WHERE TO STAY IN GEORGIA

We stayed mostly in hotels on this trip, so below is a review of all of the hotels we stayed in while visiting. We did stay in 2 Airbnb accommodations while in Tblisi (Melody’s doing, of course)…you can find a review of out airbnbs here.

Communal Hotel (TBLISI)

Pros:

  1. Bright and airy bathroom

  2. Heat is booming

  3. Great breakfast right downstairs

Cons

  1. Location can be a bit of a walk in the winter. if you are looking for things outside of Solalaki

  2. Balcony view may be limited

  3. The Architect room that we had had great natural light in the bathroom but no where else.

  4. There is no elevator so pack light!

Northgate hotel (Kazbegi)

The journey to Northgate is documented in another blog but the tail end must be included when talking about driving to this location in the winter. Northgate is situated 3 blocks off the main road/military/commerce highway in Kazbegi. This means in the winter you're in for quite the adventure when going uphill on potentially icy/snowy roads. Thankfully it's only about two blocks so with the right amount of momentum you'll make it. After white knuckling it up the hill to the hotel, we were greeted by the very friendly staff at the quaint two floor hotel. The weather was 10 degrees Fahrenheit or so which made the warmth of the lobby that much more welcoming. The staff was really chill and got us tea and biscuits which we ate after getting situated.

The main floor has the communal eating area which is where breakfast is served in the morning. We arrived at night so it looked like where dinner is being served as well. There are rooms on the main floor as well but we were staying upstairs so I can only assume they were the same type or maybe smaller (single bed) rooms. On the second floor which where we were staying there is another communal room which is where groups can gather. Since it was near orthodox Christmas this common room was nicely appointed with a christmas tree and just had an overall cozy feel. Our room was maybe 5 or 6 rooms away from the common area (this should be noted).

Once we got to the room it was nice. I kinda wished there was carpet on the floor since we're in the mountains and it's freezing but they provided slippers so that was a nice touch. Except these were the thinnest slippers I've ever used lol. The bathroom was cool, nothing extravagant but my biggest gripe was that after a shower water, gets all over the place. I hate wet bathrooms which ends up being a bit of a theme going forward. After we showered and were ready for bed after the long treacherous drive, we wore our paper thin slippers to the common area and had tea and biscuits. It was definitely giving cozy mountain lodge vibes. Once we finished, we headed back to our room to go to sleep except there was one problem.....there was a family having a full on ho down in the communal room down the hall. Not only that, we can hear the guy in the room next to us using the bathroom, coughing, pretty much every activity imaginable due to paper thin walls. They partied til about 3 or 4 am so sleep wasn't the greatest but the next day we were up and out. After seeing The InnTourist hotel, Northgate would be a cool 2nd or 3rd choice.

Pros

  • Good value for the money

  • Located near all the things to see in Kazbegi

  • Hearty breakfast

  • Nice staff

  • Great hotel for groups

Cons

  • Paper thin walls

Hotel Tsiaga (Gudauri)

Keeping in line with hotels up hills, the hotel Tsiga was no exception. thankfully it was a short trip up the mountain. It was a slippery slide to the hotel but that's par for the course. As with most of the hotels we've stayed in, it's a boutique hotel and the welcoming staff definitely gave us that boutique hotel feel. The ground floor has the lobby, dining room and fireplace which made for an instantly cozy feel as soon as you walk in. Our room was on the top floor which once again is my kind of vibe when staying in hotels. The downside though is that once again there was no elevator. The staff helped us bring our stuff the four flights but even without luggage you'll have some pronounced breaths by the time you get to your room.

Unlike Northgate, Tsiga had an even more cozy feel and felt a bit more thought out in the planning of the hotel and rooms. One thing I instantly noticed was carpet throughout the hotel. A small touch but when you have thin walls, it helps to muffle footsteps and other noises. On the top floor it looked like there were about three other rooms so I didn't expect as much noise as Northgate and thankfully there wasn't. The only bad thing I can say is that they didn't let us know that the heat wasn't working until we called. I'll chalk this up to being lost in translation but still, heat is fairly important when staying at a hotel in 2 degree (yes you read that right) weather. I'll rank the bathroom lower than Northgate solely due to water getting everywhere in the bathroom and it's not as pretty as Northgate was. It has me thinking, how do people shower in Georgia? Or are they just used to having a wet bathroom?

Pros

  1. Cozy vibe throughout

  2. Very attentive staff

  3. Cozy restaurant with great food to boot

Cons

  • Expect a wet bathroom after showering.

GranD Esquisse Hotel (TElavi)

Pulling up to this hotel felt like the start of a rap video. Granted it was just past sundown but still. Picture this, white stone gravel and a circular driveway. I felt a little less than with my dirty Renault Logan.

Check-in was smooth and the staff was nice. The first quirky surprise came as we got into the elevator. The elevator had a seat in it. A small touch but one that I can say I've never seen in a hotel. Once outside the room the hallway gave us a bit of "The Shining" vibes but outside of that it was a nice boutique hotel. The rooms were very well appointed. We booked the deluxe suite which had a bedroom, sitting room, and most of all, a great bathroom. It was a nice touch to have a good restaurant on site as well.

The flip flops in this hotel were much nicer than the Northgate thankfully. Overall the hotel was great and it fully met all my standards which I think aren't that high but let Melody tell it, I guess they are. I would definitely stay here again. There were minor things that I didn't like but I can give them a pass as it's covid times plus there may have been a language barrier.

Pros

  • Tons of Instagrammable locations

  • Best value for price from what we found online.

  • Location

Cons

  • Restaurant staff felt a bit entry level compared to what you expect from such a nice hotel

  • The minor things were mostly due to covid and the language barrier. Nothing that would make me not stay.