Sighnaghi Ethnographic Park

Hit the ground running – spend your first day in Kakheti exploring the wineries and monasteries that surround Sighnaghi.

Nekresi Monastery Complex

Perched perilously high on a forested slope, parts of this monastery date back to the 4th century. To reach the basilica, take the chartered marshrutka up the hill. Hunt around for the wine room where you can see a set of qvevris embedded in the floor.

Gurjaani Kvelatsminda Monastery

Built in the 8th century, this is the only double-domed church in Georgia. It’s not the most spectacular church you’ll ever see, but the short walk through the forest to get there is delightful.

Gremi Citadel and Church of the Archangels

An impressive 16th-century church, also at high elevation. This time you’ll have to climb the stairs. For a few extra GEL, you can see a small museum display and climb up the bell tower for excellent views over Kakheti.

Signagi City Walls

Continue on foot through town, following the reconstructed old city walls and climbing up the lookout towers for views of the low-lying town of Tsnori.

Kindzmarauli Corporation Wine House

A very slick operation, Kindzmarauli offers group tours where you can see the wine making and bottling process. Tastings are reasonably priced and there’s an opportunity to buy a bottle or two at the end.

Tunnel Winery Khareba's

The most impressive cellar door you’ll visit in Kakheti is also the most expensive. You’ll need to fork out around 10 GEL to tour the huge tunnels cut into the mountainside – originally they were intended as bomb shelters but since the war finished before construction did, they were co-opted for storing the local community’s wine instead. Wine label Khareba eventually bought them out. The temperature in the tunnels is a chilly 12-14 degrees year-round.

Tsinandali Palace

The house and estate of Georgian aristocrat Alexander Chavchavadze is a must-visit. Take a guided tour of the house and its restored rooms for a taste of how the other half lived in 19th-century Georgia. It was raining on the day we visited so we couldn’t fully explore the manicured gardens – but you could easily spend hours wandering around.

Ikalto Monastery Complex

This complex includes the Church of Transfiguration and the crumbling ruins of an old academy where Shota Rustaveli (Georgia’s national poet) was tutored as a boy.

Alaverdi St. George Cathedral

You may be reaching church-and-monastery saturation point at this stage, but Alaverdi is truly impressive. The huge basilica was the tallest in Georgia until Sameba Cathedral was erected in Tbilisi.

Shumi Winery

Back in town, eat dinner on the fairy lit terrace at Bravo before cracking open a bottle of wine back at your guesthouse.