Gudauri Ski Resort

Gudauri ski resort is located in the Greater Caucasus mountains. It’s Georgia’s biggest and most developed ski destination. With over 70km of slopes, various lifts, and great off-piste options, it’s perfect for skiing and snowboarding. It’s also budget-friendly and ideal for group trips! The ski season runs from late December to late April, with skiing available from 10am to 5pm.

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Planning a trip to Gudauri? This is what you need to know..

Transport

Getting to Gudauri from Tbilisi – you can either drive, take taxi or go to Didube bus station and get a marshrutka (minibus) to Gudauri. Journey time is around 2 hours by all types of transport.

⁃ Driving: car hire ($30 – $80 per day)

⁃ Taxi: Yandex or bolt ($40 – $60 one way)

⁃ Marshrutka: didube bus station ($5 one way)

Personally I would recommend private transfer or taking the Marshrutka as the drive is quite difficult. Driving up a mountain in snowy conditions is very dangerous and having someone who is used to driving on these kind of roads is much better.

I used this company and would definitely recommend, the driver was so friendly and lovely.

Accommodation

There are plenty of accommodation available at Gudauri and new ones being built as we speak. I would advise trying to find accommodation near the ski lifts, as it’s easier to walk to and from and saves time. Looking on Booking.com there are plenty of options.

I stayed at the New Gudauri Atrium, which was the perfect location, the room was nice and decent size for a group of 6. They have a restaurant in the accommodation as well as a Spa and ski rental hire.

Price for 6 people: $500 total

Ski Rental

It was pretty easy to find a shop to hire Ski equipment. My advice would be to try several different shops first and haggle prices (as they do try to rip tourists off sometimes). As an expat living in Georgia I was able to communicate better and get a good price. There are even options to hire Ski outfits as well including trousers, helmet, gloves and goggles.

Price: 40 gel (ski equipment) + 15 gel (ski trousers)

Ski Lift Purchase

To access the slopes you will need to purchase a ski lift pass. There are several options: 1 ride, 3 rides, 1 day pass, 2 day pass or 3 day pass. I purchased a 1 day pass and would recommend this if you want to go up and down the slopes several times.

Price: 3 rides (40 gel) OR 1 day pass (75 gel)

Ski Lessons

There are plenty of ways to organise ski lessons if you’re a beginner. You can either book beforehand (contact via instagram) OR when you arrive, there are plenty of instructors at the bottom of the ski slopes that you can book on the day.

I had lessons with ‘Gudauri Snowlab’ and they were excellent. I am beginner level, they taught all the basics before taking us to the slopes to practice. I would definitely recommend booking a lesson if you have never been skiing before.

Price: 140 gel for 2 hour lesson

If you’re interested in snowboarding lessons, these are also available.

Food/drinks

Gudauri offers plenty of restaurants and food stands where you can eat. At the bottom on the slopes there are several sit down restaurants. And right in front of the ski lifts there is a Dunkin’ donuts – offering quick takeaway snacks.

At the top on the ski lifts there are lots of quick and easy takeaway spots. Several outdoor seating areas with bean bags available. If you wanted a rest from skiing then this is the place to be.

Price: depends on restaurant (10 – 40gel)

Nightlife

The nightlife is Gudauri is ‘lit’, so many bars/nightclubs to choose from. My personal favourite was the ‘black dog bar’ and it is a very popular spot amongst the skiers. The owners were so lovely, they offer food and drinks at a reasonable price and they even have a jukebox with the best selection of music! Definitely check them out!

If drinking is not for you, there are also nice cosy restaurants and shisha lounges available as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read! Until next time.

Kem x