Overview
This four day Georgia shopping tour is for travellers who came to buy, not to browse: two days in Tbilisi across the big malls, the wholesale bazaars and the gold and leather shops, one day on the road to Batumi, and a final day in the coastal city's malls and central bazaar. It suits the family stocking up before going home, the newlyweds furnishing a house, and the buyer purchasing in quantity to resell. The rhythm here is unlike any sightseeing programme, and that is the whole point of this page: we start at ten rather than eight, because shops open in the morning and not at dawn; we split the day into two long stops instead of five quick ones; and the car stands at the shop door rather than in a distant car park, so bags go into the boot as you buy and you carry nothing between one store and the next. That single detail changes your day: anyone who has carried six bags between three malls by taxi knows the difference. This is exactly where an Arabic-speaking driver stops being a luxury and becomes a necessity: he is the one who bargains in Georgian in the wholesale market, where the price quoted to a tourist is not the price locals pay; he asks about the carat stamped on a piece of gold and has it weighed in front of you; and he explains the tourist tax refund, which is claimed at the airport on departure, from shops enrolled in the scheme and with receipts in your own name and passport. Two practical pieces of advice: work out your baggage allowance before you buy rather than after, and buy an extra suitcase on day two in the wholesale market, where it costs far less than in the malls. And we say plainly what is not here: this is not a sightseeing programme. No Kazbegi, no Mtskheta, no parks, and day three is mostly a long drive of about five and a half hours with no shopping in it beyond the roadside stops. If you want sights alongside the shopping, Georgia 6 Day Tour - Tbilisi and Batumi is the fit, and for the capital in depth with its markets, Tbilisi 4 Day City Tour. The price is 800 USD for two people, that is 200 USD per day covering the car with its driver and three hotel nights. Read Shopping and Markets in Tbilisi and Batumi: The Complete Guide and Arabic Driver in Batumi, and browse Georgia Shopping Tours.
الباقة تشمل
- ✔ Private car with a large boot and an Arabic-speaking driver for all four days
- ✔ Three hotel nights, two in Tbilisi and one in Batumi, inside the 200 USD per day for two
- ✔ The car waits at each shop entrance and loads purchases immediately, so you carry nothing between stores
- ✔ The driver comes into the wholesale markets with you and negotiates prices in Georgian
- ✔ A circuit of the main Tbilisi malls: Tbilisi Mall, East Point and Galleria
- ✔ Dry Bridge market, Dezerter Bazaar and Aghmashenebeli avenue for gold and leather shops
- ✔ A full day in Batumi: Batumi Mall, Metro City and the central bazaar
- ✔ A walkthrough of the tourist tax refund procedure before you fly home
- ✔ Fuel, road charges and parking throughout
Trip Itinerary
اليوم 1: Day One | The big Tbilisi malls
Airport pick-up and hotel check-in, then a ten o'clock start once the shops have opened. We begin at Tbilisi Mall on the airport road, the largest in the country, about fifteen kilometres from the centre, twenty minutes away; it holds the international labels, clothing, footwear, a wide children's section and a play area, and we spend at least three unhurried hours in it. Lunch at a nearby halal restaurant with time to pray. Afterwards we move five minutes to East Point on the same road, best for sportswear, shoes and bags, and an hour and a half covers it. In the late afternoon we come into the city to Galleria Tbilisi on Freedom Square for anyone who wants to shop in the centre, about half an hour away and longer in the rush hour. The car waits at every entrance and the bags go straight into the boot, so you carry nothing. Back at the hotel in the evening, and in the car we agree tomorrow's list and what matters most on it.
اليوم 2: Day Two | Wholesale, gold and leather
The real market day, and the most important of the programme. We start at ten at Lilo Mall in eastern Tbilisi, some seventeen kilometres out, a vast wholesale bazaar of clothing, fabric, footwear and carpets at prices well below the malls; haggling is expected and your driver does it for you, paying cash gets you a better price, and this is where you buy the extra suitcase that will carry everything home. Three hours is the sensible minimum here. Then Dezerter Bazaar near the central railway station for spices, walnuts, churchkhela, mountain honey and cheese; an hour is enough, and it is a crowded place, so keep an eye on your belongings. Lunch and prayer, then in the afternoon to Aghmashenebeli avenue and the Marjanishvili area, home to the gold and silver shops and the leather workshops: ask about the stamped carat, ask for the piece to be weighed in front of you, compare three shops before buying, and keep the receipt in your own name for the tax refund. We finish at the Dry Bridge market for antiques, silverware and old carpets before sunset; in winter it closes early, so we bring it forward. Dinner and back to the hotel, where we pack the purchases ready for tomorrow's drive.
اليوم 3: Day Three | The road to Batumi and an evening on the boulevard
A driving day more than a shopping day, and we say so plainly. We leave Tbilisi at nine in the morning for about 370 kilometres west, five and a half to six hours with the stops, through the Rikoti Pass and its new tunnels, which have shortened the road considerably. It is dual carriageway and level for most of the way, and we stop roughly every hour to rest and pray. The stop that matters is at the roadside stalls near Khashuri selling honey, churchkhela, mountain cheese and homemade preserves, light gifts that are always asked for at home and cheaper here than in the city. We reach Batumi in the afternoon, check in and rest for an hour. In the evening we go out to Batumi Boulevard on the Black Sea and the nearby port street, with its coastal gift shops, amber and silver stores and craft stalls; the walking there is flat along the seafront and a pushchair manages it easily. Dinner overlooking the sea and the night in Batumi.
اليوم 4: Day Four | Batumi's malls and central bazaar
We start at half past nine at Batumi Mall, then Metro City downtown; they sit far closer together than the Tbilisi malls, only minutes apart, and hold the brands, electronics and perfumes. Compare price and warranty before buying any device, because the difference is not always in your favour. Both malls are usually finished before lunch. In the afternoon we go down to the old central bazaar in the heart of the city for Georgian tea, spices, dried fruit, nuts and honey at local prices rather than tourist ones, and haggling is accepted here too. We return to the hotel, repack the cases in the car and weigh what you have bought, and go through the tax refund receipts and your passport together before you reach the departure hall. Then the transfer to nearby Batumi airport, or the drive back to Tbilisi straight after lunch if you fly from the capital, since that road needs five and a half hours and cannot be left late.