Old Batumi
First-timersBehind the seafront: belle époque facades, squares, restaurants and the best beds for atmosphere.
Batumi city guide
Things To Do In Batumi
The Black Sea city: casinos, a pebble beach, subtropical gardens, and a skyline that looks like several architects were working from different briefs.
10
Hostels in the city
8.7
Average, from 1,495 reviews
7 km
Of seafront boulevard
Pebbles
Not sand. Everyone is surprised
Jun–Sep
The season, and outside it much is closed
Georgia's strangest city, and its summer capital
Batumi spent the 2000s deciding to become a resort and built accordingly, with no obvious plan. There is a half-scale Eiffel Tower on an apartment block, a tower with a Ferris wheel embedded in its side, an alphabet tower shaped like DNA, and a good deal of genuine belle époque underneath it all.
The casinos are the economic engine. Gambling is illegal in Turkey and the border is fifteen kilometres away, which fills the city with Turkish visitors and pays for the skyline.
The beach is pebbles, the sea is the Black Sea, and the season runs roughly June to September. Outside it, a lot of the city closes.
What genuinely justifies the trip is the subtropical setting: Batumi is on the same latitude as the Mediterranean but far wetter, and the botanical garden north of town is one of the best in the region.
Two days, and it works best as a break on the way to or from Turkey.
Where to stay
A seafront strip with an older quarter behind it.
Boulevard and New Boulevard
Beach and towersAlong the sea: the promenade, the beach, the casinos and the tower skyline.
Gonio and Kvariati
Quieter coastSouth towards Turkey: cheaper beds, clearer water and a calmer stretch of pebble beach.
Orange labels are neighbourhoods, dots are the 10 top-rated hostels. Map © MapTiler © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Things to do
Things to do in Batumi
Walk the boulevard. Seven kilometres of seafront promenade with gardens, fountains, cafés and a cycle path, and it is free. At the northern end stands Ali and Nino, two steel figures that move towards each other, merge and pass through one another every ten minutes — a genuinely good piece of public sculpture in a city full of strange ones.
The Batumi Botanical Garden, about 15 GEL and nine kilometres north, is the real attraction: subtropical planting across a headland above the sea, founded in 1912, and two hours well spent.
Old Batumi, the quarter behind the seafront, has the belle époque buildings and the squares worth sitting in, including the Piazza.
Gonio fortress, fifteen kilometres south, is a Roman fort near the Turkish border with a reputed apostle's grave inside.
And swim — the sea is warm from June to September, the beach is pebbles, and the water is cleaner south of the city.
Free things
Free things to do in Batumi
The boulevard and the beach are free, the full seven kilometres of them.
Ali and Nino, the moving steel sculpture at the north end, is free and performs its cycle every ten minutes.
Old Batumi and the Piazza cost nothing to walk, and the Astronomical Clock and the strange towers are free to look at, which is all they ask.
The dancing fountains on the boulevard run on summer evenings and are free.
Walking or cycling south along the coast towards Gonio is free, and the water gets clearer the further you go from the city.
Food and drink
Eating and drinking in Batumi
Adjarian khachapuri is the local dish and this is where it comes from: a bread boat filled with cheese, topped with butter and a raw egg that you stir into the melted cheese. It is enormous, it costs 12 to 20 GEL, and one is enough for two people at lunch.
Black Sea fish is the other strength, grilled and sold by weight at 25 to 45 GEL.
The Turkish influence is strong given the border, so kebabs and baklava are everywhere and good.
A full meal with wine is 35 to 70 GEL, slightly above Tbilisi because of the season.
A beer is 7 to 14 GEL, and the seafront terraces charge more than the streets behind them, as always.
Nightlife
Going out in Batumi
Seasonal and casino-shaped. From June to September the boulevard bars, beach clubs and casinos run hard, with a crowd that is heavily Turkish, Israeli and Russian-speaking.
The casinos are the centre of the city's night economy and most are attached to hotels.
Old Batumi and the Piazza have the more ordinary bars, and a beer is 7 to 14 GEL.
Outside the season the nightlife largely disappears — Batumi in February is a quiet provincial city with the shutters down.
It is a different proposition from Tbilisi, which has the serious music scene. Batumi is a beach resort that happens to be in Georgia.
Getting around
Getting around Batumi
The city is walkable along the boulevard, with old town to beach ten minutes on foot.
Buses cost under 1 GEL and Bolt taxis are a few lari across town.
The airport is 20 minutes south and handles seasonal European routes as well as domestic flights.
Trains to Tbilisi take about five hours and cost around 25 GEL, and are considerably more comfortable than the six-hour marshrutka. Book the fast service.
The Turkish border at Sarpi is fifteen kilometres south, about 30 minutes by marshrutka, with onward buses to Trabzon and Istanbul. It is a normal crossing and many nationalities need no visa for either side, though you should check your own.
Costs
What Batumi costs
Cheap by European standards and Georgia's most seasonal prices. Dorms are 30 to 70 GEL in summer, roughly €10 to €25, and considerably less outside the season.
A meal with wine is 35 to 70 GEL and a beer 7 to 14 GEL.
A day is €20 to €45 in season.
The beach, the boulevard and the sculpture are free. The botanical garden at about 15 GEL is the one entry worth paying.
July and August are the peak, when Georgians and Turkish visitors arrive together and beds tighten. May and September give you warm water and far fewer people.
Safety
Staying safe in Batumi
Batumi is a safe city and the crime affecting visitors is petty theft around the casinos and the boulevard at night.
The Black Sea here has strong undertows and the beach shelves steeply in places. Lifeguards operate on the main beaches in season only, and drownings happen most summers. Do not swim after drinking and do not swim outside patrolled areas.
Pebbles are hard and slippery at the waterline — water shoes are sold everywhere and make a real difference.
Traffic is the same hazard as everywhere in Georgia: aggressive driving, and crossing roads needs more care than the lights suggest.
The city is the wettest in Georgia and rain arrives hard and fast even in August. Emergency number is 112.
Day trips from Batumi
Subtropical forest, a Roman fort and the Turkish border.
Makhuntseti waterfall
A waterfall and an arched stone bridge attributed to Queen Tamar's reign, with chacha distilleries on the way.
What's on
What is on while you are there
A short, loud summer season and very little outside it.
June to September
Summer season
Citywide
When the beach clubs, casinos and boulevard bars all run and the city is at full volume.
Early September
Batumoba
Citywide
The city's own festival, marking the end of the summer season with music and food along the boulevard.
July
Black Sea Jazz Festival
Citywide
A long-running festival bringing international acts to the seafront venues.
November to April
Off season
Citywide
When much of the seafront closes and the city becomes quiet and provincial.
31 December to 2 January
New Year
Citywide
The main Georgian holiday, and one of the few times the city fills in winter.
Hostels
Where to stay in Batumi
A seasonal scene near the old town and the seafront, tightest in July and August. Live from Hostelworld.
Nari Hostel
Dorms from €9 a night
See dates and book
Hostel 47
Dorms from €9 a night
See dates and book
Hostel Voyage
See dates and book
Harmony Backpackers Hostel
Dorms from €9 a night
See dates and book
Back2Me
Dorms from €3 a night
See dates and book
Boutique Hotel & Hostel Medusa
Dorms from €11 a night
See dates and book
Karvi Hostel
Dorms from €9 a night
See dates and book
Enjoy the Hostel
Dorms from €9 a night
See dates and book
Sunset Hostel
See dates and book
Orbi City - Sea view Aparthotel in Batumi
See dates and bookWhen to go
June to September for the sea. Outside it, a lot of Batumi is shut.
Jan
Mild, very wet and largely closed
Feb
The same. Cheapest and quietest
Mar
Wet. The city starts waking up
Apr
Mild and green. Sea still cold
May
Very good. Warm days and the season opening
Jun
Excellent. Sea usable and not yet packed
Jul
Peak. Hot, humid, full and expensive
Aug
The busiest month and the warmest water
Sep
Superb. Warm sea, thinning crowds, still open
Oct
Mild and wet. Closing down
Nov
Very wet and quiet
Dec
Mild, wet and shut
Bar height is temperature. Colour is how busy it gets:
quiet
busy
peak
Average highs. Batumi is subtropical and the wettest city in Georgia — it gets more rain than almost anywhere in Europe, and downpours arrive suddenly even in peak summer.
What your trip will cost
Pick how you travel. Per person per night, in euros.
Prices are shown in euros for comparison, but you will pay in lari. These are summer figures — outside the season beds are considerably cheaper.
—
- Beds—
- Food and drink—
- Getting around—
- Doing things—
Batumi travel questions
The ones we get asked most.
Is the beach sand?
No, pebbles, and it catches people out. Bring something to lie on and consider water shoes — the stones are hard underfoot and slippery at the waterline. The water is clearer south of the city towards Gonio and Kvariati.
When is the season?
June to September. Outside it a lot of the seafront closes and Batumi becomes a quiet provincial city — which is cheap and calm, but not what most people come for.
Why does the skyline look like that?
The city decided to become a resort in the 2000s and built without much co-ordination, funded largely by casino money — gambling is illegal in Turkey and the border is fifteen kilometres away. The results include a half-scale Eiffel Tower on an apartment block and a Ferris wheel set into the side of a building.
What should I eat?
Adjarian khachapuri, because this is where it comes from: a bread boat of melted cheese topped with butter and a raw egg you stir in. It is 12 to 20 GEL and one comfortably feeds two at lunch.
Is it safe to swim?
On patrolled beaches in season, yes. The Black Sea here has strong undertows and the beach shelves steeply in places, lifeguards work in summer only, and drownings happen most years. Do not swim after drinking or outside the patrolled sections.
How do I get here from Tbilisi?
The train takes about five hours for around 25 GEL and is considerably more comfortable than the six-hour marshrutka. Book the fast service if you can.
Does it really rain that much?
Yes. Batumi is subtropical and the wettest city in Georgia, with more rainfall than almost anywhere in Europe. Downpours arrive suddenly and hard even in peak summer, so pack for it rather than assuming a beach holiday.
Say yes to hostels, meet the world
Compare Batumi hostels — live prices, real reviews and free cancellation on most bookings. Then meet the people already there in the app.
Get the App.