GeORGIA

Ski surrounded by ancient culture

Photo: Guillaume Lahure

Located in the Caucasus range south of Europe's highest mountain, Mt Elbrus (5642m), ski resorts in Georgia have some impressive statistics. Georgia's largest & most popular ski resort is Gudauri in the Greater Caucasus, just north Tbilisi. Gudauri ski resort has a top elevation of 3250m & a 1250m skiable vertical. A modern lift infrastructure, 60km+ of piste, a longest piste trail of 7km, massive freeride terrain & a lift ticket price less than 30AUD make it a serious prospect. Gudauri has recently expanded its terrain again, one must get there to check it out. Be quick though. It is expanding exponentially & may soon no longer be the 'next big thing'.

Georgia can boast about having the newest ski resorts in Europe. One of them is a 6hr drive north of Kutaisi near the historic town of Mestia in the remote Svaneti region. Below the 4858m Mount Tetnuldi, the Tetnuldi ski resort has long piste trails, brand new lifts, 950m of skiable vertical in high alpine terrain, a top elevation of 3160m, abundant freeride powder & very few people skiing it. The backcountry ski touring from the resort & surrounding valleys is epic & includes amazing villages with fortified tower houses like Ushguli. Opposite Mestia is a tasty ski resort morsel called Hatsvali with fun looking tree skiing possibilities too. Seems to be a perfect recipe for an epic ski adventure.

To the south of the country in the snowy Lesser (or Little) Caucasus, the new resort of Goderdzi plans to triple its lift capacity over the next few years. There is talk of another resort development planned for near Bakhmaro too.

SKI RESORTS:

Gudauri

Bakuriani

Mestia