Half Day Private Tour - Mtskheta, Jvari, Uplistsikhe

• See the 6th-century Jvari Monastery;
• Visit the 11th-century Svetitskovhoveli complex;
• Discover the incredible Uplistsikhe rock town;

Enjoy a fascinating day tour to old capital of Georgia - Mtskheta, one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world. It’s the birthplace of and one of the most vibrant centres of Christianity in Georgia. In 2014, it was given the title of Holy City by the Georgian Orthodox Church. The city-museum of Mtskheta was the capital of the kingdom of Kartli from 4 BC to 6 AD. It’s one of the oldest cities in Georgia and in all of Europe. It’s the place where Georgians accepted Christianity as a major religion in 326.

During the tour we’ll see the 6th-century Jvari Monastery, which stands on the mountain in front of Mtsketa and opens amazing view on convergence of two rivers.

Our final stop will be the ancient rock-hewn town of Uplistsikhe, built from the 5th–9th century BC. Uplistsikhe is remarkable for the unique combination of styles from rock-cut cultures of the region, most notably from Cappadocia (in modern Turkey) and Northern Iran. The ancient complex can be roughly divided into three parts: a lower, middle, and upper section covering an area of approximately 40,000 square meters. The middle part is the largest and contains the majority of the rock-hew n structures. It is connected to the lower section via a narrow rock-cut pass and a tunnel. Narrow alleys and sometimes staircases radiate from the central "street" to the different structures. On the upper level is a Christian stone basilica, dating from the 9 th-10th century.