Georgia: Why Every Israeli is Flying to Batumi & Tbilisi

Look, I'm going to skip the part where I pretend Georgia is some undiscovered secret. It's not. Open your Instagram right now — half your feed is khachapuri photos from Tbilisi. Your cousin went last month. Your coworker won't shut up about it. Your mom's WhatsApp group is planning a trip.

And you know what? They're all right.

Georgia exploded as the Israeli destination, and for once the hype is completely justified. Visa-free entry, a 2.5-hour flight, food that'll ruin every other cuisine for you, wine older than most civilizations, and prices so low you'll think the menu is wrong. According to Wingly's flight tracker, there are 503 flights from Ben Gurion to Georgia — out of 33,193 total tracked flights. That's not a trend. That's a full-on love affair.

Let me break down exactly where to go, what to eat, and what to skip.

Tbilisi: The Capital That Doesn't Feel Like a Capital

301 flights from Ben Gurion. Four airlines fighting for your money: El Al (109 flights), Georgian Airways (78), Arkia (59), and Israir (55). When that many carriers are competing on one route, you know the demand is real — and the prices stay low.

Tbilisi is the kind of city that travel writers describe as "a hidden gem" even though 301 flights worth of Israelis are landing there monthly. Fine. Let's call it what it is: a genuinely beautiful, walkable, ridiculously affordable city that somehow hasn't been ruined by tourism yet. Give it time.

What to Actually Do

Old Town (Abanotubani) — Start here. The sulfur bath district has these gorgeous Persian-style bathhouses carved into a hillside. Yes, you should go inside one. The Orbeliani Baths (the blue tiled one that looks like a mosque) is pretty but overpriced and touristy. Go to Bath No. 5 instead — it's where locals go, it costs a fraction, and the experience is more authentic. Fight me.

Narikala Fortress — Take the cable car up. The views over the Kura River and Old Town are genuinely stunning, especially at sunset. The walk down through the botanical garden is worth doing once.

Rustaveli Avenue — The main boulevard. Good for a stroll, some Soviet architecture gawking, and hitting the Georgian National Museum if you're into that. The opera house is beautiful from outside; skip the inside unless there's actually a show.

Fabrika — A former Soviet sewing factory turned into a hostel-bar-coworking-food court thing. It sounds insufferably hipster and it kind of is, but the courtyard is genuinely a great place to eat and drink on a warm evening.

Insider Tip: Skip the "wine tours" that every hotel lobby is pushing. They're overpriced bus trips with too many stops. Instead, walk down Lado Asatiani Street in the old town — every other door is a tiny wine bar or natural wine shop. You'll taste better wine, meet actual winemakers, and spend a quarter of the price.

What to Skip in Tbilisi

The Bridge of Peace. Yes, the glass one that looks cool in photos. You walk across it in 90 seconds, go "huh, okay," and that's it. It's a bridge. See it from the fortress above, don't make it a destination.

Chronicles of Georgia (the big monument outside the city) — It's far, there's nothing else out there, and while it's impressively large, it's not worth the taxi ride unless you're genuinely into monumental sculpture.

Batumi: The Black Sea Party Town

182 flights from Ben Gurion. Israir dominates this route (92 flights), followed by Arkia (48) and El Al (42). Batumi is a completely different vibe from Tbilisi, and you should absolutely do both.

Think of Batumi as a beach town that got ambitious. It's got a gorgeous Black Sea coastline, a surprisingly modern skyline, wild architecture that can't decide if it's Dubai or Barcelona, and a boardwalk (the Batumi Boulevard) that stretches for 7 kilometers along the water. In summer, it's the closest thing to a resort town Georgia has.

What to Actually Do

Batumi Boulevard — Walk it, rent a bike, whatever. It's the spine of the city and it's genuinely pleasant. The stretch near the Ali and Nino statue (the moving metal figures) is the most photogenic.

Old Town — Smaller and scrappier than Tbilisi's, but the Piazza square (yes, they called it Piazza) is worth seeing for the sheer audacity of the mosaics. Grab food here but eat at the places on the side streets, not the ones right on the square.

Batumi Botanical Garden — This one is actually worth the trip. It's huge, it's on a hillside overlooking the sea, and it's gorgeous. Go in the morning before it gets hot.

The Beach — Let's be honest: Batumi's beach is pebble, not sand. It's not Eilat, it's not even Netanya. But the water is clean, the mountains are right behind you, and the vibes are great. Manage your expectations and you'll have a good time.

Insider Tip: The real Batumi move is renting an apartment on Airbnb near the boulevard for practically nothing, buying groceries at the local market, and eating out for every other meal. A week in Batumi can cost less than a weekend in Tel Aviv. I'm not exaggerating.

Tbilisi vs. Batumi — Which One?

Both. Seriously. They're a 5-hour drive apart (or a short, cheap domestic flight). Tbilisi for culture, food, and wine. Batumi for beach, nightlife, and relaxation. If you only have 4-5 days, start in Tbilisi (3 nights) and end in Batumi (2 nights). If you have a week, flip that to 4 and 3.

Check current flight availability for both on the Tbilisi destination page — sometimes one route has significantly cheaper options.

The Food: This Is Why You're Really Going

I need you to understand something. Georgian food is not "pretty good for a cheap country." Georgian food is one of the best cuisines on the planet and the rest of the world just hasn't fully caught on yet. When you come back and won't stop talking about it — and you will — remember I warned you.

The Essentials

Khinkali — Georgian dumplings. They come in groups of 5 or 10. You eat them with your hands, bite a hole, drink the soup inside, then eat the dumpling. Don't eat the top knob — it's just a handle. If someone eats the knob, they're a tourist. Order the classic meat ones first, then experiment.
Khachapuri — Cheese-filled bread. There are like 50 regional varieties but you need the Adjarian one (boat-shaped with an egg and butter). It's from Batumi originally and it's basically the national dish. Get it at every restaurant, they're all slightly different.
Mtsvadi — Georgian barbecue/shashlik. Pork is the traditional choice. Cooked over grape vines, not charcoal. It hits different.
Lobiani — Bean-filled bread. Less famous than khachapuri, arguably better. Your vegetarian friends will survive very well in Georgia.
Churchkhela — Those weird candle-looking things hanging in every market. Walnuts on a string dipped in grape juice and flour. They look strange, they taste incredible. Buy them at the market, not from tourist shops.

Insider Tip: In Tbilisi, eat at Shavi Lomi for a modern take on Georgian cuisine (make a reservation), Pasanauri for classic no-frills khinkali (there's always a line — it's worth it), and literally any hole-in-the-wall bakery for fresh shotis puri bread straight from the tone oven. If you pay more than 20 Lari (~25 NIS) for a meal without wine, you went somewhere too fancy.

Wine Country: Kakheti and the 8,000-Year-Old Tradition

Georgia has been making wine for 8,000 years. Eight. Thousand. That's not a marketing slogan, that's an archaeological fact. They were fermenting grapes in clay pots (called qvevri) when the rest of us were still figuring out fire.

Kakheti is the main wine region — about a 2-hour drive east of Tbilisi. You can do it as a day trip, but spending a night in Sighnaghi (a hilltop town with incredible views) makes the whole thing better.

What makes Georgian wine different:

Qvevri method — Wine fermented underground in giant clay vessels. UNESCO recognized this as intangible cultural heritage. The orange/amber wines made this way are unlike anything you've had.
Indigenous grapes — Over 500 native grape varieties. Saperavi (red) and Rkatsiteli (white/amber) are the big ones. You won't find them anywhere else.
It's natural — Not because it's trendy, because it's tradition. Most small Georgian producers have been making wine without additives for centuries.

Insider Tip: In Kakheti, skip the big commercial wineries (like Kindzmarauli Corporation) and ask your driver to take you to a family winery. Almost every house in the wine country makes their own wine in their basement. You'll drink homemade wine, they'll feed you a four-course meal, and the whole thing costs basically nothing. This is peak Georgia.

Practical Stuff: Getting Around, Money, Weather

Getting Around

Taxis in Georgia are absurdly cheap. A Bolt ride across Tbilisi costs 5-10 Lari (6-12 NIS). Between cities, marshrutkas (shared minibuses) go everywhere and cost almost nothing. For Tbilisi to Batumi, take the overnight train for the experience or a domestic flight if you're short on time.

Rent a car if you want to explore wine country or the mountains, but don't bother in the cities — parking is chaos, driving is aggressive, and everything is walkable or a cheap taxi ride.

Money

The Georgian Lari (GEL) is roughly 1.2 NIS as of writing. Cards are accepted in most places in Tbilisi and Batumi, but carry cash for markets, bakeries, and anything outside the main cities. ATMs are everywhere and give decent rates.

Weather

Summer (Jun-Aug): Hot. Tbilisi gets 35+. Batumi is humid but has the sea breeze.
Spring (Apr-May) & Fall (Sep-Oct): Perfect. 20-25 degrees, fewer crowds. This is when you should go.
Winter (Nov-Mar): Cold. Tbilisi can drop below zero. But skiing in Gudauri is actually legit if that's your thing.

How Long to Stay

4-5 days minimum: Tbilisi (3) + Batumi (2)
7 days ideal: Tbilisi (3) + Kakheti (1-2) + Batumi (2-3)
10+ days: Add Kazbegi mountains, Svaneti, or Kutaisi (there are 20 flights to Kutaisi from Ben Gurion if you want to start there)

Budget: Why Your Wallet Will Thank You

Here's where Georgia gets truly ridiculous. Compared to literally any European destination — or, you know, buying lunch in Tel Aviv — the prices are almost offensive.

Street food meal: 8-15 NIS (khachapuri + drink)
Restaurant dinner with wine: 30-50 NIS per person
Nice restaurant dinner with wine: 60-100 NIS per person
Bolt taxi across Tbilisi: 6-12 NIS
Hostel dorm: 25-40 NIS/night
Good 3-star hotel: 100-180 NIS/night
Airbnb entire apartment: 80-150 NIS/night
Bottle of excellent wine at a shop: 15-40 NIS

You can genuinely do a week in Georgia — flights included if you catch a deal — for less than a long weekend in Prague or Barcelona. A budget traveler can survive on 100-150 NIS per day comfortably. A mid-range traveler who eats out every meal and takes taxis everywhere is looking at 200-300 NIS per day. Try doing that literally anywhere in Western Europe.

Getting There: Airlines Compared

The flight from Ben Gurion to Tbilisi is about 2.5 hours. To Batumi, roughly the same. Here's how the airlines stack up:

Airline	Tbilisi Flights	Batumi Flights	Notes
El Al	109	42	Most options, frequent flyer points, usually priciest
Georgian Airways	78	—	Direct only to Tbilisi, decent mid-range option
Arkia	59	48	Good coverage of both cities, competitive pricing
Israir	55	92	Dominates the Batumi route, often cheapest

My recommendation: For Tbilisi, compare El Al and Arkia — the price difference can be huge depending on the date. For Batumi, Israir is usually your best bet. Georgian Airways is solid middle ground for Tbilisi.

Book 3-6 weeks out for the best prices. Summer flights book up fast with Israeli demand. Track current pricing and availability on the Wingly flights board — the data updates regularly so you can spot when prices shift.

The Bottom Line

Georgia is the rare destination where the hype matches reality. The food is extraordinary, the prices are laughable, the people are warm, the wine is ancient, and the scenery covers everything from beaches to mountains to medieval towns.

Best for:

Budget travelers — You'll live like royalty for pocket change
Foodies — Clear your phone storage, you'll photograph every meal
Couples — Tbilisi is ridiculously romantic. Wine country even more so
Groups/stag trips — Batumi + cheap everything = you do the math
First-time adventurers — Visa-free, easy, safe, affordable. Perfect "first step beyond Europe"

Maybe skip if:

You want a sandy beach resort (Batumi's pebble beach isn't it)
You don't eat carbs (Georgia will destroy your diet)
You want luxury shopping or high-end nightlife (go to Dubai)

With 503 flights connecting Ben Gurion to Georgia, you have no excuse. The food alone is worth the flight. Everything else is a bonus.

Trust me on this one. Just book it.