Tbilisi
[Snapshot lead for Tbilisi is brief. The city's defining salience (Georgia's capital, the Kura river, the sulfur-baths-and-Narikala-fortress origin myth, the Art-Nouveau and Stalinist architectural layering, the post-Soviet-tech-and-tourism boom, the Caucasus-and-Middle-European-and-Russian layered history) is carried in the wikivoyage and Culture sections.]
Typical weather
1981–presentCity Rhythm
measuredOpening hours, by kind of place
median across mapped venuesVital absurdities
measured · the Anti-AwardsSame time system
by rhythmWhat to do each season
2winter
cool to cold; mean 0.8-17.1 °C across the range; January mean min −2.8 °C; precipitation low (0.6-1.8 mm/day); the Kura (Mtkvari) river winter flow
- indoor cultural season: the Georgian National Museum, the Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre (the oldest in Georgia, founded 1851), the Rustaveli Theatre
- the Tbilisi sulfur baths (Abanotubani district, the 6th-c origin of the city) — the year-round civic affordance that defines the city
- the Tbilisi International Film Festival (December) closes the year
summer
warm-hot and dry; mean 19.8-25.6 °C, July mean max 32.6 °C, August 32.2 °C; Jul-Aug precipitation 0.9-1.0 mm/day
- the city's nightlife economy peaks — Bassiani (in the basement of the Dinamo Stadium), Khidi (on the Metekhi bridge), Mtkvarze, Café Gallery — Tbilisi is on the global techno map
- the Old Town (Kala, Sololaki, Chughureti) at full visitor flow
- the Tbilisi Open Air / Alive festival (July) and the Art-Gene folk festival
- the Narikala Fortress funicular and the Botanical Garden become usable
What it is known for
Important moments in a year
Tbota Tbilisoba
- Tbilisoba — the city's annual birthday festival (since 1979); wine, music, costume processions
Tbilisi International Film Festival
- Tbilisi International Film Festival
Art Gene Festival
- Art-Gene — Georgian folk-and-traditional music festival
On the record
source-trackedThe architecture of Tbilisi is a blend of Georgian, Byzantine, Neoclassical, Art Nouveau, Beaux-Arts, Middle Eastern, and Soviet modern influences.
Tbilisi is particularly noted for its Art Nouveau buildings, especially in Sololaki and Chughureti, which flourished from the 1890s until the early Soviet era.
Georgia's rising popularity as a travel destination has positioned Tbilisi as a major regional tourism hub. In 2019, the country welcomed over 9 million international visitors.
Tbilisi has developed a thriving and internationally recognized nightlife scene since the 2010s.
Notable clubs [Bassiani, Mtkvarze, Khidi, Café Gallery] attract world-renowned DJs and have helped position Tbilisi on the global electronic music map.
The city also hosts a growing underground queer nightlife scene, gaining international media attention.
The Tbilisi Metro operates two lines — the Akhmeteli-Varketili Line and the Saburtalo Line — with 23 stations and around 400,000 daily ride[rs].
Tbilisi is located in the South Caucasus at 41° 43' North and 44° 47' East. The city lies in Eastern Georgia on both banks of the Kura River (locally known as Mtkvari).
With a nominal GDP of 32 billion Georgian lari (€10 billion) as of 2022, Tbilisi is Georgia's economic powerhouse, generating more than half of the country's total GDP.
The unemployment rate in Tbilisi stands at 22.5%, which is significantly higher than the national average.
The method behind this atlas — 196 pp. Not published yet.