Shopping and Markets in Tbilisi and Batumi: The Complete Guide

2026-09-10

Shopping in Tbilisi and Batumi is not brand shopping. It is craft, markets and sensible prices. Tbilisi alone holds four completely different kinds of shopping: modern malls on the edges, a huge wholesale bazaar near the airport road, a food market in the middle of the capital, and an old antiques market on the riverbank. Batumi adds a pricing logic of its own, because it sits next to the Turkish border. This guide organises both cities by what you actually want to buy — and tells you what is not worth buying at all.

Tbilisi's shopping map in one table

Distances shape your day here, because the cheapest markets are the furthest from the centre. Approximate distances from Freedom Square:

Tbilisi's street markets: Dezerter and the Dry Bridge

Malls look the same in every city on earth. What you can only find in Georgia is in two markets, and a visitor who skips them has shopped in Georgia without buying anything from Georgia.

Dezerter Bazaar: the city's open kitchen

Dezerter Bazaar, next to the central railway station, is where Tbilisi itself shops. It is large, spread across halls and lanes, and it wakes at dawn and quietens after noon. The best window is between eight and eleven in the morning: produce is fresh, the crush is smaller than at midday, and sellers have time to talk to you.

What is worth buying here: Georgian spices of every kind — khmeli suneli, Svaneti salt, blue fenugreek, ground marigold sold as Georgian saffron — priced by weight at a fraction of what the same jars cost in Gulf supermarkets. Then nuts and dried fruit, churchkhela (walnuts strung and dipped in grape must), tklapi fruit leather, mountain honey, and Georgian tea from Guria and Adjara.

A note for Gulf travellers: the market has a meat hall where pork is sold alongside everything else, and it is a separate hall from the vegetable, spice and nut sections. If you would rather not walk through it, ask for the produce and spice entrance directly — your driver knows the difference and will drop you at the right door. There is more on food in Halal Food in Tbilisi and Batumi: The Best Areas and Restaurants.

The Dry Bridge: a country's memory, sold from folding tables

The Dry Bridge market in Dedaena Park is an open-air flea market for antiques and collectibles. It runs daily and peaks at the weekend between ten in the morning and five in the afternoon. On its tables: Soviet silver, watches, cameras, medals, coins, Caucasian rugs, copperware, and paintings sold by the artists themselves along the adjoining path.

Here is the rule that saves you money: most of what is offered as "antique" is a modern reproduction, and Soviet medals in particular are made today and sold as old. Buy a piece because you like it and at a price that suits you, not because it is "a piece of history". And if you do find something genuinely old and valuable, know that exporting antiquities from Georgia can require a permit — ask for the invoice and the paperwork before you pay.

The paintings are the best value in this market, in our view: an original signed by the person who made it, for less than a ready-made frame in any mall, and it folds flat into a suitcase.

Malls: when they are worth your day and when they are not

Tbilisi's malls are comfortable, clean and have things to occupy children, but the international brands inside are not necessarily cheaper than in the Gulf, and are sometimes more expensive because the goods are imported into a small market. The mall's real value here is something else: air conditioning in Tbilisi's hot summer, a play area that holds the little ones for two hours, and a large supermarket where you buy what you carry home.

East Point has the widest selection and sits closest to the airport road, which makes it good for a last day. Tbilisi Mall is further out but calmer. Galleria Tbilisi is the only one you can walk into while touring the Old Town, since it stands directly on Freedom Square.

Lilo Mall: where you buy wholesale

Despite the name, Lilo is not a mall in the familiar sense. It is a complex of covered and open bazaars east of the city near the airport road, and it is where retailers themselves buy: clothing, fabric, shoes, bags, children's toys and household goods. Things sell by the piece and by the carton, and the price gap between buying one item and buying six is very large.

Three rules for Lilo: carry cash in lari, because many stalls do not take cards; bargain, because the first price is not final here; and do not go without someone to translate, since most sellers do not speak English. The place is vast and tiring, so give it half a day rather than an hour.

What is actually worth buying in Georgia

The things that deserve suitcase space are the ones you cannot find at home, not the ones sold in every airport:

• Georgian enamel jewellery (minankari): a genuine Georgian craft centuries old, glass colours fused inside gold or silver outlines. Sold in specialist shops in the Old Town and at Meidan Bazaar, and it is the best gift that actually represents the country.
• Pottery: the village of Shrosha on the highway between Tbilisi and Kutaisi is lined with pottery stalls on both sides of the road, at source prices. If your route runs west, it is a twenty-minute stop worth making.
• Mountain wool: hand-knitted socks, hats and shawls from Tusheti and Svaneti, sold at the Dry Bridge and at mountain kiosks. These are practical, not merely decorative.
• Spices and food: khmeli suneli, Svanetian salt, ajika, churchkhela, tklapi fruit leather, walnuts and honey. Dezerter Bazaar is their home, and for travel it is better to buy spices sealed rather than loose.
• Leather and fur: Turkish leather shops are spread around Aghmashenebeli Avenue and in Batumi. Quality varies, so inspect the stitching and lining before you look at the price.
• Soviet-era antiques: the Dry Bridge Market near Dedaena Park runs along the riverbank selling cameras, watches, medals, old coins and carpets. Here bargaining is part of the game.

What we would not carry home: crates of mineral water, which are heavy and sold in your own country, and loose food products your customs office may object to.

And what not to buy

The list nobody writes, and the one that saves you more than the "what to buy" list does:

• "Antiques" from tourist kiosks. Most are modern reproductions made for the visitor market. If you like the object, pay decoration prices, not history prices.
• Wine and chacha at the airport or in a hotel lobby. The same bottle costs several times what a wine shop or a large supermarket charges. Buy the day before departure rather than on the day, and put it in checked baggage, not your carry-on.
• Gold and jewellery without a proper invoice. With no paperwork there is no proof of carat and no proof of purchase, and you may be asked about it at the airport on the way home. Buy from a registered shop that gives you an invoice stating carat and weight.
• Electronics. Georgia is a small market that imports everything, and the warranty does not travel with you. What you buy here is usually dearer than at home.
• Anything past your baggage allowance. Budget carriers on Georgian routes are strict about weight, and an excess kilo at the airport costs more than the gift itself. Weigh what you have before you start buying by the box.

How prices work and how to bargain

Gold in Georgia is sold by weight plus a workmanship charge, exactly as you know it, so ask to see the weight on the scale and ask about the carat and the making charge separately. In malls, prices are fixed and there is no bargaining. At Lilo, the Dry Bridge, Meidan Bazaar and with independent sellers, bargaining is expected and accepted, and cash in lari puts you in a better position than a card.

Change your money at exchange offices in the city rather than at the airport; the difference is noticeable. VAT in Georgia is 18%, and there is a refund scheme for foreign tourists on departure with a minimum value for a single invoice from a registered shop on the same day. Ask the seller for the refund invoice at the moment of purchase rather than afterwards, ask about the threshold and conditions because they change, then complete the process at the airport before you check your bags.

Shopping in Batumi: the local bazaar, the boulevard, and the border

Batumi is smaller than Tbilisi and offers less, but its pricing logic is completely different, and understanding it means buying better. The city sits about 20 km from the Turkish border at Sarpi, so Turkish goods — clothes, textiles, linens, kitchenware — are everywhere and priced against Tbilisi. On the other hand, anything sold within sight of the sea is priced for a visitor, not a resident.

Batumi Central Bazaar

On Chavchavadze Street, this is the city's living food market. Adjarian cheese and sulguni, nuts, spices, honey, seasonal fruit and Adjara tea — all at city prices rather than seafront prices. If you are buying edible gifts anywhere on your trip, buy them here or at Dezerter in Tbilisi, not in a gift shop.

The two-street rule

This is the most useful sentence in this section: walk two or three streets back from the boulevard and the price changes. Seafront kiosks sell magnets, souvenirs and t-shirts for up to twice what the same item costs in the inland streets. The walk is under five minutes and the difference is real.

The malls

Batumi's malls are practical rather than luxurious — Metro City and the newer seafront centres — and they are an excellent answer to a rainy hour or an urgent need (a charger, children's clothes, a pharmacy, an exchange desk). They are not a reason to spend half a day. International brands there are imported into a small market, which means they cost more than in Dubai or Riyadh.

Is crossing at Sarpi worth it?

We are asked this constantly, and our honest answer is: for most guests, no. The crossing needs passports and formalities on both sides, summer queues can eat two or three hours of your day, and most of the Turkish goods you would buy there are already in Batumi's shops at a difference that does not repay the time and the fuel. It is worth it only if a full Turkish shopping day is the actual plan, or if you are buying in quantity. Otherwise, spend the day in the city.

If Batumi is your main base, read Batumi Travel Guide for the rest of the city and Arabic Driver in Batumi for getting around it, and see every programme that passes through it on Batumi Tour Packages.

Why the driver matters on a shopping day

Shopping is the one day you come out carrying bags, move between widely separated places, and need someone waiting at the door. Parking around Lilo and Dezerter is congested, and taxis may refuse to wait or renegotiate every trip. Having a private car means you drop your purchases in the boot and carry on, rather than hauling them for the rest of the day. Read Arabic Driver in Tbilisi for the detail of moving around the capital.

If shopping is the reason for the trip, look at Georgia Shopping Tour 4 Days, built around the markets of Tbilisi and Batumi with a driver waiting outside every shop. If you want shopping as part of a wider look at the capital, Tbilisi 4 Day City Tour gives it one day out of four. The Georgia Shopping Tours page collects every programme connected to it.

Frequently asked questions

Is shopping in Georgia cheap?

Local crafts, food, spices, wool and leather are cheap by Gulf standards. International brands in the malls are not, and can be more expensive because they are imported into a small market. Go to Georgia for what is made in Georgia.

Where do I buy at wholesale prices?

Lilo Mall east of Tbilisi is the first place for wholesale clothing, fabric, shoes and toys, followed by Batumi's central bazaar for food. Carry cash and set aside half a day.

Are cards accepted everywhere?

In malls and formal shops, yes. In wholesale markets, bazaars and with independent sellers, cash is better and sometimes the only option, and paying cash improves your bargaining position.

Can I reclaim VAT on departure?

Yes, there is a refund scheme for foreign tourists on purchases from registered shops, subject to a minimum value for a single invoice on the same day. Ask for the refund invoice at the time of purchase, confirm the conditions in the shop because they can change, and complete the process at the airport before checking in your luggage.

Is bargaining acceptable?

It is accepted and expected at Lilo, the Dry Bridge Market, Meidan Bazaar and with independent sellers. It is not acceptable in malls or shops with displayed fixed prices. Be friendly and clear, and a polite walk-away is your strongest tool.

Should I shop in Tbilisi or in Batumi?

Tbilisi for range and volume: wholesale at Lilo, antiques at the Dry Bridge, spices at Dezerter, and every brand in the malls. Batumi for the local food market, for Turkish goods, and for better prices on textiles. The practical rule: buy food and spices in whichever city you are in, save wholesale and clothing for Tbilisi, and put your last shopping day in the capital, because whatever you buy travels by road with you for the rest of the trip.

What is the best gift to bring home from Georgia?

Five that never miss: churchkhela, a mixed spice box from Dezerter or the Batumi bazaar, mountain honey, a wool shawl or felt piece from the craft stalls, and a small signed painting from the Dry Bridge. All of them are light, all of them are genuinely Georgian rather than imported, and together they cost less than a single gift from an airport shop.

Where should the shopping day sit in the programme?

Best one or two days before departure, not on the final day. You need time to repack, and you may need to return to a shop to change a size. Put the shopping in Tbilisi rather than another city, since whatever you buy travels with you by road for the rest of the trip.

Let us plan your shopping day

Every programme we run includes a private car with an Arabic-speaking driver. The price is 200 USD per day for two people, covering the car and the hotel, so a seven-day programme is 1400 USD for two. Tell us what you want to buy and we will order the markets by distance rather than by chance. Contact us on WhatsApp.