a group of kids through the arched passageway underneath the southern stands. The bleachers in one case held 11,650 spectators. Y'all tin withal run across the concrete VIP boxes.
To get onto the nicely clipped playing field, you need to go through the adjacent building. As we walked through we heard the sound of people running and jumping in the gymnasium above. The outlines of what I assume were a clock and a scoreboard can be seen on the front end function of the building facing the field. I noticed sunflower seeds scattered around some of the stands, but I'm non sure if these were left by spectators or people just hanging out.
The next building in the complex houses an indoor puddle. Having seen photos online, I was very eager to pop in for a peek. We sheepishly walked into the front room where four women were sitting behind desks signing kids in for their swimming lessons and uttered the magic word, 'Mosaika?' Without a second idea, i of the women led u.s. through to the back room, smile and laughing.
There are Soviet-way mosaics at both ends of the indoor pool: The eastern terminate has a simple geometric pattern with a blood-red sun, while the shallow terminate has an extremely detailed wall-to-wall panorama depicting 2 figures seated in an underwater seascape.
I tin can't find any information virtually the mosaic online only judging from the 10-oared transport, I'm guessing it'southward a reference to Jason and the Argonauts.
5. Soviet-era mosaics in Chiatura
Speaking of mosaics – there are several more than in the eye of Chiatura, all walking distance from each other and all in dulcet blue tones.
The first is on the front of the Metallurgy-Mining Institute, on the southern side of the riverside near Liberty Bank. It depicts three students with unfurled plans in hand (higher up left).
On the opposite side of the river at the next intersection, there is a beautiful Rustaveli mosaic on the front of the First Public School. It shows the poet holding a book (I assume a copy of his epic), with a panther at his feet. The calorie-free wasn't quite right for a photograph then it'due south not pictured here.
The third mosaic is uphill on the next street. The largest and most impressive of the trio, it decorates the front of a kindergarten (above right). This is even so a kindergarten, and so be mindful when taking photos. Part of the mosaic is obscured by a tree but you can nevertheless get a good wait at the central figure and pairs of mothers and their babes.
half dozen. Former Pioneer Palace
Set very high upward on the southern side of Chiatura, the One-time Pioneer Palace is an abandoned edifice that was used as a children's campsite. Purpose-built in the early on 1960s, information technology was designed past Georgian architect Konstantine Chkheidze and mirrors similar structures in Tkibuli (another mining boondocks in Imereti region) and Tkvarcheli (a old industrial boondocks in Abkhazia).
The front facade – a pocket-size function of the in one case awe-inspiring structure – features a ring of colonnades and a beautiful staircase.
The Pioneers organisation was the Soviet equivalent of the Scouts (just with a political edge). Art classes and various events were held hither, and there was also a museum.
Amazingly, it was still in use right up until 2007 when it was abandoned and left to ruin. Plans to demolish the Palace in 2014 were thwarted by local activists, and although there have been various schemes to restore the building, it remains completely abandoned and falling apart at the seams. Murals within accept been stripped simply you can only make out office of a brightly coloured illustration that must have wrapped effectually the entire atrium.
There is a new carousel in the park in front end of the palace, and we noticed a group of men working on construction nearby. With the new Sanatorium cable machine station merely footsteps abroad, this might be the start of a long-awaited opportunity for the building to receive some TLC.
The Pioneer Palace is a scrap tricky to locate if y'all're on foot or driving – find the cable car station outset, then follow the dirt path immediately to the left. In that location were plenty of people around when we visited, and there are no barricades or signs to indicate you tin can't become inside. Merely be conscientious where y'all stride.
7. Chiatura Memorial
As you enter Chiatura on the main highway from Zesafoni, there is a make new 'Welcome to Tchiatura' sign and scout deck being built. We got out of the car for a look and the construction workers greeted us with a handful of lollies – it was very sweet and the perfect introduction to a boondocks where anybody seems to exist exceedingly friendly and helpful, even by Georgia standards.
The adjacent structure y'all encounter, just at the archway to the town, is the Chiatura Memorial. Officially called the Memorial to the Dandy Patriotic War, this is a typical Soviet-style WWII memorial like others you see around the country. It shows a lone soldier in his combat helmet and boots overshadowed by a 2nd figure with its arms raised overhead.
The monument sits on a grassy hill. The properties of apartment buildings is very striking and adds to the scene. Yous can either cease hither on the way in or out of Chiatura, or have the cablevision car to Naguti upper station and walk for xv minutes.
8. Chiatura abandoned Railway Station
In 1895, a narrow-gauge railway was constructed to connect Chiatura and Shorapani, a pocket-size town simply exterior Zestafoni in the lowlands of Imereti. Trains ferried manganese from the mines downward to Zestafoni, where factories were built to process the raw materials.
Later the line was converted into a standard-gauge and began transporting passenger wagons also. In 1976, a new railway station was built in the centre of Chiatura to accommodate passengers.
When the Chiatura-Shorapani railroad train ceased, the 2-story station building was abased. It's in a terrible state of disrepair, but there are details that hint at its one-time glory. I especially love the shape of the shelter that runs the length of the platform.
We had a quick walk and a look at the sometime carriages parked on the lines. You can see more photos of the station interior here.
The Kutaisi-Sachkhere train (which just recommenced in summer 2021) is the just service that passes through here now.
9. Chiatura Theatre
Congenital in 1949, the Akaki Tsereteli State Drama Theatre of Chiatura is named for the Georgian poet who beginning discovered mineral deposits in this region. It'due south still functioning today.
Located direct reverse the Railway Station, you lot can't miss its imposing facade of tall arches and ornate iron detailing. A statue of Tsereteli is perched on the front. If you expect up, you'll see a very Soviet-fashion rock frieze of Stalin in profile surrounded by seven workers and children.
The inscription reads 'Didi Stalins Didebi', meaning 'Stalin the Glorious' or something to that issue.
10. Downtown architecture & apartment buildings
In that location are tons of interesting architectural styles in Chiatura, ranging from colourful Soviet-style apartment blocks to Brutalist cable auto stations, modernist civic buildings and Empire-manner facades.
Chiatura is laid out over dissimilar elevations so only walking upwardly the alleyways and pathways can turn upwards dissimilar, interesting vantage points.
Don't miss the long, curved arcade that runs along the main street or the circular kiosk with a pinched roof on the riverside. I as well beloved the gear up of cafes and shops with curved roofs that line the river, the gimmicky concrete City Hall building, and the Empire-style building with a belvedere and clock tower (walk along the arcade and spot the initials marked at the entryway in terrazzo).
If you stand on the opposite side of the bridge looking at the clock tower, you can run into the other Chiatura Clock upwards on the cliff – a digital clock that displays the time and air temperature in LED lights.
11. Chiatura Jvari
Chiatura Jvari or Chiatura Cross, a sentinel point marked past a huge metal cross. It's high upward on the southern bank of the river, close to one of the disused upper stations.
Nosotros started making our mode upwardly for dusk just to find the last part of the road airtight for construction. Workers pointed out an culling long way round to get to the cross, but it was too late and so we turned dorsum.
The views along the route were breathtaking, so I can simply imagine what the panorama is like from the top. There is one signal where you tin can run across an quondam cab car suspended between the cliff and a stone formation – picture perfect, even in silhouette.
This road also takes you past a working mine and a 2d abandoned mine, and so you lot can get a closer look at the mechanics of the performance.
Things to do near Chiatura
12. Katskhi Column & Monastery
Katskhi Column (Katskhi Pillar) is a 45 metre-alpine limestone pillar with an Orthodox monastery perched on top. Located simply off the highway between Kutaisi and Chiatura, it's ideally positioned equally a identify to stop on the manner up or downwardly the mountain.
Ascending the pillar is strictly prohibited, but it is possible to walk right up to the base of operations of the column to visit the Church of Simeon Stylites and the old wall and belfry.
To appreciate the scale of the pillar, it'south better to view it from distant. In that location is a designated viewing bespeak for exactly this purpose, linked to the highway by an unpaved road. You can either walk (~20 minutes) or drive (5 minutes) to the viewpoint. It'southward a chip rough, merely our Prius managed only fine.
The first of the road opens up on the left-hand side of the highway as you are heading towards Chiatura. It finishes at a pocket-size motorcar park, where you'll find an data placard and a view of Katskhi in the about distance.
The path continues off to the right of the auto park, presumably to the base of the column. Like the sign says, the cloister is open between 10.30am and 6pm.
The first fourth dimension nosotros visited Katskhi, it was so foggy we could barely meet a thing. We stood at the placard waiting for the clouds to role and managed to get a very quick glimpse – literally just ane minute – earlier the monastery was enveloped in mist once over again. Second time effectually we had perfect weather and decided to send our drone up.
There is a pocket-size construction site at the viewpoint location but I'm non sure exactly what works are underway.
Katskhi Monastery is located a piffling further up the highway towards Chiatura. Deputed in 1032 past the Rex of Bagrat, information technology was used equally a burial place and library for precious theological books, all of which were pillaged over the years. The church design is very hitting and ane-of-a-kind in Georgia.
xiii. Mgvimevi Convent
A twenty-infinitesimal walk or 2-infinitesimal bulldoze from City Hall, Mgvimevi Convent is a working nunnery and church building embedded in the side of a rocky cliff. We parked our auto at the small petrol station on the reverse side of the route then found the entrance – the staircase starts on the highway next to the pocket-size shop (there is a sign with a picture of a church building, but it'due south like shooting fish in a barrel to miss).
It takes around 15 minutes to scale the stairs. Once you reach the entrance, you're immediately plunged into a cool, night cave – absolute reprieve after walking uphill in the sun. H2o trickling down the stone walls makes information technology even cooler.
Much like the churches at Vardzia and David Gareja, Mgvimevi features cloisters hewn from rock, dressed with icons and lit by beeswax candles. At that place are beautiful stone engravings, a glass box displaying three human skulls and other relics, and a pocket-size chapel with cute frescoes and a wooden iconoclast. Outside, in that location is a lookout man point that gives you a view of the church hugging the cliff face.
Mgvimevi is open daily from 11am until 4pm. The dress code is strictly enforced past the nuns: Long pants for men and a headscarf plus skirt for women (no pants). At that place are scarves and wrap-skirts available to borrow at the entrance. Exist very careful when exiting, very dark in dissimilarity to the sunlight.
fourteen. Sachkhere
The town of Sachkhere is located further n into the mountains of Upper Imereti, effectually twenty minutes by road from Chiatura. It's home to Modinakhe Castle, the Akaki Tsereteli Museum, and several Soviet-era mosaics.
The main reason I want to visit Sachkhere is to run across the Railway Station, a gorgeous 1904 stone building.
We didn't go to visit this time because of the weather (when rain and fog rolls into Chiatura, visibility drops to naught). I'thousand planning to accept the newly relaunched train up from Kutaisi later this year – look out for my Sachkhere Guide coming before long.
Where to swallow in Chiatura
There are limited food options in Chiatura. We concluded up eating at Gazapkhuli 2007, a small restaurant with a strange vibe simply succulent food. There's no English bill of fare but they have all the essentials (Khinkali, Khachapuri, Mtsvadi, Salati, etc.).
Some other option is Tachila, nigh the Railway Station.
Where to stay in Chiatura
We stayed at Hotel Newland on the main road side by side to City Hall. It's perfectly located walking altitude from everything and features a huge outdoor terrace overlooking the Rustaveli monument and old cable motorcar station.
The possessor speaks perfect English and is very kind and helpful. Parking is available correct out front end. Rooms are clean and comfortable. They likewise serve breakfast and other meals on asking.
Chiatura map
Click here to open my Chiatura map.
How to go to Chiatura from Kutaisi
Kutaisi to Chiatura marshrutka
The cheapest way to travel between Kutaisi and Chiatura is past marshrutka. Vans depart from Kutaisi'due south Cardinal Bus Station roughly every hr between 9am and 5pm. Tickets toll around 10 GEL per person. The journeying takes around 2 hours with a short stop in Zestafoni on the way.
To get to the passenger vehicle station in Kutaisi, take city bus #one from the Colchis Fountain. I recommend taking one of the kickoff vans from Kutaisi to brand the well-nigh of your day. When you get to Chiatura, the driver will let you out on the chief street. Double cheque times locally at the bus station or at Tourism Info.
Stopping off at Katskhi Cavalcade
Yous can easily add a stop at the pillar to your itinerary simply by changing marshrutka on the route. Vans are frequent enough that you shouldn't become stuck waiting as well long.
Yous'll exist taking ii carve up vans, and then you'll demand 2 separate tickets. We asked the first commuter (departing Kutaisi) to drop the states off at Katskhi Pillar (all drivers should know information technology, only it'southward a proficient idea to take a picture show on your phone just in example). The 64km journeying from Kutaisi to the Column took usa 1.v hours (including a short rest stop in Zestafoni).
After you've seen the cavalcade, return to the same route and hail any passing Chiatura-bound marshrutka. The side by side leg of the journey is much shorter, effectually 10km or 30 minutes to the centre of Chiatura. At the time of our visit information technology cost us an additional 5 GEL each.
Tip: It's all-time to finish off at the pillar on the way to Chiatura (as opposed to the fashion back). That fashion if the van is full, you're more likely to get a seat for the longer journey downwardly to Kutaisi.
Chiatura to Kutaisi by marshrutka (return trip)
The final marshrutka back to Kutaisi leaves Chiatura at 5pm – but there may be afterward vans passing through Kutaisi on their way to Batumi and other destinations on the coast. On our first visit, nosotros ended up communicable a Batumi-bound marshrutka back to Kutaisi for 6 GEL.
The location of Chiatura's charabanc station is marked on my map, linked higher up.
Private transfer to Chiatura with GoTrip
If you want to get an earlier kickoff to maximise your time in Chiatura or you only adopt not to use marshrutka vans, another option is to organise a private transfer from Kutaisi.
I highly recommend using GoTrip.ge to find a driver. Yous tin stop as many times as you like along the style, including at Katskhi, and add together Mgvimevi and Sachkhere to your itinerary if yous want.
A individual transfer from Kutaisi to Chiatura and back costs as piffling every bit $37 per car when booked through GoTrip. This is incredibly skillful value for money considering how much driving is involved. You lot can spend as long as yous want in Chiatura – the only condition is that you must complete the trip within 24 hours.
→ Cheque prices and build a custom Kutaisi to Chiatura itinerary using GoTrip.
Hiring a auto and driving to Chiatura
We hired a machine for our most recent visit to Chiatura. The drive was relatively straightforward and it was great to have more flexibility and be able to stick to our own schedule.
Autonomously from ane small patch of unfinished road (that will, in all likelihood, exist done by the time y'all read this) and the short rails to Katshkhi, the road upward to Chaitura is completely paved and in good condition. A 4WD is not necessary. Nosotros took a Prius.
There is plenty of gratis parking bachelor in the centre of Chiatura, including along the main route.
I personally utilise Local Rent to hire cars from a local amanuensis in Kutaisi. Prices are extremely competitive and insurance is typically included. Read upwards on my driving tips earlier yous get.
→ Search cars on Local Rent.
How to get to Chiatura from Tbilisi
While it's possible to do a day trip to Chiatura from Tbilisi using public ship, information technology does involve a lot of time on the road. You might not accept as much time equally yous want or need to explore when you arrive.
Straight vans to Chiatura depart from Motorbus Station Nige (include Didube) every hour between 7am and 7pm. Tickets cost 12 GEL, and the travel time is 2.5-3.5 hours depending on which road the driver takes.
Alternatively, you lot can accept a van to Zestafoni from the aforementioned station (hourly from 6am; 12 GEL) and then transfer to a Chiatura van. This takes longer, 3 hours to Zestafoni plus 75 minutes to Chiatura.
To save time and energy, I recommend either hiring a auto and driver for the day or joining an organised day tour from Tbilisi. When booked through GoTrip , a individual auto and driver from Tbilisi to Chiatura and back, stopping at Katskhi Colonnade on the way, costs as trivial equally $60 per motorcar.
→ Cheque prices and build your day trip itinerary using GoTrip.
If you lot prefer to travel with a guide, I recommend joining this day tour organised past Friendly.ge. It covers every bit much as you could reasonably look to see in a day (including Katskhi Pillar) and includes door-to-door transfers. Guides are friendly and extremely knowledgeable.
→ Book a day trip to Chiatura with Friendly.ge via Get Your Guide.
More tips for visiting Chiatura
- Given our first experience at Katskhi Column, my first piece of advice is to visit this part of Georgia on a articulate 24-hour interval if possible. If the weather is bad, you might not be able to see the pillar or the cable lines in Chiatura. A scrap of rain is fine, but avoid going when it's thick and foggy. Run into my tips for the best time to visit Georgia here.
- Every bit I mentioned, at that place are limited nutrient offerings in Chiatura so it's a good idea to plan your meal ahead of fourth dimension and phone ahead if possible.
- In that location are plenty of ATMs, banks and grocery shops in Chiatura so don't worry about accessing greenbacks or whatsoever essentials.
Flashback: My experience riding the old Chiatura cable cars in spring 2017
"But why would you lot desire to get there?" We were continuing in the entryway of the Hotel California (the Georgian version, which is actually a guesthouse attack a suburban street in Kutaisi) talking with our hostess, Leila.
Over the past 24 hours, Leila and I had grown particularly close. Whenever nosotros met in the hallway, she would compression my cheeks, take hold of my hips and coo at me, calling me 'a cute baby'. She's a typical Georgian grandma, thickset with curly blackness hair and a firm grip. Her fondness for me was completely unjustified, merely very sugariness and amusing. This night, notwithstanding, her disposition was grisly equally she handed down her verdict on our programme to have a day trip from Kutaisi to Chiatura the post-obit day.
Chiatura is not exactly a popular tourist spot. I had been infatuated with the boondocks's history and obsessed with visiting ever since I got a tip off from a friend on social media. Chiatura hadn't been function of our original Caucasus itinerary , so we adjusted our plans to include ane more full day in Kutaisi to squeeze information technology in.
Before that twenty-four hours, the helpful staff at the Kutaisi tourist information office had armed u.s.a. with a map, a marshrutka schedule scribbled downwards on one corner. We proudly showed this to Leila, trying to illustrate to her how organised and well thought-out our plan was – but she but couldn't believe two Australian tourists who had come all the way to Georgia would want to spend a day in Chiatura.
We made k sweeping gestures with our hands as nosotros told her about the old cable cars we were going to ride on. We told her how fascinating it was that Stalin himself had ordered the 17 lines to be constructed in 1956, making the rope roads older than our parents.
We excitedly described Katskhi Pillar (or Katskhi Column), a stylite monastery just outside of Chiatura, and how we wanted to catch a glimpse of the famous hermit monk who lived on superlative of the impossibly high stone pillar.
But we couldn't win Leila over.
Unperturbed, we woke upward early the next morning and boarded a marshrutka bound for Chiatura. The solar day that unfolded was one of the almost rewarding of our first 3-month journeying across the Caucasus – and probably one of the coolest travel experiences we'll e'er have in our lives.
On a misty Sunday morning in May, we squeezed into a marshrutka van but equally information technology was pulling out of Kutaisi's bus station. The fog thickened during the ane-and-a-half-hour journey through densely forested Imereti. When we finally pulled into Chiatura, the haze cleared to reveal a colourful little town alive with activity.
Chiatura is a relatively pocket-size town with one chief street. The bus dropped u.s.a. off in the eye of the activity, shut to a small open up market. We didn't really know where to go from here, then we walked west along the street until we constitute evidence of the cable auto lines.
Along the main road, women sell neatly arranged bundles of herbs and bunches of roses. Bakers scramble to go on up with weekend trade, Ladas cruise up and down the streets, and people come and become from pastel-coloured buildings.
It's not long before nosotros catch our start glimpse of Chiatura'due south cable car infrastructure: a hulking station edifice, remnants of rusted rope hanging limply from its cantilevered physical artillery.
The smashed windows and boarded-up doors reveal this is ane of the lines that has ceased to operate. Nosotros search the greyness skies for more cable car lines, eventually following a group of women as they make their way inside a lemon-coloured building. Simply as nosotros arroyo the station, a blue car arcs down the loma and docks in its station. A few people disembark and the women take their identify.
Afterward observing a few rotations, the station attendant gestures nonchalantly for u.s.a. to lath the adjacent empty car. Without a moment'due south hesitation we climb inside.
Some other bellboy is there waiting. Information technology'due south her task to ride with passengers and ensure no one accidentally pops the loosely fitted door.
A bell sounds; the outset attendant pulls a lever and nosotros're off, sailing in our metal cage. This particular line hugs the contour of the hill, so we are never very far off the valley floor. Still, peering through the tiny wire-covered windows is thrilling.
We tin can't communicate with words, just the attendant chuckles knowingly equally we look to her for reassurance.
The most hit affair about the ride – which simply lasts for a minute or and so – is how silently and smoothly the carriage moves. Sixty-plus years after and these weather condition-worn ropes still do their job with efficiency and ease.
The view from the superlative – a full panorama of Chiatura – is breathtaking.
Dorsum within the master station, we admire the plaster work that decorates this one time-grand building. A freshly painted mural pays homage to Chiatura's miners.
Outside, nosotros notice a mosaic cast above the entryway – forever immortalised in river stones, Stalin and Lenin gaze out towards the rope means.
The cable cars in Chiatura are complimentary to ride. In that location is no set schedule, they just go when there's passengers waiting. There are attendants inside all stations (it'southward their chore to open up the door for you and to pull the lever that sends the cars off), and there are as well attendants within the cars themselves. Nearly lines we saw take only two cars that interchange, bringing passengers up and down.
It goes without saying, but if y'all desire to ride the cable cars, practice so at your own risk. The mechanism and equipment is ancient and non very well maintained. Nosotros made a sentence call and decided to ride up and down in one case. I don't regret it at all – it was incredible.
Even if you don't ride the cars, it'south worth visiting Chiatura to see the impressive concrete station buildings. The lemon-coloured edifice that I photographed has beautiful plaster cornices inside – you tin just imagine what information technology would take looked like when information technology first opened.
The cable cars and concrete station buildings are Chiatura'south principal draw card, but it's worth having a stroll around the town likewise.
Nosotros popped our heads into the big underground marketplace, which was rather dim and dusty. On the main street there's a very retro barbershop and as mentioned, a collection of pastel-coloured civic buildings and apartment blocks.
Today, Chiatura is a quiet, peaceful place that only attracts the most intrepid tourists, drawn to visit and ride the cablevision cars. As with everywhere else in Georgia, we were greeted with nothing but kindness and warmth from the Chiatura locals.
More Kutaisi tips
- My city guide for Kutaisi
- Restaurant recommendations for Kutaisi
- How to travel from Kutaisi to Tbilisi
- My Tskaltubo Abandoned Sanatoriums mega guide
Are y'all planning to travel from Kutaisi to Chiatura and Katskhi Pillar? If y'all have any questions, please leave them in the comments below.
Kutaisi to Chiatura: Salve it on Pinterest
Source: https://wander-lush.org/kutaisi-to-chiatura/
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