Tmogvi: Holiday apartments and holiday homes

The fortified town of Tmogvi lies between two gorges. Ruins and defensive walls have been preserved on the rocky summit; Tmogvi Fortress stands on an inaccessible rocky mountain on the left bank of the Mtkvari. This page focuses on Tmogvi as a destination for anyone looking to rent a holiday apartment.

Culture and history

The Tmogvi Fortress-City complex includes an upper fortress church with a dome dating from the 13th to 14th century. Upper Tmogvi Church is a national cultural heritage monument dating from the 11th century. Upper Tmogvi also preserves an abandoned traditional Meskhetian settlement and remnants of traditional oda houses.

Outside Tmogvi Fortress, St Ephrem's Church is carved into the rock, including its rock-carved iconostasis. The fortress complex includes a church, residential and agricultural buildings, a tunnel leading down to the Mtkvari, and two deep water shafts. A second church beside the gate of Tmogvi Fortress preserves remnants of painted decoration in the sanctuary and dates from the beginning of the 14th century.

The archaeological settlement of Tmogvi extends along both banks of the Mtkvari and preserves palace remains on each bank. Tmogvi controlled the historic caravan route that led from Byzantium through the Mtkvari Valley to Georgia. The fortress is first mentioned in written sources in connection with the Arab invasion of 914. The settlement also includes a three-room bathhouse made of stone and Georgian brick.

The Vani Caves are a medieval cave monastery in the vicinity of Tmogvi.

Landscape and trails

Tmogvi lies in the rugged surroundings of the Mtkvari Valley, with high eroded cliffs, dry slopes, and settlement terraces that follow the natural relief. The regional road through the Mtkvari Valley connects Aspindza with Vardzia and passes Tmogvi; local paths connect settlements and upper plateaus. The Khertvisi–Vardzia road also runs through the Mtkvari Valley and passes Tmogvi Fortress.

The Nakalakevi–Tmogvi Fortress–Upper Tmogvi–Chachkari route is described as a two-day route and can be completed without special physical preparation or equipment. Along the route towards Chachkari are Early Bronze Age kurgan burial mounds, as well as wine presses, dwellings, and chapels carved into the rock.

Other destinations in the location selection: Nakalakevi, Aspindza, Tsemi, Didi Mitarbi, Bakurianis Andeziti, Zanavi, Tba, Akhaltsikhe.

For the wider travel overview: Samtskhe-Javakheti.