This summer in Tbilisi is damned hot, I mean +40 Celsius, c'mmon - it's not serious without air conditioning. And I'm not the person complaining.
So we decided to head to Borjomi, visit Borjomi National Park for some fresh and mountainous air and to find some boutique hotel for overnight stay.
Update: See how can I save you time and money by helping to plan your itinerary to Georgia, see organized tours in Georgia.
This is not the first time of me heading to Borjomi, last time I was there during our rafting trip. As well you can find a photo set of Borjomi in Autumn I made in October 2013.
I decided to write this post and highlight some options for cheap and pretty fast travel between Tbilisi and Borjomi using Marshrutka service.
I made the photos using my phone and published them to my Instagram wall as well (Learn more how I turned my Instagram account in a photo blog)
About Tbilisi-Borjomi transfers
There are few options to travel to Borjomi from Tbilisi available. One of them is by train, another great and by me most often preferred options is to choose Marshrutka (Minibus) service. Another option is to take a Taxi, but it might too pricey.
There are two places in Tbilisi, I know for sure where you can find a minibus heading to Borjomi. One of the place is located in Didube, second is located next to Tbilisi Railway station.
The price per person might vary for 6-8 GEL. This time we paid 7 GEL for Tbilisi-Borjomi by using Tbilisi - Akhatsikhe minibus.
Minibus at Tbilisi Railway Station. The Sign on it saying - AKHSALTIKHE (Georgian, Russian)
The minibuses leaves every round hour, starting 6 AM until late evening. Total time for drive from Tbilisi to Borjomi ~ 2 hours.
This time we waited for 40 minutes in open sun to leave Tbilisi. Did I mentioned it was +40 Celsius?
TV in Minibus
Our Minibus was equipped with TV - it actually did not worked, but still - formally they had TV Set in Tbilisi- Borjomi route.
Market near Tbilisi Railway Station
Make sure you buy some mineral water before departure!
One thing to mention - it's rare when minibuses drivers turn on air conditioner (most often the cars are so old, that they are just broken) - so the only option in hot summer days like this - wide open windows. (Take a scarf - to not to get cold)
View to Georgian Countryside
Bus stop near Gori
Bistro somewhere in middle of our route
We had a 5 minute stop at some bistro, where you can try to buy a coffee, soda or nuts. If you are a smoker - take your chances for a smoke here.
Borjomi Bridge
We stopped marshrutka near this bridge in Borjomi, for our further Borjomi exploration.
In total our drive took 2 and a half hours. Drive took us through Gori and Khashuri towns.
Find more articles on Living in Georgia topic.
Speaking of transfer options in Georgia, you might find useful articles like.
- Georgian Bus - Great way to travel from Kutaisi to Batumi or Tbilisi
- Tbilisi - Yerevan Transfers By Taxi Car
Stay tuned, in coming days I will write more about Borjomi, Borjomi National Park, Hotel we chose to stay in Borjomi and more!