From TBILISI to MESTIA 🇬🇪 (TRAVELING to SVANETI GEORGIA + Megrelian and Svan food!)
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- Опубліковано 30 чер 2024
- The Upper Svaneti region of Georgia is absolutely gorgeous, and even though it’s a long way from Tbilisi, getting there doesn’t have to be painful! In today’s video, we travel from Tbilisi to Mestia, the hub of Upper Svaneti through a combination of train and minibus (marshrutka). We bring you along as we cross the country through a train, stop over in Zugdidi-where we visit a local farmer’s market, walk around the Dadiani Palace Complex, feast on tasty Megrelian food, including elarji, and try Georgian churchkhela)-and finally get on a minibus that takes us all the way into the beautiful Georgian mountains! We share what it’s like (and what it costs) to travel around the country of Georgia and have a little fun along the way. Don’t forget to like and subscribe because the next few videos are going to completely blow you away!
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00:00 - Introduction
00:36 - Getting on the train to Zugdidi
01:56 - Arriving in Zugdidi
02:48 - Walking around the Zugdidi Farmer’s Market
04:05 - Eating Dinner at Diaroni
04:16 - Megrelian Khachapuri
04:56 - Peppers with Walnut Paste
05:56 - Elarji and Kharcho with Walnuts
07:22 - Shqmeruli Chicken (Chicken in Butter Garlic Sauce)
07:48 - Walking around the Dadiani Palace Complex in Zugdidi
09:52 - Trying Georgian Churchkhela
13:10 - Getting on a Marshrutka bound for Mestia
14:46 - Arriving in Mestia
15:40 - Trying to get to the ski lift for some beautiful views of Mestia
16:49 - Eating Dinner at Café Panorama
17:14 - Kubdari
17:58 - Chicken with Tkemali Sauce
18:57 - Final Thoughts
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We're Yvonne and Jeremy Chen. We got married in 2020 (hence, Chens of a Lifetime!) and have been going through some changes and transitions in our lives! We met through doing nonprofit volunteer work abroad, and this year, we're going back to our roots: traveling overseas, learning about new places and cultures, and meeting new friends! We're now based out of Eurasia and are traveling around the country of Georgia! Watch our videos to hear more about our journey. If you’d like to follow us day-to-day and catch sneak previews of what’s coming up on our channel, follow us on Instagram / chensofalifetime !
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Do you enjoy train travel as much as we do? Let us know down below in the comments!
Nisan ayında ordayız,çok güzel yerler umarım keyifli gecer.
We are in Georgia in April, I saw the channel by chance, I subscribed to the channel, it will be a guide for us, thanks🙏
Wonderful! Have an amazing time there 🤗
@@ChensofaLifetime thank you ☺️
So nice to see Yvonne's happy face - I think see liked the walnut rope candy - did she say she liked it? LOL - thanks for another great video
Thanks for watching 🥰 Yeah, she was all over that candy!
Awesome! Great video
🥰🥰🥰
The elarji looks soooo good!! Definitely wanna try it haha
It is amazinggggg! Definitely need to try it 🤤
Elarji -is a real bombatic georgian food!!!!
Beautiful Georgia 👍🇬🇪
🥰🥰🥰
I also love train travel! I was there last year and absolutely loved it. Enjoyed watching your video , you have a new subscriber 🙂
Thanks for watching! We also think that Georgia is incredible! 🥰
@@ChensofaLifetime I just made a video of it too, took me so long to publish but i did it eventually!
@@nornironnomad Awesome! Those are some amazing drone shots!
@@ChensofaLifetime Thank you, I was wondering should I make a separate drone channel? As i'm only on 504 subs , don't want to dilute my audience
@@nornironnomad Hey, sorry that we're just now getting back to your comment. If you have a different vision for a new drone-focused channel, then maybe starting a separate channel could be helpful? But if your audience is responding well to the content you already have, you could also keep going with what you already have!
მადლობა სტუმრობისთვის, იმედია ისიამოვნეთ. სვანეთი საქართველოს ერთ-ერთი ულამაზესი და მისტიური კუთხეა თავისი დიდებული ტრადიციებით🇬🇪💖💖
P.S. Did u taste Svan salt? Or did u saw Svan hat? U also should taste Svan Elarji which is made from potato. Or did u eat tchvishtari? Did u also saw Svan traditional Music instrument ჭუნირი(tchuniri) or hear Svan music or saw dance? There is lot more to see and I hope next time u'll visit this place again. And also u can go to lentekhi(ლენტეხი) which is lower Svaneti and is another paradise❣
We loved Svaneti so much, but spent too little time there 😭 We are making plans to go back! We bought lots of Svan salt, and even though we wrapped it in ten bags, the smell was still very strong, whever we went! Thanks for watching 🥰
@@ChensofaLifetime yeah, smell is so strong and specific but food with it is delicious. We're waiting for u again and please try to go Lentekhi too💜
Thanks for the detailed video. How was the road/driver on the way from Zugdidi to Mestia? Like are there cliffs and such? I am a bit worried about the marshrutka up in the mountains.
The road and driver from Zugdidi to Messiah were decent during our trip, but I think it really depends on weather and road conditions. It's a tricky yet well worn path, so it shouldn't give you too much trouble. If you're concerned about the bumpiness, you could consider hiring a shared taxi (passenger car) with other travelers that are headed the same direction. It would only cost a little bit more, and people are regularly headed in that direction! Have an amazing time!
Thank you for the video 😊 I want to go to Georgia this June and I am wondering whether the Marshrutka does stop sometimes for a toilet stop? 😅
Yes, absolutely! There's generally one rest stop on the way from Zugdidi to Mestia.
Thanks for the video!
what I heard is previously there is overnight sleeper train to Zugadidi, but now there is no more.
A 6 hour train ride plus 4 hour Marshrutka (single ride not include return journey), it is too tough
Yes, that's right! There used to be an overnight train, but they stopped it during covid, and it never resumed, unfortunately! There are also flights from Tbilisi to Mestia, but it's pretty hard to get tickets and they cancel often. There's also a 9-hour marshrutka straight from Tbilisi, but marshrutkas are unfortunately not the most comfortable vehicles 😅
@@ChensofaLifetime I am planning to Gergoria, I think I will try to book a flight
If no flight available, then I will choose to go Kazbegi as an alternative. I think these two places are similar？Both have mountain and snall village
Thanks for the informative and well edited video, can you please share where you've stayed in Mestia?
Thanks for watching! We stayed at a nice guesthouse with a wonderful Svan lady Dodo Japaridze. We had a private bathroom, space heaters, and breakfast in the mornings. She also gave great recommendations 🙂
Dear@ChensofaLifetime How did you book there.pleaase share the link.
Great video! How far in advance dis you book your train tickets to Zugdidi? I've tried to book online but the whole of July seem to be sold out. If we arrive 5 days earlier in Tbilisi, do you think it's possible to find available tickets?
We booked a few weeks in advance, but we met quite a few people that successfully bought their tickets on the day of departure. If you arrive five days earlier, I'd imagine that you wouldn't have any problems getting the tickets! Hope that helps!
Thanks for the great video! I’ve a question. We are planning to visit Tbilisi next July and then we also want to visit Mestia. The thing I wonder is when we reach Mestia, are there any daily or 2 days tours of Svaneti which shows and guides us in the region? Shortly, are there any tour agencies guiding people in Mestia?
Wonderful! There are certainly tour guides available in once you get to Mestia. Our experience was that if you book things ahead of time, they tend to charge more, but if you show up on the day before and try to arrange something, it's quite simple to find a guide or a driver. Our recommendation would be to stay at least three nights if you can, especially since it takes so long just to get there! You can check out our Ushguli and Koruldi Lakes videos for what we actually did there! Hope this helps!
@@ChensofaLifetime Thank you so much for your detailed description 😍
Hi! Watching your video makes me wanna go to Mestia. Please share your fare expenses from Tblisi to Mestia. Thank you 😁
It costs 16 GEL ($5.33 USD) to go from Tbilisi to Zugdidi by train and 30 GEL ($10 USD) to take a minibus (marshrutka) from Zugdidi to Mestia. It is also possible to purchase flights, but they are only by one company and can be rather difficult to book! Happy traveling!
Thanks man i needed this video to decide whether to break up the journey into two days - did it say the platform on your ticket?
Glad it was helpful! When you get to the station on the day of your train ride, the platform number should be displayed on the information boards! It shouldn't be too difficult to locate because there's only one train a day going in that direction. Hope this helps!
@@ChensofaLifetime cheers! First time in Georgia. I'd love to learn Russian in future but for now the alphabet puzzles me and I know Georgian is different so was wondering if the timetable was understandable. All the best lad, Thomas, Liverpool
I believe the signs alternate from Georgian to Roman letters. Have an amazing time in Georgia! We loved every single minute and would have gladly stayed longer!
Please give me the details about your backpack because I see you when you get on the plane with it without any problems
Our backpacks are from The North Face 🤗
Hey guys just came across your video. Great . I'm going in December. Where can you take a (marshrutka) in Tbilisi to Metsia? How many days would you say i need to travel to that region?
Wonderful! Enjoy your trip! I would say a minimum of four days would be needed to make this trip worth it. This is because you will take most of a day to go and most of a day to come back. I really think that two full days in Mestia would be the bare minimum to enjoy this part of Georgia (especially with uncertain weather in the winter having a few days as a buffer might be preferable). A whole week would be much better! In terms of catching the marshrutka, you would need to go to the Didube Bus Terminal early in the morning. The marshrutka all the way to Mestia leaves at around 8. We would recommend taking the train to Zugdidi, and there are always marshrutkas going to Mestia from Zugdidi right outside of the train station waiting to go to Mestia as soon as the train arrives. The train leaves at a similar time in the morning and tickets can be purchased online. Hope this helps with planning!
@@ChensofaLifetime Thank you so much for all the pointers and the extra buffer days - wouldn't have though of it, but yeah it's winter in Georgia. Train an d bus sound good for me. Watching more of your video by the way. I'm living in Oman so the weather is getting cooler too.
Great! Yeah, buffer days would be important because the weather might not be cooperative every day. Having an extra day or two could give you the best chance at seeing everything you want to see!
Would you recommend traveling to Mestia with a carry on, or rather take a backpack?
I think if you're doing a lot of trekking, a backpack is definitely nice, but it wouldn't be difficult to get around Mestia with suitcase either. Do note that outside of Mestia, the roads are not nearly as paved, so a backpack could be more convenient if you're planning to stay overnight in some villages! Hope you have a great time there!
Hi i'm anna from georgian2go, do you guys wanna collaborate on a spontaneous video. I'll be in tbilsi until the end of the month...I'm georgian living in germany and havent been here for 13 years, my bf is german but he left already due to work. I'm im anaklia, travelling back over zugdidi to tbilisi. Love they dynamic of your video...maybe we could do a daytrip to bolnisi or something
Hi Anna! Thanks for reaching out! We would have loved to, but we've moved onto Türkiye now and are catching up on posting our Georgia video. Hope you enjoy the rest of your time in Georgia! We love Georgia so much!
Impressive market exchange, are you learning Russian now? 😆
🤣🤣🤣 minored in Russian area studies in college (took two years of Russian heh)
Greetings. What is the name of the Houseguest you stayed in Mestia? Do you still have their website or email? Thanks