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Mtskheta
ℹ️Practical info — Mtskheta
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🌤 Weather — 5 days
📍 Nearby
Sights nearby
💡 Tips
- Modest dress (covered shoulders and knees) is required for Svetitskhoveli Cathedral; women may need headscarves.
- Head up to Jvari Monastery for the classic view of the Aragvi and Mtkvari rivers merging.
- The pedestrian streets around the main cathedral are lined with souvenir stalls.
- Visit on a weekday morning to avoid the large weekend tour groups coming from Tbilisi.
🍽 Food
The 'Salobie' (bean houses) near the town entrance are famous for this hearty dish.
This Georgian treat made of nuts and grape juice is sold at many stalls on the pedestrian streets.
Freshly grilled meat skewers are best enjoyed at the traditional riverside restaurants.
🛍 Shopping · 🧘 Quiet spots
Find traditional Georgian handicrafts, enamel jewelry, and local wine here.
Vendors near Svetitskhoveli Cathedral sell high-quality local products.
Find a quiet spot along the riverbanks away from the center to watch the water.
A small, very peaceful church near the river where it is much quieter.
Water temperature…
Mtskheta is one of Georgia's oldest cities, with around 7,500 inhabitants, and the spiritual heart of the country; it lies just 20 kilometres north-west of Tbilisi at the confluence of the Kura and the Aragvi rivers. As early as the 4th century BC the town was the capital of the Iberian kingdom of Kartli and remained the political centre of eastern Georgia for more than 700 years. In 327 AD, through the mission of Saint Nino, Christianity was adopted here as the state religion, one of the earliest such conversions in the world. From this era stems Svetitskhoveli Cathedral („the Living Pillar“), in its current form an 11th-century building and one of the holiest churches of the Georgian Orthodox Church. High above the town rises the 6th-century Jvari Monastery, a classic cross-domed structure included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site „Historical Monuments of Mtskheta“. The Armaztsikhe-Bagineti archaeological site, the Samtavro monastery church and the Patriarchate Museum all contribute to making this small city an extraordinarily dense religious and historical landscape.
- Location: Georgia
- Top sights: Armaztsikhe-Bagineti Archaeological Site · Samtavro Necropolis · Mikheil Mamulashvili House-Museum
- Nearby: Marneuli (31 km)
- Population: ~7.380 (2025)
Geography
Facts
- Founded in the 2nd millennium BC
- Capital of the Kingdom of Iberia until the 5th century AD
- Adoption of Christianity as state religion in 327 AD
- Svetitskhoveli Cathedral dates from the 11th century
- Jvari Monastery was constructed in the 6th century
- UNESCO World Heritage site designation in 1994
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Sights in the town Mtskheta (6)
Frequently asked questions
Why is Mtskheta important?
What is the main church in Mtskheta?
How to get to Jvari Monastery?
What should you eat in Mtskheta?
Can you visit Mtskheta as a day trip from Tbilisi?
Mtskheta: where is it located?
Mtskheta: what is there to see?
Mtskheta: why is it worth visiting?
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