Travel To Georgia Tours

Georgia Caucasus Travel Svaneti Mestia

Mestia

"The land of brave-hearted people", "the land of thousand towers", and much more are said about Svaneti. Mountains and towers are what you see when you arrive in the mesmerizing town of Mestia. Nobody knows who built those towers or when, but stories and legends are preserved by the narrations of our ancestors: wonderful legends about towers, giants, gods, and people. Svaneti is a land of towers and legends.

About

470 km northwest of Tbilisi, in the province of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti, is nestled the town of Mestia. With a population of 9000, Mestia is the administrative center of the Svaneti area and the biggest town in the province. Mestia is famous for its unique dwellings of Svanetian people, which are found everywhere around it. Curious travelers might visit museums of Khergiani or Margiani. These are the original households of local families preserved since the 14^th century A.D.

Svanetian Dwelling

The Svanetian dwelling consists of two parts: the construction where the family lived is called Machubi and has the typical construction style of a normal household; the tower, on the other hand, represents a defensive construction. In Georgian, Koshki is sometimes united with a house and sometimes stands separately. The interior of this kind of tower house is very interesting. The one who enters the building will be mesmerized by carved wooden furniture, small stalls for animals, and the symbolically important middle fire. Yes, in this kind of house, in the wintertime, the livestock of the family lived together with the family. This lifestyle protected animals from freezing outside and facilitated warmth indoors. Altogether, Svanetian dwellings represent a unique type of construction that can be found only in Svaneti.

Main Attraction

Today, Svaneti is one of the most popular destinations in Georgia. Svaneti is a blessed place with its nature, culture, and history. We cannot forget about people. Beautiful, brave, and passionate people make up the spirit of Svaneti. They were, are, and always will be people who were the bravest, who took matters into their own hands and defended our country when it was needed. These are people with a unique language, traditions, and character that you will never see anywhere else but only here, in Svaneti.

What To Do

There is a lot to do in Svaneti, but in one way or another, to-dos are always connected with nature. Countless hiking trails, horse rides, museums, delicious food, mountains, and open hearts are some of the things Svaneti has to offer. And don’t forget the culture. Svaneti has always been a safe harbor where Georgian kings used to save the treasure of our country. Therefore, in the ethnographic museum of Mestia, you will find an amazing collection of Georgian religious art: icons, crosses, books, and traditional items of the Svanetian household. This is not all. There is a small, cozy, and comfortable cinema in Mestia where only one movie is shown. It is Dede from Mariam Khatchvani. The story of a beautiful young woman from a small Svanetian village who has to deal with family, traditions, and love. It is a very interesting, sometimes sad, and exciting story of a grandma of Mariam. This movie will give you a total understanding of the traditions of the Svanetian people and their everyday lives filled with emotions, customs, and human drama.