Weather in Telavi

In Telavi the seasons run: about +7° by day in winter, +16° in spring, +27° in summer, +17° in autumn. The warmest month is August (up to +29° by day), the coolest is January (+6°). Most rainfall is in March. Detailed monthly normals are in the table below.

In summer it's up to +27° by day and about +18° at night: light clothes for the day, a jumper for the evening. In winter it's +7° by day and down to -1° at night — bring a warm coat. The driest month is February — the clearest time for walks and wide-open views.

The year peaks in Telavi with rtveli, the grape harvest in September and October: tastings in family cellars and warm days without the summer heat. Summers are hot (up to +27° by day), winters quiet (+7°). Telavi tour helps plan the tastings.

The road over the Gombori pass

The drive from Tbilisi to Telavi crosses the Gombori pass, with a photo stop over the Alazani valley. The pass sits far above the town and stays cooler even in summer, so keep a sweater at hand.

Summer heat: what to see in the morning

In July and August daytime highs in Telavi reach +28…+29°. The open-air sights — Batonistsikhe fortress with its 900-year-old plane tree, Alaverdi monastery and the ruins of the Ikalto academy — are best before lunch; save the qvevri cellar tasting, cool in any weather, for the hot hours.

Rtveli: the grape harvest in September and October

In September Telavi has about +23° by day and +15° at night, in October +17° and +9°: you can walk the vineyards around Ikalto all day without the summer heat. At the family winery tasting you try five local varieties — Saperavi, Rkatsiteli, Kisi, Mtsvane and Khikhvi.

If it rains

March and May have the most days with precipitation (15 each), February and August the fewest (6 each). Rain does not cancel the route: Alaverdi cathedral, the fortress museum and the family winery are all indoors; only the plane tree and Ikalto are outside.

Winter in Telavi

From December to February days are +6…+8°, nights around zero, down to −2° in January. There are almost no tourists, so monasteries and wineries are quiet.

Telavi is the unofficial capital of wine, with the dry sunny climate of the Alazani valley. September and October are ideal: the grape harvest, warm days and cool evenings. In summer it can climb past +30°C by day, so tastings in the cool marani cellars are an especial joy.

Telavi lies on the slope of the Gombori Range at about 550 metres, above the Alazani Valley. The main weather caveat is the road: the short route from Tbilisi crosses the Gombori Pass (about 1,600 m), which can have snow and ice in winter even when Tbilisi and Telavi are dry. Then we take the detour via Sagarejo and Gurjaani — longer, but reliable.

Summer days in Telavi are hot, but evenings are milder than in Tbilisi; the shade of the town's roughly 900-year-old plane tree is the local escape from the heat. In rtveli season (September–October) days are warm and nights already cool, so bring a light jacket for cellar tastings in Tsinandali and Alaverdi.