9 reasons, why you should visit Kutaisi

Kutaisi is the capital of Imereti, the heart of Georgia. This is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world. For many centuries it played the role of important political, administrative, cultural and educational centre of Georgia. In the 15-13 centuries BC, the area was home to the Colchian culture, that’s why you can still feel the wandering soul of Greek culture, like that waterfall. Here you can see the monument of the Golden Fleece and Greek mythological creatures on the Agmashenebeli square. Almost every Cafe, parks, museums are mostly here, on Agmashenebeli square. But the main reason why one should visit Kutaisi, are :

1. Bagrati Cathedral

The cathedral of the Assumption of the virgin Mary is the main landmark of Kutaisi. This is a special place in the history of Georgian architecture. It is a brilliant example of the Georgian church style. The Bagrati Cathedral is rich with adornment and ornaments, even floor is decorated with mosaic. Since 1994 Bagrati Cathedral has been in the listed in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list.

2. Gelati Monastery Complex - is located 11 km to the northeast from the city of Kutaisi. The territory of the monastery is surrounded by a fence and consists of 5 constructions. The main cathedral is famous for mural painting inside. It is embellished with limestone and is really very beautiful. Gelati Academy was the most important educational center in the medieval Georgia, which can be visited even today, as it is still the part of the Gelati Monastery Complex. Here one can also see a tombstone of the legendary king, David Agmashenebeli.

3. Motsameta Monastery - is located 6 kilometers from Kutaisi. This place attracts crowds of tourists as it is one of the interesting places, with mystic history. According to the legend, if ne crawls three times under the ark and makes a wish, while touching the hollow, the dream will come true.

4. Niko Berdzenishvili Kutaisi State Historical Museum - is considered as one of the most important scientific institutions in Georgia, also, like a place, where one can “travel in time”, as there are more than 160,000 items, furniture, guns and other old material stuff. There is 7th century BC fertility god figurine to medieval weaponry, also research library and laboratory.

5. Vani Archeological Museum - in 1987 the Gold Reserve was opened here, within the museum. The visitors are able to see the unique pieces created by Vani’s ancient Goldsmiths. Also, wonderful, matchless bronze figures and their fragments.

6. The Katshi Pillar- natural wonder in Georgia. Located 60 km from Kutaisi, near Chiatura and is called, like a stairway to heaven. This is the symbol of this region, as too many people get there to see this natural masterpiece- kind of a wonder-place.

7. Prometheu Cave - is in the list of Imereti Protected Areas. There is a worldwide known legend about Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods. For this crime, he was punished and chained to Khvamli Mountain, where Colchis Medea used to prepare her magical medicine. The cave has 17 halls and there are a lot of beautiful cold lapped shapes as stalagmites, pisolites, “waterfalls in stone”, “stone curtains” and so on…

8. Sataplia Cave - if you love ancient stories, jurassic parks, myth of legends about dinosaurs, then this place is for you! You can even touch the footprints of dinosaurs here.

9. And the last reason, Kutaisi International Airport - after the Wizz Air launched its very first direct flight from here, it has become one of the most cheap direct flies in the whole world. Nowadays, flies to and from the major European cities, like London, Barcelona, Paris, Prague, Milan, and so on can be available for almost everyone, who wants to travel.