What to see in the Caucasus country by country: what Georgia has, what Armenia has, what Azerbaijan has and how to put them together in one trip
The Caucasus is three countries in a space the size of Great Britain, with three languages, three alphabets and three religions, and the advantage that everything is a few hours from everything else: from Tbilisi to the glaciers, three; to the wineries, two; to Yerevan, six; to Baku, one by plane. This guide goes country by country, with what each has and what you do there, and then what you need to know to put them together: how you cross from one to the next, which is not always by land, and how many days each deserves.
Why go
Because it is the region where the empires collided, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Mongols, Ottomans and Russians, and each left something still visible; because it has monasteries on cliffs, tower villages and glaciers you reach on foot; because the table is among the best in the world and the wine is the oldest; and because, although it is no longer empty, it is still a place where the guesthouse owner sits down to dinner with the guest and the next village has never seen a tourist.
Georgia
The country to start with: no visa, direct flights from half of Europe, marshrutkas everywhere and guesthouses in every village. Tbilisi, with its old town of balconies, the sulphur baths, Narikala and the best bar life in the region, is the base. Three hours north, Kazbegi and Gergeti church beneath Kazbek; two hours east, Kakheti, with Sighnaghi, Telavi and the qvevri cellars where wine is made as it was eight thousand years ago; to the west, Svaneti with the tower villages of Mestia and Ushguli, and the Batumi coast; and to the south, Vardzia, the city carved into the rock, and Borjomi. A week covers Tbilisi, Kazbegi and Kakheti; two weeks add Svaneti.
Armenia
The country of monasteries and of a people who have been Christian for seventeen centuries. Yerevan, pink from its volcanic stone, with the Cascade, the market and Ararat on the horizon on clear mornings, is the base for Geghard, carved into the mountain, the temple of Garni, Khor Virap with Ararat behind and Etchmiadzin. To the north, Lake Sevan at 1,900 m, with Sevanavank and the khachkar cemetery of Noratus, and Dilijan in the forest with Haghartsin and Goshavank; on the way to Georgia, Haghpat and Sanahin. To the south, the best road in the country: Noravank in its red canyon, the wineries of Areni and Tatev with its cable car. A week covers everything but the south; ten days, everything.
Azerbaijan
The different country: Muslim and secular, with oil and one foot in Central Asia. Baku, with the walled old city of Icherisheher, World Heritage, the Maiden Tower, the Caspian boulevard and the Flame Towers, and next door Gobustan, with its petroglyphs and mud volcanoes, and the fire temples of Absheron. To the north, Quba with its carpets and the Jewish town of Qırmızı Qəsəbə, and the road to Khinalig, at 2,200 m, World Heritage since 2023. To the north-west, Sheki with the khans' palace and its stained glass, and Lahij, the coppersmiths' village. You need an e-visa, applied for online in three days. Five or six days cover everything.
What you do
Walk: from the hour and a half up to Gergeti or the waterfalls of Lagodekhi park to the four days of the Mestia to Ushguli trek, with the high passes open only July to September. See monasteries, churches, fortresses and khachkars, which are in every valley and almost never charge entry. Eat and drink: khachapuri and khinkali in Georgia, dolma and lavash in Armenia, plov and tea in Azerbaijan, and qvevri wine, which surprises newcomers most. And sit at the table of whoever invites you, which will be someone every day.
The practical side
The best time is April to June and September to October, with July and August for the high mountains and the rest of the year for the cities; the guide to the best times to visit the Caucasus has the detail. Georgia and Armenia ask no visa of the EU, the UK or most of the Americas; Azerbaijan does, electronic. The currencies are the lari, the dram and the manat, which cannot be exchanged for each other outside the borders; in the cities you pay by card, in the villages in cash. Between cities you go by marshrutka or train; for the mountains, shared taxi or hire car. And the borders: Georgia and Armenia are crossed by land without trouble; Georgia to Azerbaijan has been closed by land since 2020 and you fly in from Tbilisi; Armenia and Azerbaijan do not connect.
Frequently asked questions
How much time do you need for all three countries?
Three or four weeks to see them calmly: ten days for Georgia, seven for Armenia and five or six for Azerbaijan, plus the transfers. In two weeks you do Georgia and Armenia well; in ten days, Georgia alone, which is the most varied and the easiest.
Is the Caucasus expensive?
No: it is among the cheapest destinations in Europe. A hostel bed, a room in a family house with dinner, a three-hour marshrutka or a meal in a village restaurant cost a fraction of what they cost in western Europe, and Georgia and Armenia are cheaper than Azerbaijan, where Baku has oil-capital prices.
Can you visit all three in one trip?
Yes, with Georgia as the hub: Armenia is crossed into by land from Tbilisi, by marshrutka or night train, and Azerbaijan is reached only by air, because the land border has been closed since 2020 and Armenia and Azerbaijan have no crossing. The usual order is Georgia, Armenia, back to Georgia and a flight to Baku, or the reverse.
