Tbilisi → Batumi by car: a 7-day route

This is Georgia’s classic road trip: in a week you cross the country from Tbilisi to the Black Sea, gathering all the best of it along the way - ancient churches, cave towns, mineral-water Borjomi, the canyons of Imereti and a finale on the coast in Batumi. The route is built for a car; the distances and budget in the card are guides, so adjust them to suit yourself.

Days 1-2: Tbilisi → Mtskheta → Gori → Borjomi

From Tbilisi it’s a short hop to Mtskheta (Svetitskhoveli Cathedral and Jvari). Next comes the fortress and the contentious Stalin museum in Gori, the most talked-about stop in the trip’s opening days, plus the nearby cave town of Uplistsikhe. By evening you reach Borjomi: mineral water, the park and a cable car. It’s convenient to stay the night here; if you fancy it, you can head up to the mountain resort of Bakuriani.

Days 3-4: Kutaisi, pick your canyon

The road brings you to Kutaisi - on a week-long trip this isn’t a three-night base like on the grand loop, it’s the last stop before the sea, so you’ll want to pick a canyon rather than collect them all. Gelati Monastery and Sataplia take half a day and suit almost everyone. After that it’s a matter of taste: for trails and views, take the suspended walkway over Okatse canyon; for water, take the boat ride through Martvili canyon and the underground river in Prometheus Cave. Short on time? One canyon plus the cave is a full day on its own, and day 4’s second half is better spent on the road to the coast. Want to see it all instead? The Imereti: canyons and caves route lays out two full days for it.

Days 5-7: to the sea and Batumi

The road from Kutaisi ends at the coast in Batumi: the seafront, the boulevard, the beaches and seaside cooking. Since this trip is one-way, not a loop, leave the last two days for the city and the sea itself, and sort your drop-off before you arrive - renting a car in Batumi covers where the offices are.

What to keep in mind

• Run a day over plan on this route and it’ll show fast: a week’s slack is split across 7 days, not 13, so treat the distances and budget in the card as guides, not promises.
• The “from” budget is a lower bound for a week of fuel, overnight stays and food, excluding car hire, tours and entry tickets.
• The hire is often taken one-way (Tbilisi → Batumi); some companies (StarCar, as of 2026) run the Batumi - Kutaisi - Tbilisi triangle free of charge, others charge for it - confirm which at booking, not at drop-off.
• The route is flexible: you can trim it to 5 days (dropping some of the canyons) or extend it with a detour to Kakheti or Svaneti. How many days you need in Georgia overall and what fits into 3-10 days is in the how many days in Georgia hub.

For a week-long dash to the coast you’ll want to book the car ahead and declare the one-way drop-off upfront - the how to rent a car guide covers the deposit and excess, and car hire is where to compare prices. More trip ideas are in the routes section.