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Soviet Past in Chiatura: Explore Abandoned Mines and Decaying Soviet Architecture
5.0
29 Ratings
Chiatura
Uncover the eerie Soviet past of Chiatura on a full-day trip. Explore abandoned mines, decaying Soviet architecture, and ride in rusty cable cars. Visit ancient holy sites in the Imereti region for a contrasting experience.
Uncover the eerie Soviet past of Chiatura on a full-day trip. Explore abandoned mines, decaying Soviet architecture, and ride in rusty cable cars. Visit ancient holy sites in the Imereti region for a contrasting experience.
Duration:
11 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Cableways Chiatura - Although the old cable cars are no longer operational, the weathered cabins and the brutalist stations remain a captivating sight and an excellent photo opportunity. Explore some of the most fascinating and distinctive cable car stations before they are lost forever.
- Katskhi Pillar - Truly unique, this monastery is…
- Cableways Chiatura - Although the old cable cars are no longer operational, the weathered cabins and the brutalist stations remain a captivating sight and an excellent photo opportunity. Explore some of the most fascinating and distinctive cable car stations before they are lost forever.
- Katskhi Pillar - Truly unique, this monastery is perched atop a massive rock pillar. To this day, numerous legends surround this site, continuing to draw pilgrims from across Georgia.
- Monastery Mgvimevi - A distinctive monastery where nature and architecture seamlessly blend. Nestled within a cave from the late Middle Ages, this charming monastery stands out amidst the concrete socialist landscape.
- Memorial History of Georgia - A must-visit for enthusiasts of Soviet architecture, this colossal monument overlooking the concrete suburbs is an ideal spot to conclude the tour.
What's Included
- Bottled water included
- Complimentary on-board WiFi
- Ideal for photography enthusiasts
- Tour Katskhi Pillar with its unique hilltop church
- Exclusive access to Mgvimevi Monastery, a church within a cave
- Discover Chiatura’s historic cable cars and ghostly abandoned areas
- Guided by a local expert for an insider’s experience
- Bottled water included
- Complimentary on-board WiFi
- Ideal for photography enthusiasts
- Tour Katskhi Pillar with its unique hilltop church
- Exclusive access to Mgvimevi Monastery, a church within a cave
- Discover Chiatura’s historic cable cars and ghostly abandoned areas
- Guided by a local expert for an insider’s experience
What's Not Included
- Lunch (we can recommend our favorite spots)
- Gratuities
- Lunch (we can recommend our favorite spots)
- Gratuities
Additional Information
Embark on a full day journey to the eerie town of Chiatura in Georgia, far from the typical tourist trails. Once a thriving mining hub with the most cable cars in the world, it now has the appearance of a ghost town with its deserted mines, vacant apartments and decaying Soviet architecture.
Time appears frozen, allowing visitors to ride in one of the…
Embark on a full day journey to the eerie town of Chiatura in Georgia, far from the typical tourist trails. Once a thriving mining hub with the most cable cars in the world, it now has the appearance of a ghost town with its deserted mines, vacant apartments and decaying Soviet architecture.
Time appears frozen, allowing visitors to ride in one of the remaining rusty cable cars, soak in the panoramic views from the semi-deserted concrete settlements on the cliffs, and spot an occasional macabre homage to Stalin.
Also included in our itinerary is a visit to the countryside of the Imereti region, offering a contrasting view to the industrial ruins of Chiatura. Don’t miss the ancient holy pillar of Katskhi, with its quaint church perched on top, or the rock-carved Mgvimevi convent adorned with XIV-century frescoes.
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Please note, that as of the moment, all old cable cars have been suspended for safety reasons, but you can still see them
Location
Cableways Chiatura
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(29 Ratings)
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X9415wktomj
Jun 1, 2025
Real Georgia and our guide Irakli created a great tour last minute - Real Georgia arranged a last minute trip for my wife and I and put us with a great guide, Irakli. I messaged them late evening on Tuesday and they promptly responded and organised a trip for us on the Thursday that day week.
Contacted them through WhatsApp and they answered all questions via message and then linked us up with the guide. They also explained other available trips.
We went on a Private tour to Chiatura with our guide Irakli. Irakli is a great driver and looked after us very well. My wife was 30 weeks pregant at the time of the trip and Irakli made sure we had good decent, drink and toilet breaks throughout at nice places. He was basically explaining something new and interesting to us throughout. We had a really good conversation and learnt a lot about Georgia’s past and present. We also enjoyed talking about his family and interests. He was patient with us at each stop and helped take a few photos.
Highlights of the trip itself were our early stop at Chronicles of Georgia (avoiding crowds), Mghvimevi monastery (unexpected), Lunch at Lia, Katskhi Pillar and the cable car at Chiatura.
From our experience, we wouldn’t hesitate to book a trip through Real Georgia and have Irakli as our guide. We would have liked to do more trips with them but due to time constraints we were limited. This may be a less popular trip but it was very interesting to learn about a piece of Georgia’s Soviet past… so if you have time I would recommend trying to fit it in.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Samantha
Mar 14, 2025
Long day but would recommend - Overall positive experience. Our guide was knowledgeable and informative. One thing to mention is that it is a long day due to the distance needed to travel from Tbilisi.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mark
Jul 4, 2023
Great tour!! Must try! - Irakli was our tour guide and we had a good time with him . He took us to the mining areas and we saw the chronicles of Georgia, church on top of the tower and did cable car tour etc. We really like the tour with him and did not regret this one bit!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Angelaneeng
Feb 8, 2023
Amazing - To understand Soviet past in Georgia this is a must do trip. We had a good guide - Irakli a passionate and knowledgeable on the tour . He is also a skilled driver and we are fortunate to have him.
Overall we are happy 😃 with the trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Veronika_c
Oct 1, 2022
Amazing tour - What an amazing day trip! Unbelievable Katskhi Pillar with a little bonus - there was a wedding party there. We ablosultely loved the Mgvimevi Monastery, purched on a steep rock with amazing interiors. Prepare to climb a few stairs and respect the dress code inside. Guess what? Another wedding party! and I received a belling from the priest. Blast from the (Soviet) past in Chiatura, that is still living and breathing, short but very worthwhile cable car trip. Our tour guide, Zurab, was outstanding, very knowledgeable, caring, with a great sense of humour and excellent driving skills. Great little restaurant for lunch. If you want to see different parts of Georgia, less touristy yet so interesting and beautiful, do this tour!
Review provided by Viator
Amydc
Jul 7, 2022
An interesting and fun day learning about Georgia’s Soviet Past with Levan - We had a great day with Levan during our private day tour to Chiatura, the Katakhi Pillar, and Gori. (We substituted Gori for the Chronicles, which we had visited earlier in our trip.)
Levan was a great guide — prompt, easygoing when we wanted to take lots of photos, knowledgeable but didn’t feel the need to fill every second of silence, and with a clean and safe vehicle. He picked a great lunch restaurant, kept 3 of us (with a 30 year age span) awake, laughing, and learning throughout the day, and took great photos of our group.
We had used Real Georgia tours on a previous trip to Georgia, and found them easy to work with, prompt, and reasonably priced. Our experience with Levan left us glad we chose them again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Iputmylifeonashelf
May 15, 2022
Great day trip - This was a great trip. The guide was very kind and knowledgeable. Thank you so much for everything!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Muhammed_g
May 12, 2022
Revan Revan and Revan - Amazing tour..guide Revan is super star and an ultimate guide ..he so friendly and explain each and everything ..5 stars😍
Review provided by Viator
Anoudies
Feb 16, 2022
Enjoyable - The most comfortable and friendly tour as the first time visiting tbilisi.
The tour guide so informative and competent.
Had great time exploring tbilisi history and receiving recommendation from the tour guide. It wasn't boring tour i highly recommended full of laughter and enjoyment.
Tour guide: George
Tip: wear comfortable shoes, there's small hike and bring water.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Thelonelytraveller5
Sep 30, 2021
Unique place stuck in time - This tour was like traveling back in time. There is so much history that has been untouched, a rare gem to see. You can see what’s left of Soviet times without glorifying it. Giorgi was my guide and was an absolute joy and extremely knowledgeable. With Giorgi as your guide, you will be sure to get the full history of Chiatura.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
