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If you are planning to travel to Georgia, one of the most challenging parts of it is understanding public transport. it does exist, but it is not that well developed, especially to the more remote spots. This guide gives you clear, up-to-date options for transportation around Georgia: when to rent a car (and when not to), how to use trains, buses, and minibuses (marshrutkas), reliable taxi apps, city transport in Tbilisi, airport transfers, and step-by-step directions to major destinations.
Trains in Georgia
From Tbilisi you can travel to Kobuleti and Batumi at the Black seaside by faster train. These trains are quite convenient and take about 5-5.30 hours. These trains make a stop near the Kutaisi airport (the stop is called Kutaisi airport, when you search), which is the most convenient way to get either to the airport or to Kutaisi itself.
There are also slow trains running from Tbilisi to Zugdidi via Kutaisi, but they take about 8 hours overall and are relatively inconvenient. Despite this, trains are still the best mode of transport, compared to buses and minibuses.
How to Purchase Train Tickets in Georgia
You can buy train tickets online at the official website of the railway or on the tkt.ge website. I do suggest the official website, although it’s sometimes glitchy. tkt.ge adds a fee, as any third party site. Otherwise, if you aren’t travelling on a popular route in high season, you can wait till you arrive to Georgia and get your tickets in person at the train station.
Trains from Tbilisi to Batumi are best pre-booked online, especially during summer months. You may be able to get the tickets on the day of departure in some cases (definitely in winter and weekdays of spring and autumn), but during the busy season, including all summer and weekends, tickets may sell out even a couple of weeks in advance.
Intercity Buses in Georgia
From Kutaisi airport you can take a bus to Tbilisi, as well as Batumi and to Kutaisi center. Two major companies currently provide this service – Georgian bus and Omnibus. You can take Georgian bus from Liberty square in Tbilisi, while Omnibus from Republic square near Rustaveli metro station. The stops in Kutaisi and Batumi you can find on their websites (Official website of Omnibus and official website for Georgian bus). Recently the City Bus also joined connecting Tbilisi with Kutaisi airport and Batumi.
Tickets for Buses in Georgia
- You can purchase tickets online in advance on the official websites of the above-mentioned bus companies.
- If you prefer third party websites, you have several options: Georgian websites, such as tkt.ge and biletebi.ge or international companies, including 12Go, Omio and Busbud.
- You may be able to get the tickets on the bus as well (especially when traveling from the airport), but on some busy days that may not be possible. So if you need to take the buses at a specific time, do prebook.
Intercity Minibuses in Georgia
The rest of the country is not covered by trains or buses and the only way to travel by public transport are the minibuses. If you need to ask anyone, where certain minibus is – say “marshutka” and your destination.
They are not a convenient mode of transportation. The space is cramped. The drivers usually drive fast and don’t care about passengers’ comfort. There is hardly any luggage space, so make sure to enquire if you have any luggage bigger than a regular backpack with you. Despite all this, minibuses are the only mode of public transportation in many parts of the country and still okish, if you are traveling on a tight budget.
Usually, minibuses run with no apparent schedule. They may tell you it goes every half an hour, but that information means little, as they usually wait to be full or almost full at least. So you may have to wait for a very short or a very long while, depending how lucky you are.
Important information: If you see a minibus driving along the road, you can hail it and it will stop to pick you up. They hardly have designated stops outside the big cities, so they just stop wherever you want them to.
In Tbilisi, the biggest minibus station is Didube one. You will be taking them from here in most cases. There are also some minibuses near the main Train Station, and some in Samgori (Navtlughi).
Here is a website, which gives at least some information of the minibuses running from the Didube station. However, in general schedules of the minibuses are fluid and you can hardly plan.
Other cities basically have one minibus station.
How to Purchase Minibus Tickets in Georgia
You can get tickets for minibuses at the ticket office at major stations. Alternatively, if you are hopping on them somewhere along the way, you can pay cash to the driver. Prebooking them is not possible and also doesn’t make any sense, as they run without any particular schedule and on a first-come first-serve basis.
Taking minibuses from the Didube station in Tbilisi:
Go to Didube metro station, near which you will find a bus station. You will have to go through a market area before getting there (certainly not my favorite area). The station is towards your right after getting out of the metro. Just tell people you are looking for a “marshutka” and the name of the city you are heading to, they may even tell you the direction.
While you try to find the bus station, many people will be offering you a ride to here and there. If they tell you minibuses don’t exist or that they don’t run and you should take a car, just don’t mind. However, some of them can be a good option, as they offer shared rides and it may not even be too expensive, if you prefer to do that. I never tried, as I hate haggling and they always start with higher prices.
Like with minibuses you will have to wait until the car is full before they go. If you do take these shared taxis, the fare should be approximately what you would pay for the minibus ride.
Using Taxis in Georgia
Taxis are quite widely used in cities, as they are not as expensive, as in some countries (although their fares rose in recent years) and generally widely available.
First thing to know is, don’t hail a taxi on the street. While they are available, as soon as they see you are not local, they will give you much higher price, than usual. However, if you know exactly how much you should be paying and can haggle, then go for it.
Whenever I need a taxi, I don’t hail them on the street, as I hate haggling. I always use Bolt app, which is safe and directly provides a fare you will be paying. You won’t have to communicate your destination to your driver or haggle about the price. Bolt also has good customer service, so if you have any issues, you can contact them. The drivers are aware of this and I have never encountered any problems with this app.
There are also other apps, which are Russian owned and I never use them. People say they are cheaper, but whenever I compared, that’s not really the case. I have heard people encountering many issues with them. So I wouldn’t suggest them.
Getting a taxi from a village location via the apps is hardly ever possible. Although you can order one from a major city to a village destination.
Hiring a Car in Georgia
As you can understand, public transport in Georgia is not well developed. If you are going to any remote sightseeing regions, your only options are a minibus or hiring a car. If you have the means and have your international driving license with you (EU nationals can drive with their national license), it would be much more convenient for you if you hire a car and drive.
You have two options for hiring a car – either turn up at one of the tour agencies or use an international company, like Discovercars. Honestly, the tour companies in Tbilisi offer very high rates – they have told me exorbitant prices, when I was with my foreign friends. Therefore, I would go for a prebooking online.
That said, while road infrastructure has somewhat developed and there are highways, the road conditions in many places are not great. That combined with reckless driving creates dangerous situations. I wouldn’t suggest driving in Georgia, unless you are an experienced driver and used to crazy driving. You should always be alert and be able to anticipate that drivers around you won’t always follow the rules. Of course, I have seen countries with a lot worse driving habits (looking at you Morocco and Nepal 😀), but it’s not easy in Georgia either.
How to Get to Airports and Sightseeing Locations in Georgia
This is the detailed information for transport options, when you are already in Georgia. For the detailed guide on how to travel to Georgia, please, see my relevant post.
How to Travel from Tbilisi Airport to the City Center
Bus #37 during daytime: If you are arriving or leaving to/from Tbilisi airport during the daytime (from 6am to 10pm), you could take a bus #37. The bus runs from the airport via Rustaveli and Marjanishvili areas to the train station. You can pay at the bus with any bank card (which has the contactless option) or you can get a transport card at the Bank of Georgia office at the airport.
Taxis: If you are travelling at night – unfortunately many flights depart at night – your only options are taxis. Absolutely avoid the taxis standing outside the airport – their fares are insane. Whenever I wait for someone to pick me up or just am outside airport, they don’t leave me alone. I don’t imagine, how much they bother non-Georgians.
I suggest using Bolt application to order a ride. Bolt works really well in Tbilisi and I and most people around me always use it, when we need a taxi. The price from the airport usually is 25-40 GEL depending on the distance and time of day/night. You can order a ride by using the free wifi “Tbilisi loves you”, which works quite fine at the airport.
How to Travel from Kutaisi Airport to Kutaisi City Center, to Tbilisi or Batumi
Train: The fast trains from Tbilisi to Batumi stop near Kutaisi airport. There are 4 departures a day from each direction and schedule can be found on the official website. From Tbilisi it takes about 3.5 hours, from Batumi – about 1.5-2 hours. They provide a shuttle service from the train station to Kutaisi airport and vice versa. This service is included in the price of the train ticket. You can buy tickets at the official website of the railway or the tkt.ge website.
Bus: Three major bus companies currently provide this service of transfer from Kutaisi airport to Kutaisi, Tbilisi and Batumi – Georgian bus, Omnibus and Citybus/Infobus. You can take Georgian bus from Liberty square in Tbilisi, while Omnibus from Republic square near Rustaveli metro station. Citybus runs from the Train Station area. The stops in Kutaisi and Batumi you can find on their websites (Official website of Omnibus and official website for Georgian bus). The buses usually run according to the flight schedules. It’s best to prebook tickets online.
How to Travel from Tbilisi to Mtskheta
Minibus: At Didube station, after alighting from the metro, find the minibuses with the direction to Mtskheta you will see a cash desk next to them, where you buy the ticket (this is approximate location) – a few years ago the price was 3 GEL, it may have changed. Either tell the driver you want to get off near “Svetitskhoveli” – that’s the church and city center or use GPS to see when you are close to it and hop off the minibus. I doubt you will be the only one getting off there, so you shouldn’t miss it.
This is the approximate location from where you can get the minibus back to Tbilisi.
How to Travel from Tbilisi to Batumi
Train: The best option for this is the train from the Tbilisi Train Station, which should take about 5.30 hours. There are 4 departures a day and schedule can be found on the official website. It’s preferable to prebook tickets, especially during the busy times (especially in summer). You can buy train tickets online at the official website of the railway or on the tkt.ge website. Otherwise, if you aren’t travelling during the most popular period in summer, you can wait till you arrive to Georgia and get them at the train station.
Minibus: Another, less convenient option, is taking a minibus from the Didube station. It should cost approximately 20 GEL and runs without a specific schedule.
How to Travel from Tbilisi to Akhaltsikhe
Minibus: The minibuses to Akhaltsikhe run mainly from Didube station as well. You will need to find the area, where most minibuses stand – towards right from the metro station, try to ask around. In this case too, you should find the ticket office and get your ticket there. You may even be able to still pay the driver – ask him about this. The price should be about 10-12 GEL. You will be dropped off at the Akhaltsikhe bus station, which is close to Rabati fortress.
How to Travel from Tbilisi to Mestia
Flight: The most convenient way is to fly from Natakhtari airport (a small airport near Tbilisi) directly to Mestia (the company flying is Vanila sky). Tickets can be purchased online here (the issue is that tickets sell out very fast and need to be booked way in advance. The flight takes approximately an hour, and the views are simply gorgeous. Make sure to sit on the right side, while flying to Mestia and on the left side – from Mestia. This way you will have amazing views of Caucasus mountains.
Train and minibus via Zugdidi: Another option is taking the train to Zugdidi and then a minibus from there to Mestia. This option is time-consuming, as the train takes about 6 hours and then minibus takes about 3 hours (unless there are delays on the road). There’s one train a day in each direction – 8.40 departure from Tbilisi arriving to Zugdidi at 14.30; 17.25 departure from Zugdid arriving to Tbilisi at 23.15pm.
After the train, you may find minibuses, which are waiting for the train to arrive and continue your journey. Other times of the day minibuses depart from next to the Zugdidi market (somewhere around this area, do ask the people there to direct you).
Train and minibus via Kutaisi: You could also take the train to Kutaisi first (train runs at 8.50 at arrives to Kutaisi at 14.30, on the way back you can catch a 12.25 train). From the train station you will need to go to the Kutaisi bus station (near McDonalds around this area).
From the bus station you can catch a minibus to Mestia, which should take around 5 hours.
Minibus: The direct option from Tbilisi is taking minibuses from Samgori bus station. They run only once a day at 7am. This should take about 10 hours. The minibuses will drop you off in a central location in Mestia. You can take a minibus from Mestia at this location as well.
How to Travel from Tbilisi to Sighnaghi
Minibus: The minibuses are the only option. They run from Samgori (Navtlughi) near the Samgori metro station. This is the approximate location, where you will be dropped off. You can take a minibus back from here as well.
How to Travel from Tbilisi to Stepantsminda (Kazbegi)
Minibus: Kazbegi minibuses run from the Didube station. Technically, they run every hour, but as mentioned above that doesn’t mean they will really leave at a set time. The drive takes around 3-4 hours depending on the traffic. The road is winding and if you are prone to motion sickness, be aware of this and carry water and sit at the openable window, that helps a lot. I have traveled on this road a few times, while I don’t often get nauseous, I did twice, during a winter time.
Using minibus for this route is not entirely great, as you can’t make stops to see the Ananuri fortress or Gudauri viewpoint on the way.
The minibuses arrive to this location, from which you can walk to the pathways leading up the Gergeti Trinity church.
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Hello I am Ket,
A traveler, planner, and sweet tooth behind Hit the Road Ket.
Travel isn’t just my passion – it’s a lifeline for my mental health. Having lived in three cities and explored 60 countries (and counting!), I created this blog to share my experiences, smart tips, and itinerary advice with fellow travel lovers. I’m all about making the most of limited time, finding scenic routes, and turning every trip into something memorable – coffee in hand, of course.
