Families from the UAE tend to love Georgia for the same reason: it is cool in summer, green, safe and only three hours away, and children are welcomed everywhere from the bakery to the monastery. The trap is over-ambitious routing. We have built this loop so that no drive is longer than about four hours, every day has something physical for the children, and you sleep in three bases, two nights each, so nobody lives out of a suitcase.
Tbilisi comes first for orientation: the cable car to Narikala, the funicular to Mtatsminda amusement park with its big wheel above the city, and an easy evening on the Rike Park riverside. Then you head west, about two and a half hours, stopping at Uplistsikhe, a rock-cut cave town near Gori that children treat as a giant climbing frame. Borjomi is a spa town in a forested gorge: drink the famous mineral water straight from the spring, ride the old cable car above the park and swim in the warm sulphur pools at the top of the trail.
From Borjomi a day trip takes you up to Bakuriani at 1,700 metres for the alpine coaster, pony rides and the Didveli chairlift. The longest transfer, about four hours, then crosses to the Georgian Military Road, with stops at Mtskheta and the Ananuri fortress, before you settle into Gudauri for two nights. Here the meadows open out, and teenagers can try tandem paragliding while younger ones ride horses. A 4x4 day to Gergeti Trinity Church in Kazbegi is included.
Practical notes from our consultants: bring a light rain jacket because mountain afternoons can turn showery, and ask for family rooms or connecting rooms at booking, which we request as standard. Georgian food suits fussy eaters surprisingly well, with cheese bread, grilled chicken, fried potatoes and fresh fruit everywhere. We supply car seats and boosters free of charge, and your driver will stop whenever anyone needs a break.
Highlights
- Mtatsminda amusement park by funicular, high above Tbilisi
- Uplistsikhe rock-cut cave town near Gori
- Borjomi park, mineral springs and warm sulphur pools
- Alpine coaster and chairlift day in Bakuriani
- Two nights in Gudauri with horse riding and meadow walks
- 4x4 trip to Gergeti Trinity Church below Mount Kazbek
Day by day
Day 1Arrive in Tbilisi and settle in
Fly direct from Dubai in about three hours. Your driver meets you at arrivals with the child seats already fitted and drives 25 minutes into the city. After check-in, take an easy first evening: stroll along the Mtkvari river through Rike Park, where there is a playground and a singing fountain on summer evenings, then cross the glass Bridge of Peace into the old town for dinner. We recommend an early night after the travel day. Overnight Tbilisi.
Day 2Tbilisi by cable car and funicular
Start at 10am with a family-paced guided walk through the old town and the sulphur bath domes of Abanotubani. Ride the cable car up to Narikala fortress for the view, then walk down to the Leghvtakhevi waterfall. After lunch your driver takes you to the funicular, which climbs to Mtatsminda park, a hilltop amusement park with rides for toddlers and teenagers, a big wheel and cafés. Stay for sunset over the city. Overnight Tbilisi.
Day 3Uplistsikhe cave town and on to Borjomi
Leave Tbilisi at 9am and drive about 90 minutes west to Uplistsikhe, a cave city carved into the rock more than 3,000 years ago, with tunnels, a theatre and a church to explore. Allow 90 minutes there, with sturdy shoes. Continue another hour to Borjomi, a 19th-century spa town in a wooded gorge. Check in, then walk the riverside promenade and taste the salty, fizzy mineral water from the spring in the central park. Overnight Borjomi.
Day 4Bakuriani mountain day
After breakfast drive 40 minutes uphill to Bakuriani, a mountain resort at about 1,700 metres. In summer the Didveli chairlift runs up to meadows with walking trails, there is a long alpine coaster that children aged 8 and up can ride alone, and ponies for the little ones. Lunch at a log-cabin café, then return to Borjomi. Before dinner, ride the old cable car above the park or walk up to the warm sulphur pools, open until evening. Overnight Borjomi.
Day 5Across Georgia to Gudauri via Ananuri
Today is the longest drive, about four hours plus stops, so we leave at 9am. Break the journey in Mtskheta to see the hilltop Jvari Monastery, then join the Georgian Military Road north past the turquoise Zhinvali reservoir and the Ananuri fortress, which children can climb. Arrive in Gudauri at 2,200 metres by late afternoon, in time to look out over the Aragvi valley from the Friendship Monument terrace before dinner. Overnight Gudauri.
Day 6Kazbegi and Gergeti by 4x4
Drive about 45 minutes over the Jvari Pass to Stepantsminda, where a 4x4 climbs the track to Gergeti Trinity Church, perched at 2,170 metres in front of Mount Kazbek. Allow an hour up top for photos and a short walk. On the way back, stop at the mineral springs and travertine terraces near Kobi. Afternoon free in Gudauri: horse riding across the meadows, short hikes, or a tandem paragliding flight for those old enough. Overnight Gudauri.
Day 7Return to Tbilisi and fly home
After a relaxed breakfast, drive about two and a half hours down to Tbilisi airport, with a stop for fresh bread and churchkhela at a roadside stall. If your flight leaves in the evening, we can arrange a few hours in the city for lunch and the Dry Bridge market first. The direct flight to Dubai takes around three hours, so younger children usually sleep for most of it.
Hotels by tier
Choose the tier in the price box; the difference is priced per adult for the whole stay.
Named hotels or similar of the same standard if one is full; we tell you before you pay the balance.
What is included
Included
- Return direct flights from Dubai to Tbilisi, Economy, 30 kg baggage
- 6 nights with breakfast: 2 in Tbilisi, 2 in Borjomi, 2 in Gudauri
- Family rooms or connecting rooms requested at every hotel
- Private minivan with English-speaking driver and child seats throughout
- Narikala cable car and Mtatsminda funicular tickets
- Entry to Uplistsikhe cave town and Borjomi central park
- Bakuriani day trip with Didveli chairlift tickets
- Gergeti Trinity Church 4x4 transfer from Stepantsminda
- Local SIM card with data
- 24/7 Dubai support line throughout the trip
Not included
- Visa fees, where your nationality needs one
- Lunches and dinners
- Paragliding in Gudauri (tandem flights from about AED 320)
- Ride tickets at Mtatsminda park and the Bakuriani coaster
- Tips and travel insurance
Departures and prices
Price per adult, twin share, standard hotels. Seats are held with our airline and hotel partners.
| Dates | Departure | Seats left | Per adult | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 28 Nov to Fri 4 Dec 2026 | Flexible | 12 | AED 3,180 | |
| Sat 12 Dec to Fri 18 Dec 2026 | Flexible | 7 | AED 3,470 | |
| Sat 26 Dec to Fri 1 Jan 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 3,470 | |
| Sat 9 Jan to Fri 15 Jan 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 2,890 | |
| Sat 23 Jan to Fri 29 Jan 2027 | Flexible | 8 | AED 2,890 | |
| Sat 6 Feb to Fri 12 Feb 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 2,890 | |
| Sat 20 Feb to Fri 26 Feb 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 2,890 | |
| Sat 6 Mar to Fri 12 Mar 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 3,610 | |
| Sat 20 Mar to Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 2,890 | |
| Sat 3 Apr to Fri 9 Apr 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 3,180 | |
| Sat 17 Apr to Fri 23 Apr 2027 | Flexible | 12 | AED 2,890 | |
| Sat 1 May to Fri 7 May 2027 | Flexible | 8 | AED 3,180 |
Where it is
Questions about this holiday
What is the best month for a family trip to Georgia?
Do UAE residents need a visa for Georgia?
How long are the drives?
Are child seats and cots provided?
Is the food easy for children and halal diets?
Can we stay longer in the mountains?
Travellers on this holiday
Very well organised for a family of five. The only niggle was the long transfer from Tbilisi to Bakuriani, about three and a half hours with a toddler, and I would have asked for a lunch stop in the middle had I known. Ski school there was brilliant and very patient with our middle one.
Two kids aged 6 and 9 and not one boring day. Cable car at Gudauri, a pony ride near Stepantsminda, a cheese tasting the children actually enjoyed. We had family rooms with a proper sofa bed so nobody was squashed, and the six nights flew by.
Emirati family, three generations, eleven of us in total. Layla arranged two vans, halal food at every stop and a schedule that left time for prayers without us having to ask twice. The children still talk about sledging in Gudauri and the churchkhela from the roadside stalls.
Honestly expected the mountain roads to make the children sick, but the driver stopped whenever we asked and carried a bag of snacks for them. Our hotel in Kazbegi had the mountain right outside the breakfast window. Omar also checked the entry rules for our Indian passports, which saved me an evening of reading forums.
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