Ski & Snowboard Touring in Georgia.

Georgia sits on the southern side of the Greater Caucasus, and the main range runs the full length of its northern border. Shkhara, at 5,193m, is the highest peak in the country, and several of its neighbours are also over 5,000m. The scale is bigger than anything in the Alps.

There are four ski regions. Gudauri, on the Georgian Military Highway north of Tbilisi, is the largest resort, with lifts from about 2,000m to almost 3,300m and wide open terrain above the treeline. Svaneti, in the north-west, has two small resorts near Mestia, Tetnuldi and Hatsvali, and touring that starts from the villages. Bakuriani, in the Lesser Caucasus, is lower, forested and family-oriented. Goderdzi, in Adjara above the Black Sea coast, is small and known for its tree skiing.

The lift-served areas are small by Alpine standards. The real riding is the touring and freeride terrain around them. All our current Georgia trips run in Svaneti: each day you skin from a village or a high road into open alpine bowls and broad ridges, then ride a long freeride descent back to the valley.

The lifts generally run from December into April. January and February are the coldest months and bring the deepest snow. March usually gives longer days and more settled weather, and April turns to spring snow on the sunny sides. We run our Svaneti trips in January and March.

We don't publish snow depths or forecasts on this page — they go out of date within hours. These are the sources we check ourselves: Windy for wind, freezing levels and storm tracking, and Snow-Forecast for resort-level snow detail. On a guided trip your guide checks them, plus the snow on the ground, every morning before any plan is set.

Windy — Mestia, Svaneti
Windy — Gudauri
Snow-Forecast — Tetnuldi snow report
Snow-Forecast — Hatsvali / Mestia
Snow-Forecast — Gudauri

Georgia has no daily national avalanche bulletin. Avalanche.ge publishes a forecast for the Gudauri area only. For Svaneti there is no public forecast we can point you to, so every slope is assessed on the day by guides who know the local snowpack.

Conditions change fast — this is for planning only. Always check the latest advisory where one exists and consult a certified local guide before heading out.

On our trips the guide makes every route and go/no-go decision. Beacon, shovel and probe are mandatory, and avalanche equipment and companion rescue are practised on the first ski day.

In Georgia, emergencies go through 112. Rescue resources in the mountains are limited and help can take time. Mobile coverage is decent in the villages and poor beyond them.

Travel and medical insurance is not included in our trips. It must cover ski touring off-piste, mountain rescue and helicopter evacuation. We recommend Austrian Alpine Club (Alpenverein) membership, which includes mountain rescue cover.

Kutaisi (KUT) is the airport for Svaneti, with budget flights from many European cities. From there it is around five hours by road up the Enguri valley to Mestia. Shared airport transfers and all local transport are included on our trips, so the only thing to organise is your flight.

Tbilisi (TBS) is the way in for Gudauri, about two hours by road, and for Bakuriani. Batumi (BUS) is the closest airport to Goderdzi.

In Svaneti, family guesthouses are the heart of the trip: simple warm rooms, home cooking and generous hosts. Our trips stay in guesthouses in Mestia, with one or two nights in Ushguli at 2,200m. Gudauri and Bakuriani are resort villages with hotels and apartments.

Standard alpine rental is available in the resorts. Touring gear is hard to rent in Mestia, so bring your own or ask us in advance and we will help arrange it.

Bring: touring skis or splitboard, touring boots, skins, ski crampons, adjustable poles, beacon, shovel, probe, 30–40L pack, helmet (mandatory on our trips), goggles, sunglasses, layers, spare gloves, headlamp.

Georgian food is a reason to go on its own: khachapuri, khinkali dumplings, soups, salads and home-made cheese, and in Svaneti the local kubdari, a meat-filled bread. To drink there is Georgian wine, traditionally made in clay qvevri, and chacha, the local grape spirit.

Upper Svaneti is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Climb a Svan tower, visit the Mestia museum of history and ethnography, or walk around Ushguli under Shkhara. If you have a spare day on the way in or out, Tbilisi and Kutaisi are both worth a night.