next tour

Wednesday September 25 to Sunday October 6

We’ll meet up in Tbilisi, Georgia’s charming capital city. My travel-agent partner Deb Olson can help you arrange your flights to Tbilisi (email or call 307-745-7191), or you can do that independently.

the idea

My dear friend Tamar Babuadze is my partner in the Georgia trips. She’s the founder-editor of a beautiful magazine of food and culture called Indigo, lives in Tbilisi, and is steeped in the country’s history and food traditions. She’s a wonderful traveling companion.

We did our first Georgian immersethrough trips in October 2017 and October 2019. In autumn 2022 we were able to make a first trip after the hiatus imposed by the pandemic, and then again another deeply interesting and fun trip in late September 2023. We’re looking forward to September 2024!

the schedule

Guests will arrive in Tbilisi by Wednesday September 25 so that we can begin our time together on the morning of Thursday September 26, 2024.

After a day in and around Tbilisi, we’ll drive westwards to Gori (Stalin’s birthplace), have lunch at a vineyard farmhouse, and then continue on to Kutaisi, Georgia’s historic and graceful western capital. We’ll have two days to explore the rich wine and food traditions of the area, and then head to Batumi on the Black Sea coast. We’re going to have a couple of days in Ajaria, the mountainous region next to the Turkish border. Then We’ll drive eastward through the mountains, parallel to the Turkish border, to the wildly beautiful region of southern Georgia called Samstkhe-Javaheti.

We’ll be based for two nights in Kutaisi, Georgia’s historic and graceful western capital. After exploring the rich wine and food traditions of the area, we’ll drive to the wildly beautiful region of southern Georgia called Samstkhe-Javaheti. We’ll have a hands-on experience of farmhouse cheese-making and visit the extraordinary early cliffside ruins of Vardzia.  We’ll spend one night in Javaheti before driving back to the comforts of Tbilisi through the high open landscape near the Turkish and Armenian borders.

The last part of our travels will take us to Kakheti, a beautiful historic region in eastern Georgia that has long been famous for its wines. We’ll stay in Telavi, with its lively market, an easy drive from Tbilisi. We’ll meet wine-makers and artisans, and visit several beautiful villages and churches, before returning to Tbilisi for a final day of conversation, exploration, and feasting.

the details

We’ll be travelling in a large comfortable van. All accommodation, food, drink, and entry fees etc are included, so the only thing you'll need cash for is any presents you wish to buy for yourself or others.

In the meantime, please email or call (307-745-7191) Deb Olson for more information, or to join us in Georgia this fall.