Tbilisi is the Caucasus at its most cinematic — a city of carved wooden balconies, sulfur-steam bath-houses, and a cliff-top fortress that has watched over the Mtkvari River for fifteen centuries. This post is a companion to a real tbilisi walking tour filmed in 4K by the creator of Tbilisi Old Town 4K — The Most Beautiful Walk in Georgia, which takes viewers from the domed brick Abanotubani bath district through the old town’s labyrinthine lanes to Narikala Fortress and the Metekhi Church on its volcanic promontory.

About This Walking Tour

This 4K walk explores Tbilisi’s historic heart, starting in Abanotubani — the sulfur bath district named for the natural hot springs that, according to Georgian legend, inspired the city’s founding. The domed brick structures here have been used for bathing since at least the 5th century. From Abanotubani the route climbs to Narikala Fortress, a 4th-century citadel whose ruins command the best panorama of the old town and the river gorge below. A cable car connects the fortress to the city, or visitors can follow stone steps through the botanical garden.

The walk then descends through the old town’s most characteristic streets — the neighbourhood of carved wooden lattice balconies in jewel colours, many leaning at improbable angles over narrow lanes. The Sioni Cathedral, a 6th-century Georgian Orthodox church that houses the Cross of St Nino, anchors the lower old town, while Metekhi Church and its equestrian statue of King Vakhtang Gorgasali occupies the cliff above the river. The video also covers Rustaveli Avenue — Tbilisi’s cultural spine — and the creative Fabrika district, a converted Soviet sewing factory.

Highlights of Tbilisi

The Abanotubani sulfur baths are the feature that defines Tbilisi more than any other — brick domed structures rising from the earth above natural hot springs rich in hydrogen sulfide, giving the water its characteristic eggy scent and reported curative properties. Baths have operated here continuously since at least the 5th century AD.

Narikala Fortress, originally built in the 4th century and expanded by the Arabs and later the Persians, sits on a cliff between the sulfur bath district and the Botanical Garden. Its ruined walls and the reconstructed Church of St Nicholas within them are among Tbilisi’s most iconic images. The Metekhi Church of the Assumption, built in the 13th century on a 5th-century holy site, stands on a sheer volcanic cliff above the Mtkvari River — one of the most dramatically positioned churches in the Caucasus. The equestrian statue of Vakhtang Gorgasali, the Iberian king who is credited with founding Tbilisi, stands before it.

Rustaveli Avenue is Tbilisi’s cultural and political boulevard — lined with the Georgian National Museum, the Rustaveli Theatre, the Opera House, and Parliament. Fabrika in the Marjanishvili district is a former Soviet sewing factory converted into a creative hub with over 30 bars, restaurants, and design studios.

A Brief History of Tbilisi

According to Georgian chronicle, King Vakhtang I Gorgasali of Kartli discovered the city’s site in the 5th century when a pheasant he was hunting fell wounded into a hot spring and was healed — tbili means warm in Georgian, giving the city its name. Tbilisi became the capital of the unified Georgian kingdom and a major Silk Road trading city, sitting at the crossroads of routes connecting the Black Sea to Central Asia.

Few cities have been destroyed and rebuilt as persistently as Tbilisi — Arab, Mongol, Persian, and Ottoman invaders razed it approximately 29 times between the 7th and 18th centuries. Each time it was rebuilt on the same site, and the diversity of its architectural heritage reflects these successive occupiers: Arab-era fortifications, Persian bathhouses, Russian Imperial-era avenues, and Soviet modernist blocks all coexist. Georgia adopted Christianity in 327 AD, one of the earliest nations in the world to do so, and the Georgian Orthodox Church has remained central to national identity through every occupation. Since Georgian independence in 1991, Tbilisi has reinvented itself as one of the Caucasus’s most dynamic and creative capitals.

Practical Tips

Georgia’s currency is the Georgian Lari (GEL). Georgian is the official language, written in its unique Mkhedruli script; Russian is spoken by many older residents and English is increasingly common among younger Georgians. The old town is compact and walkable in 2–3 hours; the Metro serves Rustaveli station for Rustaveli Avenue and the old town. Tbilisi International Airport is approximately 18 km from the city centre. Dress modestly when visiting churches — shoulders and knees should be covered; scarves and wraps are often available at church entrances. Georgia’s wine country (Kakheti) is 1.5 hours by road and makes an excellent day trip.

Best Time to Visit

April to June and September to October offer mild temperatures and clear skies ideal for walking the old town’s hilly streets. Winters are cold but atmospheric, with occasional snow on the fortress walls. July and August are hot and can be humid. The Tbilisi International Festival of Theatre in October draws performers from across the world.

Watch & Explore More

The embedded video above captures Tbilisi’s extraordinary architectural character in 4K — press play and walk with us through one of Europe’s most underrated cities. For more Caucasus and Middle East walking tours, see Baku: Old City to the Flame Towers. Subscribe to @walkingtoursvideoscom for weekly walking tour films from around the world.