🛫 Operating Carriers

Georgian Airways serves 1 domestic + 18 international destinations across Europe, the Middle East and Asia (April 2026 figures). Tel Aviv, Paris, Vienna, Munich, Frankfurt, London, Athens, Amsterdam, Brussels.

Turkish Airlines (Istanbul, multi-daily), flydubai (Dubai), Pegasus (Istanbul SAW), Lufthansa (Munich), LOT Polish (Warsaw), Aegean (Athens), Air Arabia (Sharjah), Wizz Air (selected Italy/Germany), Qatar Airways (Doha), Etihad seasonal, Iraqi Airways, FlyOne.

📍 KUT vs TBS — the Georgia Airport Split

If you’re flying to Tbilisi: TBS is your airport. 17 km from the city centre, bus 337 to Liberty Square in ~75 minutes.

If you’re flying budget Wizz Air from the EU: KUT (Kutaisi) is the more likely destination. Wizz operates one of its bases there with 30+ European routes; the bus from KUT to Tbilisi runs 4 hours and costs ~25-35 GEL. The “Wizz from London to Tbilisi” search nearly always returns a KUT result, not TBS.

365-Day Visa-Free Entry

Citizens of ~95+ countries can enter Georgia visa-free for up to 365 days. The list includes all 27 EU member states, UK + dependencies, US, Canada, Australia, NZ, Japan, South Korea, Israel, UAE, Brazil, and most Latin American + GCC countries. The entry is documented by an entry stamp; no electronic system to register. Citizens of EU and Switzerland can also enter on a national ID card, not just a passport.

eVisa for Non-Visa-Free Nationals

Indian, Chinese, Egyptian, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Filipino, Thai, Pakistani and other nationals (where Georgia does not have a visa-free agreement) can apply for a Georgian eVisa at evisa.gov.ge — typically processed in 5 working days, valid for a single or double entry up to 30 days.

NO EES, NO ETIAS, NOT Schengen

EES and ETIAS are EU/Schengen systems for European airports. Georgia is not in the EU and not in Schengen — these systems do not apply at TBS. Travellers continuing from Tbilisi to mainland Europe will hit EES on first Schengen entry; the TBS leg is not Schengen-counted.

⭐ City Bus 337 (formerly Bus 37)

• Fare: 1 GEL (~€0.34) — pay by Metro Money card or contactless bank card. One ticket = 90 minutes of unlimited transfers across buses and metro.
• Operating: first bus 07:00, last bus 23:00. Every 15-20 minutes from the marked bay outside the departures hall.
• Journey: ~75 minutes to Station Square in normal traffic — slower than a taxi but cheap.
• Route: TBS → Kakheti Highway → Avlabari Metro (the closest Old Tbilisi stop) → Liberty Square → Rustaveli Avenue → Station Square.
• Bag limit: standard city bus; large suitcases are awkward but the route is built for airport passengers and the driver tolerates them.

📱 Bolt — the Default Rideshare in Georgia

• Uber does not operate in Georgia — Bolt is the only major rideshare app.
• Fare: ~20-30 GEL (~€7-10) airport to Old Town, 25-35 min in normal traffic.
• Cashless: link a card to the app and pay in GEL.
• Driver pool: dense in Tbilisi — wait times typically 3-5 minutes at TBS.
• Pickup: designated zone outside arrivals — verify the exact location in the Bolt app.

🚕 Taxi — Use the Fixed-Rate Counter

• The unmarked-taxi scam at TBS is real. Drivers at the terminal exit will quote 60-100 GEL or more for the city-centre run; the standard fare is 25-40 GEL.
• Use the official fixed-rate desk at arrivals — they quote a fair price in advance and you avoid the negotiation.
• Or just use Bolt — cheaper, app-priced, no negotiation needed.

🚂 Why There’s No Metro / Rail Link

The Tbilisi Metro (two lines, opened 1966, comprehensive within the city) does not extend to TBS. The closest metro station is Samgori, about 6 km from the airport on the orange line; bus 337 serves as the effective connector. There is no current funded project to build a metro extension to TBS. The 1 GEL bus + 75-minute ride is the operational reality.

🛋️ Primeclass Lounge

Location: international terminal, 2nd floor (post-passport-control, right-hand side).

Hours: 24/7 — useful for the late-night Doha and overnight Istanbul banks.

Access: Priority Pass, LoungeKey, DragonPass, Diners Club, Star Alliance Gold (on partner-airline travel), Turkish Airlines + Pegasus + Georgian Airways premium-cabin passengers. Walk-in day pass ~$40-50 USD or local GEL equivalent.

What’s inside: Georgian hot-buffet items + light Turkish-Caucasian dishes, full bar including Georgian wine and chacha (the local grape spirit), Wi-Fi, work zones, the TBC Concept Space rotating art exhibit. Comparable to Primeclass lounges at Istanbul SAW.

⚠️ No Centurion / Capital One / Chase Sapphire

None of the US flagship card-network lounges operate at TBS. Amex Platinum holders use Primeclass via Priority Pass. Capital One Venture X and Chase Sapphire Reserve holders the same.

The Primeclass IS the TBS lounge — single terminal, single space, one realistic option.

⚡ Other Premium Services

A separate VIP/business assistance service (meet-and-greet, fast-track, pre-security lounge access) can be pre-booked via Tbilisi Airport’s official website — typically $50-150 per person depending on package. Most travellers don’t need this; the standard Primeclass post-security access via Priority Pass is sufficient.

Khinkali are large twisted-top dumplings filled with spiced meat (traditionally lamb, beef, or beef-and-pork blend; mushroom or cheese variants exist) and broth. The topknot is held with your fingers and the dumpling is bitten just enough to drink the broth before eating the rest; using a knife and fork is the tourist tell. The topknots are left on the plate as a count of how many you’ve eaten. 4-7 lari per khinkali — 5 to 8 is a meal. Pasanauri (the chain that claims the original recipe), Velvet in Old Town, and the small mountain-style restaurants on Lado Asatiani Street are credible.

Khachapuri is the family of cheese-filled breads. Imeruli is the round closed disc with cheese inside (the most ubiquitous form). Megruli adds cheese on top. Adjaruli is the boat-shaped open version with a raw egg + butter cracked into the middle of the molten cheese as it arrives — the photogenic Georgian dish. 15-30 GEL per khachapuri; an Adjaruli is a meal for two. Retro, Khachapuri House, and most Tbilisi tavernas serve all three forms.

Georgia has the world’s oldest continuous winemaking tradition — 8,000 years of buried-amphora (qvevri) fermentation, recognised by UNESCO. The flagship grapes: Saperavi (the deep-coloured red, often called “the Georgian Cabernet”), Rkatsiteli (the white workhorse), Mtsvane, Kisi, Tsolikouri. Amber wines (white grapes fermented with skin contact in qvevri) are the Georgian signature. Bottles 20-150 GEL from the supermarket; 40-300 GEL at restaurants; producer cellars in Kakheti (2-hour drive east of Tbilisi) for tastings. Airside duty-free carries Khareba, Tbilvino, Marani, Schuchmann, Pheasant’s Tears.

Chacha is the Georgian distillate from grape pomace — the Caucasus equivalent of Italian grappa, typically 50-60% ABV. The household version is harsh; the artisanal aged version (often labelled “chacha brandy”) is smoother. 10-40 GEL per shot in a bar; 30-150 GEL per bottle. Try it once cold, neat, with a Georgian meal; this is the regional standard digestif.

🍷 Georgian Wine

20-150 GEL per bottle. Saperavi, Rkatsiteli, amber qvevri-fermented whites — Khareba, Tbilvino, Marani, Schuchmann, Pheasant’s Tears all at the airside duty-free. The 8-year-aged Saperavi (~80-120 GEL) is the realistic souvenir bottle.

🥃 Chacha & Brandy

30-150 GEL per 700ml. Sarajishvili Georgian brandy (since 1884, the heritage producer), artisanal chacha from Kakheti producers, the aged “chacha brandy” labels. All in airside duty-free.

🌶️ Svaneti Salt & Spice Blends

10-25 GEL. Svaneti salt (a herbed-and-spiced salt blend from the Svaneti mountain region), khmeli suneli (the universal Georgian spice mix), saffron blends. The signature Georgian-kitchen souvenir.

🪶 Cloisonné Enamel + Felt

20-200 GEL. Georgian cloisonné enamel (minankari) jewellery and small icons, felt slippers and toys from the Svaneti and Tusheti highlands. The airside selection is limited but the Dry Bridge flea market in central Tbilisi is the on-ground destination.

Abanotubani is the bath quarter at the foot of Narikala Fortress, fed by natural sulfur springs at 40-47 °C. The springs are why Tbilisi was founded — King Vakhtang Gorgasali (5th century) reputedly hunted a pheasant that fell into the hot springs and was cooked, prompting him to build the city. The Persian-tiled domes of the bathhouses are a defining city image. Communal pool: 5-15 GEL. Private rooms with sulfur pool + steam + optional kisi scrub-massage: 50-150 GEL per hour depending on bathhouse. Chreli Abano (the photogenic blue-tiled one) and Bathhouse #5 are the named institutions. From TBS: Bus 337 to Avlabari Metro then 15-min downhill walk, or Bolt directly (~30-40 min). The defining 4-hour layover move at TBS.

Narikala (4th-century fortress on the ridge above Old Town) is reached by the aerial cable car from Rike Park across the river — 2.5 GEL one-way (one Metro Money trip), runs daily ~11:00-23:00, 2-min ride. At the top: 360° views over Old Tbilisi, the Mother of Georgia statue (Kartlis Deda, 1958, 20 m aluminium), the Botanical Garden (entry 4 GEL), and a 5-min walk down to the Sulfur Baths. The Narikala + Sulfur Baths + Old Town walking circuit is the single most efficient Tbilisi sightseeing loop.

Mtskheta (pronounced “MTS-khe-ta”) — ancient capital of Georgia before Tbilisi, founded in the 5th century BC — is a UNESCO World Heritage Site 20 km north of the city. Svetitskhoveli Cathedral (11th century, where the Robe of Christ is reputedly buried) and the hilltop Jvari Monastery (6th century, the most photographed Georgian Orthodox monument). Marshrutka shared van from Didube terminal: 1 GEL, 20 minutes. Free entry to all sites, modest fees for some chapels. From TBS: Bus 337 to Liberty Square + metro to Didube + marshrutka = ~2.5 hours each way. Mtskheta is a 5-hour-layover stretch; better as part of a 1-2 day Tbilisi visit.

The compact Old Tbilisi walking circuit covers the city’s main sights in 2-3 hours: Rike Park (modern park on the right bank of the Kura) → Bridge of Peace (Michele De Lucchi, 2010, the glass-and-steel pedestrian crossing) → Sioni Cathedral (5th-13th century, the historic seat of the Georgian Catholicos) → Anchiskhati Basilica (6th century, Tbilisi’s oldest surviving church) → up Atoneli Street to Freedom Square. From TBS: Bus 337 to Liberty Square gets you to the start of the loop directly.

For early flights: the Holiday Inn Tbilisi Airport (5-min free shuttle, ~$80-140 USD), Gino Wellness Mtskheta (an outlier but only 15 min from TBS in light traffic). For a real Tbilisi stay: the heritage Stamba Hotel (Adjara Group, brutalist-converted Soviet print works in Vera, $200-450), Rooms Hotel Tbilisi (Adjara Group, in Vera, $180-380), the Tbilisi Marriott (Rustaveli Avenue, $200-400), or the boutique Old Town options like Communal Hotel and Vinotel. 25-40 min back to TBS by Bolt.

Georgian lari (GEL). 1 GEL ≈ €0.34 ≈ $0.36 (May 2026). Cards work in Tbilisi restaurants, hotels, shops, and most rural larger towns; cash needed for marshrutkas, small village shops, and bath-house communal pools. ATMs widely available in Tbilisi; airport ATMs dispense GEL. Avoid the airport bureau-de-change — the rate is 8-12% worse than a downtown ATM withdrawal. VAT 18% included in displayed prices. Tipping convention is 10% on restaurant tabs if service was good; many bills add an automatic 10-15% service charge.

Citizens of ~95+ countries can enter Georgia visa-free for up to 365 days. The list covers all EU member states, UK + dependencies, US, Canada, Australia, NZ, Japan, South Korea, Israel, UAE, Brazil and most Latin American + GCC countries. EU and Swiss citizens can enter on a national ID card, not just a passport. EES and ETIAS do not apply at TBS — Georgia is not in the EU and not in Schengen. Non-visa-free nationals (Indians, Chinese, Indonesians, Egyptians, etc.) apply for an eVisa at evisa.gov.ge.

Georgian networks — Magti, Geocell, Beeline. EU Roam-Like-At-Home does NOT extend to Georgia (not an EU country). UK roaming similar. Local prepaid SIM 10-20 GEL at the airport kiosks or in any Magti/Geocell shop in town. 5G covers central Tbilisi; 4G good across Kakheti and the Black Sea coast; spotty in the mountain regions.

4 hours airside-to-airside: Bolt to Old Town (25-35 min each way), 1 hour at Abanotubani sulfur baths (private room from 50 GEL/hour), khinkali + Georgian wine lunch, Bolt back. Tight but real. 5-6 hours: add the Narikala cable car + Old Tbilisi walking loop. Under 3 hours: stay airside — the Primeclass Lounge with a glass of qvevri Saperavi is the realistic call. Mtskheta day trip is NOT a layover move — needs 5+ hours each way including transit.