Prepared by Sakhva Travel Georgia Guide, a tours and travel platform for Georgia. Sakhva Travel office: 14 Merab Kostava St, Tbilisi.
Tour on this topic: Khevsureti tour: Shatili and Mutso — from ₾340
What Shatili is
For centuries the Khevsurs lived apart in the mountains beyond the Greater Caucasus. Shatili was built as a fortress: the tower houses are pressed against each other and joined by passages, so you could cross the village without going outside.
The oldest buildings date from the 10th–13th centuries. Today some of the towers are guesthouses, and the village is protected as a cultural monument.
The road over Datvisjvari
From Tbilisi you drive along the Georgian Military Highway to Zhinvali, then turn into the Pshavi valley and climb to the Datvisjvari pass — the «Bear's Cross». The dirt road is narrow, with drops; it is passable only in summer and early autumn, and only in an off-road vehicle.
Mutso
12 km from Shatili is the abandoned fortress village of Mutso on a cliff above the river. It has been restored, and the climb to the towers takes about an hour. Nearby are old crypt necropolises.
When to go
From late June to early October. The exact opening dates of the pass depend on the snow — check before you go. Nights are cold even in summer.
Tips
There are almost no shops and the mobile signal is weak. Bring cash, warm clothes and food supplies. A day trip is hard going: it is better to spend the night in Shatili at a guesthouse.
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