Akhaltsikhe means new fortress, and the fortress is the first thing you see: Rabati Castle, a large, restored walled complex on a rise above the Potskhovi river, with a golden-domed mosque, a church and a few towers, floodlit at night. The town of about seventeen thousand people lies in the south of Georgia, in the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti, where the green valleys of the Kura river meet the dry, high plateaus that run toward Turkey and Armenia. Vale, a smaller town, lies to the south.
As a stop, Akhaltsikhe is hugely useful. It has fuel, cafes serving khachapuri and kebabs, markets, guesthouses and mechanics, and it sits at the junction of several of Georgia's best mountain routes. West from here, the road climbs over the Goderdzi Pass toward Adjara and the Black Sea, rising to over two thousand metres through forest, meadows and a final stretch of rough gravel and broken tarmac, with fog and rain common on the western slope. South, the road to Vardzia follows the Kura valley through a country of dry gorges, ruined castles and small farms, with good tarmac and gentle bends. Early summer and September are the best times, and traffic is generally light.
The history here is deep and complicated. The area was the heartland of the Jaqeli princes, who ruled as semi-independent lords under the Georgian crown, and in the sixteenth century it fell under Ottoman control, which lasted until the Russian conquest in 1829. That layered past is visible in Rabati, where Orthodox, Muslim and Armenian buildings stand within the same walls. The population has long included Georgians, Armenians and Muslim Meskhetians, many of whom were deported in 1944 under Stalin, a painful memory that still resonates in the region.
Just a short ride south is Vardzia, the great cave monastery carved into a cliff face in the twelfth century, under Queen Tamar, with hundreds of rooms, a church with frescoes and tunnels. It is among the most striking sights in the Caucasus, and the approach through a quiet gorge adds to the drama. In the other direction, the thermal springs and mineral waters of Borjomi, famous across the former Soviet Union, lie a short distance to the north.
The landscape is a mix of orchards, pastures and dry hills, and the air smells of woodsmoke, fruit and baking bread. Wine, cheese and honey are good, and hospitality is generous.
Fill the tank here, since fuel is sparser on the mountain roads. Bring a warm layer, particularly for Goderdzi, and check the pass conditions, as it may close in winter.