2026-10-13
New Year in Georgia with the family is a trip of its own kind: a city lit all over, real snow only two hours from the capital, and a cold that children handle well in the right clothes. In the last two weeks of December Tbilisi dresses in lights from the old town to Rustaveli Avenue, the festive markets open their stalls, and at midnight on the thirty-first fireworks go up over the city; then, in the new year, the family climbs to Gudauri to touch the snow.
We at Hawa Georgia, registered in Tbilisi since 2018, arrange the trip around a private car with an Arabic-speaking driver, priced per day for the whole car, with no prepayment: you pay on arrival. Here is the night in Tbilisi, the snow day in Gudauri, the shape of the Georgia New Year Tour 6 Days, when to book, and what it costs.
New Year's Eve in Tbilisi with the family
The decorations go up weeks ahead: lights on the balconies of the old town and in the lanes around the sulphur baths, Rustaveli Avenue and Freedom Square fully lit, and small festive markets selling Georgian sweets and wooden gifts. Children love the cable car up to Narikala fortress to see the lit city from above.
The night of the thirty-first is spent on foot: the city centre closes to cars for hours, people gather around Freedom Square and along the river, and at midnight fireworks go up from more than one side. So we place your hotel in the centre and agree with the driver in advance on a drop-off point and a meeting point outside the closed area. The official programmes change every year; the lights and the fireworks are the constant.
The cold in Tbilisi at the end of December is manageable: days of roughly 5 to 8 degrees, nights around zero, and snow in the city rare. For children, three layers: a thermal base, a wool jumper and a windproof coat, with a hat, gloves and shoes with grip, because the night is long and outdoors. The mountain is about ten degrees colder, and snow clothing can be hired there.
Prayer and halal food need no planning: the main mosque in the old town near the sulphur baths is open for all the prayers, and halal restaurants are plentiful; the list by district is in halal restaurants in Georgia. The first day of the year is a quiet day with many shops closed, so we make it the day of the climb to the mountain.
The snow day in Gudauri
Gudauri is about 120 km and two hours from Tbilisi on the Georgian Military Highway, and the snow begins on both sides of the road before the resort. Nobody needs to ski: the sledges and the tubing lane at the base are for the children, the cable car climbs in stages to above 3,000 m and sells sightseeing tickets to non-skiers, and ski lessons and equipment can be hired at the resort.
Snow in Gudauri usually settles from about mid-December, the lifts start around 27 December, and January and February are the peak of the season. The month-by-month detail is in the snow in Georgia guide, and all the resort's programmes are in Gudauri tour packages. The car runs on winter tyres, and when the police close the road for a while for avalanche risk we move the day to an open destination at no extra cost.
The 6-day New Year programme
This is the shape of the Georgia New Year Tour 6 Days: two nights in Tbilisi including the night of the celebration, then three snow nights in Gudauri:
- Day 1: Arrival and a welcome with a name sign, a hotel in central Tbilisi, and an evening among the lights: Rike Park, the Bridge of Peace and the cable car up to Narikala.
- Day 2: A light day in the old town and the festive markets, then New Year's Eve around Freedom Square and Rustaveli with the fireworks at midnight.
- Day 3: A free morning to sleep in, then the climb after lunch to Gudauri past Ananuri fortress, and a night at the resort.
- Day 4: A full snow day: sledges and tubing for the children, the cable car for the view, or a first ski lesson.
- Day 5: The Friendship Monument in the morning, then a second day on the snow and a last evening in the mountains.
- Day 6: Down to Tbilisi, a stop for gifts if time allows, then the airport transfer.
Anyone who wants more snow adds a night in the mountains, and a family with children under five takes the same shape towards the calmer Bakuriani; the comparison is in Gudauri or Bakuriani?. The rest of the season's programmes are in Georgia winter and snow packages.
When to book New Year in Georgia
The last two weeks of December are the peak season across Georgia: central Tbilisi hotels and Gudauri family rooms fill weeks ahead, and Arabic-speaking drivers are booked early. For New Year in the snow, write to us in October or November. Booking takes no prepayment and no deposit, and cancellation is free up to 48 hours before arrival for a driver-only booking and 72 hours when the booking includes hotels.
How much does the New Year trip cost?
Our car price is the same at New Year as in any season and covers the whole car, never a per-person figure: a sedan with an Arabic-speaking driver is 85 USD a day, 510 USD for the six days, and a minivan for six passengers 100 USD a day, 600 USD for the six days, including fuel, parking, the driver's lodging and the airport welcome.
The hotel is optional, from our approved hotels, and you see the whole-stay total with breakfast before you confirm, never a nightly price: five nights in a double room at a 4-star hotel on New Year nights from 595 USD, a family of four in two rooms from 1,190 USD, and children under 5 free. Lift tickets and equipment hire are your own spending.
Before you travel: entry and insurance
GCC citizens enter Georgia visa-free for up to a year, Gulf residents with a valid residence card for up to 90 days (some nationalities, Yemen, Syria, Sudan and Morocco among them, need at least a year left on the permit), everyone else applies for the e-visa at evisa.gov.ge, and the border officer has the final say. Since 1 January 2026 health insurance is mandatory for every traveller, children included: it must cover the whole stay from the day of arrival to the day of departure with at least 30,000 GEL of cover, on paper or electronically, in English or Georgian. It is not included in our price, so buy it before you travel; the border officer may ask for it and entry may be refused without it.
Book New Year in Georgia on WhatsApp
Send us your dates, the number of travellers and the children's ages, and we reply with a written day-by-day programme and the full total for the car and the hotel if you choose one. No prepayment: you pay on arrival, in cash or by bank transfer. Hawa Georgia Travel is registered in Tbilisi, registration 415120808. WhatsApp: +995 550 000 663.