Black Sea coast tours

When to come to the coast

The swimming season runs from mid-June to the end of September. The water reaches 24-26 degrees in August and is still 22-24 in September, when there are fewer people and hotels cost less. July and August are the busiest and the most expensive months.

Adjara is the wettest region in Georgia and gets short, heavy downpours even in summer. They usually pass within an hour or two. May and October are too cold for swimming, but they are ideal for the city and mountain routes.

Sea and mountains in one route

Adjara is not only coastline. Half an hour inland from Batumi the road climbs to the Makhuntseti waterfall, to stone arch bridges built in the Middle Ages and still standing, and to the tea plantations. It is a good alternative for a rainy or excessively hot day.

Tbilisi to Batumi is 5 hours by train and 1 by plane. By road it takes about six hours, but Kutaisi and the canyons fit along the way. Whichever you choose, we book the tickets.

310 kilometres of coast: what lies where

Georgia's Black Sea coast runs about 310 kilometres and it is not uniform. The southern part - from Sarpi to Chakvi - is mountainous and the beaches are pebble. Further north, above Kobuleti, the coast flattens and sand appears.

That geographical difference decides directly what kind of stay works where. In the south the water is clearer, because pebble does not stir up silt. In the north the beach is wider and easier with children.

In practice every main point fits within fifty kilometres of Batumi: Sarpi 18 kilometres south, Gonio 12, Green Cape 9 north, Chakvi 15, Kobuleti 25, Ureki 50. So the whole coast is reachable from a single base and needs no separate relocation.

Types of beach: pebble, sand, magnetic

Pebble is the commonest beach on the Georgian coast - Batumi, Gonio, Sarpi, Green Cape. Its advantage is the clarity of the water: the wind does not lift sand and visibility of two or three metres is maintained.

A mixed beach - pebble and sand together - is what Kobuleti has. It is a compromise: the water is reasonably clear but going in is softer underfoot. If walking on pebble is difficult for you, it is the most balanced choice on the whole coast.

Magnetic sand exists only at Ureki and Shekvetili - black, fine, with a high magnetite content. It sticks to your feet and heats up far more than ordinary sand, which makes the beach hard going at midday on a sunny day.

Kobuleti: how it differs from Batumi

Kobuleti is 25 kilometres from Batumi and lives at a different pace. There are no casinos here, no high-rises and no nightlife - instead the beach is long and in the evenings almost completely empty.

The shoreline runs over five kilometres with pine woods along it. Those shield it from the wind and change the air as well - which is exactly why Kobuleti was a climatic resort in the Soviet period.

Beside Kobuleti lie the Ispani bogs - a Ramsar-protected site and a rare type of peat bog. A wooden walkway runs through it and an hour there is spent in a completely different landscape. It is ten minutes from the beach.

Ureki and the magnetic sand

Ureki is 50 kilometres from Batumi and the only place in Georgia with magnetic sand. The black colour comes from a high magnetite content, and that is a fact confirmed geologically.

The medicinal properties are a separate matter. Ureki has been regarded as a balneological resort since the Soviet period and sanatoria still work there, though the level of evidence is limited by clinical standards. We say that plainly and leave the decision to you.

Next to Ureki is Shekvetili, with a concert amphitheatre and an amusement park. For families that is often the deciding argument: beach, rides and events in one place, and you do not need the car during the day.

Gonio: beach and fortress in one spot

Gonio is convenient because two different things sit in the same place: a pebble beach and a Roman fortress. It is 12 kilometres from Batumi, twenty minutes by taxi.

The beach is calmer than Batumi's and noticeably less crowded. The water here is among the cleanest on the coast, because the mouth of the Chorokhi lies further north and the sea current does not carry the silt southwards.

A practical tip: visit the fortress in the morning, while it is still cool and there is some shade, and stop at the beach in the afternoon. The reverse order works badly in summer - there is almost no shade at the fortress.

Green Cape and Chakvi: where to stay

Green Cape is nine kilometres from Batumi and is often a better place to stay than the city itself. The hotels here are on the slope, the sea is visible from the window and the centre is 15 to 20 minutes away.

Chakvi is another 6 kilometres north and is historically tea country - this is where the Georgian tea industry began at the end of the 19th century. Some of the plantations are still working.

Both are good because you escape the noise of Batumi while the city stays within reach. For anyone who wants their evenings on the boulevard but their nights in silence, these are the two we suggest - and the taxi is cheap.

Sarpi and the Turkish border

Sarpi is the southernmost point of the coast - 18 kilometres from Batumi, right on the Turkish border. The village is split in two by the border and the Laz population lives on both sides.

The water here is considered the clearest on the coast, because the mountain comes straight down to the sea and there is no large river nearby. The beach is pebble and narrow.

The border can be crossed right here: Sarpi to Hopa is half an hour and to Trabzon about three. If you want to go on into Turkey, this is the shortest route - we check the documents and rules against your nationality beforehand and write them into the offer.

The swimming season and the water temperature

The water temperature has its own curve and it lags the air by about a month. In June the sea is still 21 to 22 degrees; from July to September it is 24 to 26; in October it still reaches 20.

Which is exactly why September is the best month on the coast: the water is at its warmest of the whole season, the air has softened and there are half as many people as in August.

Two things to allow for in season: after a strong wind the water can be cloudy for a day or two, and jellyfish appear periodically towards the end of August. Neither is dangerous, but both change how a day is planned.

Where to stay: four options

Batumi when you want the city and the infrastructure: restaurants, nightlife, the cable car, museums. There is the most choice here, but it is also the noisiest in summer.

Green Cape or Chakvi when you want both - quiet at night and the city in the evening. Kobuleti when the beach is the point and the city interests you less.

Ureki when there are children and sand matters. The one compromise is that Ureki to Batumi is an hour - so a daily run into the city is awkward. We weigh that up with you beforehand.

The sea with children

Three factors: the type of beach, the gradient of the depth, and what else there is to do. A small child finds pebble hard to walk on and water shoes are essential - so Kobuleti and Ureki are more practical.

The depth increases fairly quickly along most of the coast. At Kobuleti and Ureki the entry is more gradual; at Batumi and Sarpi it deepens within a few steps. That needs watching particularly closely.

As for activities: the Batumi boulevard has a cycle path and a dolphinarium, Shekvetili has the amusement park. If the children are of different ages we usually suggest Ureki or Shekvetili as the base and Batumi as a day trip. That way every age gets what it needs.

Seafood and the cooking of the coast

The Black Sea is not a rich fishing ground and that should be said plainly - the local range is limited. The most local fish are anchovy and mullet; trout appears in season too, though that comes from mountain rivers rather than the sea.

Anchovy is a winter fish - caught from November to March, and that is when it is at its best. In summer restaurants often serve it frozen and do not usually say so on the menu. The guide will tell you where it is worth ordering.

What genuinely is local on the coast comes from the land: Adjaran khachapuri, borano, sinori, chirbuli. So our food recommendations on the coast are built on land dishes too. Seafood we try where it really is worth it - and not everywhere.

Water activities on the coast

Batumi beach in summer has the standard set: jet skis, banana rides, parasailing, boat trips. These are sold on the spot and are not in our price - we write that in advance so the expectation is clear.

For surfing the Black Sea is generally calm, though in autumn, as the windy period begins, a swell appears. That is a niche subject and we will put you in touch with specific operators.

For divers the coast is moderately interesting: visibility is good in the southern part, but the underwater relief is monotonous. If diving is the main purpose of your visit we tell you so directly and do not offer Georgia for it.

The coast in winter

The coast does not close in winter, it simply performs a different function. The temperature rarely drops below 8 degrees - warmer than Tbilisi - and that is exactly why many Georgians come down to Batumi in the winter months.

Swimming is out, but what is packed with people in summer stays open: the botanical garden, the old town, the restaurants. Kobuleti and Ureki, by contrast, are practically empty.

The bird migration in September and October deserves separate mention: above Kobuleti, around Sakhalvasho, there are observation points from which the mass passage of raptors is visible. It is the most distinctive event at the close of the season, and we offer it as a niche route of its own.

How to reach the coast

There are three options from Tbilisi. The train to Batumi is five hours, comfortable and cheap - there is also a night service, which frees up a day. The ticket is not in the price, but we book it.

The plane is an hour, though getting to and from the airport eats half that gain. By car it is five to six hours and Kutaisi, Gelati or the canyons fit in on the way - so the journey itself becomes an excursion.

There is a separate possibility in Kutaisi airport: from there Batumi is two hours, and direct flights from Europe often land there. If the coast is your main purpose, that is frequently the shortest route. We arrange the transfer from Kutaisi airport straight to the coast, with no need to pass through Tbilisi.