Great day tour from Tbilisi! A unique glimpse back in time with some great Soviet architecture.

What an extraordinary window into the mid 20th century, and a (then) futuristic industrial- residential complex that must confirmed in many Soviet citizens the inevitable victory of socialism was just around the corner. The extraordinary 3 dimensional public transport system, linking disconnected suburbs with mine sites, industrial plants, mine sites and the civic centre, in a setting of near-total dilapidation - yet somehow still clinging to some kind of “normal” life, has weirdly science-fictional feeling to it. Standing on one of the ruined hilltop “suburbs”, where even now a few shattered Soviet era flats are still occupied, one can see see the remaining operational cable cars, industrial and public transport, Criss crossing the valley and imagine how advanced the whole setup must have looked back in the early 1950s.
I approached the cable car ride with some trepidation, but it all worked fine. I would not have missed this for anything. Added extras included a very worthwhile visit to what would have been the cultural centre for the city, a performing arts theatre in a rather sophisticated style that linked bauhaus with art moderne. Although it is also worn down to the bone, the theatre continues to host intermittent musical & theatrical performances.
Bookends to the tour, the remarkable cave monastery and the Katskhi pillar, round out a very full, and fulfilling day.
All this is hosted by lively, whip-smart and very knowledgeable Maria, whose energy and passion for Georgia, and perhaps especially this aspect of its past, present and future, make this unusual tour one out of the box.
Don’t miss it,

It’s certainly a long and tiring trip, but very memorable and we highly recommend that you take this tour with Maria.
We have been on many tours, but with Maria as our guide, this was the best of them. We only wish we had taken all our tours with her as her knowledge is unparalleled.
She is an awesome guide. Warm, kind, patient and friendly. Above all, she is extremely knowledgeable and you will finish your day feeling like you know so much about Georgia and it’s history.
A tour with Maria is an absolute must!

Maria is very knowledgeable about the history and sights of Old Town! Also very patient. Our large group of thirteen with six adults and seven children all had a wonderful time. Her recommendations for food and extra activities were spot on! Thanks!

I want to thank our wonderful guide Levan and safe driver Datho, they made our day memorable and outsandingly fun. We wanted to make some changes on the program itenary due to bad weather, and it was not a problem to Maria who organized the day. Thank you Maria 🙏
I’m half Georgian and had been there before, but Levan and Datho showed us new places I had never stopped at on the way. This here, is the reason to invest to good local guides and skilled drives, you get to see places and know things about places you would have not seen without them.
Thank you all, we had a great day, I recommed this trip to everyone strongly 🙏😊