TOURISM: Places to stay in Tusheti in the Georgian Mountains. By Chris Wills (tushetilife.blogspot.com)

When I was last in Tusheti in the summer of 2008 eco- tourism was just taking off and there were just a few Guesthouses and a small number of welcoming Homestays. Since then new Guesthouses appear to be popping up all over Tusheti . With interest from travelers rapidly growing in Tusheti I thought it would be useful to list some of the places I've encountered and others I've recently discovered during conversations with fellow travelers and hard to find information from the web.

The following list is a simple introduction to Homestays in Tusheti plus a basic list of Guesthouses I understand can now be found around Tusheti . Please don't take this list as a recommendation but it might help fellow travelers when attempting to find somewhere to stay and possibly provide a little insight into what we have expewrience as a family. I should add you can read between the lines the places I prefer.

What is the difference between a Guesthouse and a Homestay?

Tusheti now has a number of Guesthouses, these have either been built with government aid ( partially a rumour but I believe this to be the case) such as the Guesthouses in Upper Omalo, Dochu ,Verkhovani and Chesho or built independently as have the Guesthouses in Omalo ,Dartlo , Gogulta and Verkhovani .

Guesthouses are purpose built for tourists and managed by a family or dedicated staff. Rooms are often basic but clean and a shower is invariably provided . In my experience you will not stay directly with the family directly but I'm sure there are exceptions .

A Homestay is very different . One stays directly in your hosts home, a spare room is made up ,you may eat with the family and share their lives directly. The Mother of the household cooks and prepares all your food and you share all the families washing and toilet facilities. I have never experienced a shower in such situations, just a bucket of warm water heated over the fire or Calor gas stove.
On occasions there are blends between a Guesthouse and Homestay such as Lilies house in Gogurlta and possibly Patties house in Verkhovani ,both of which my family thought were excellent. However as time passes I suspect the more casual arrangements at some of the old Gueshouses will have become more professional ...

more here >>>

travelsintusheti.blogspot.com

BIKING: A Caucausus Mountain Bike Adventure in Khevsureti (andy.ride-earth.org.uk)

Tom, David and I went for a bike ride into the Caucasus mountains of Georgia. I’d been planning it for a while and I wanted to get some proper riding in before the snows descended. Tom arrived on the Sunday but leaving was delayed until Tuesday. To pass the time we decided to build up my new Kona Caldera frame, ate Khinkali (Georgian dumplings) and deejayed at a cafe under the big TV tower in Tbilisi.

more text and great photos >>>

PHOTOGRAPHY: Mountain Biking in the Republic of Georgia (flickr.com)

ADVENTURE: Off-Road In The Caucasus Mountains Of Georgia. By Tom Allen (tom.ride-earth.org.uk)

Tom Allen is travelling the world by bicycle, and you can read his story on his blog and watch some videos of the journey on the podcast site.

A shorter excursion than normal, this time into the Greater Caucasus mountains of northern Georgia in autumn, just before the onset of winter in the higher valleys.For more information about mountain-biking in Georgia and the Caucasus visit www.mountainbiking.ge and tom.ride-earth.org.uk

Slideshow: Autumn 2009: Mountain-biking The Caucasus >>>

Last week I travelled to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi to meet Andy for a few days of mountain-biking in the Caucasus mountains to the north of the city.
Andy told me that many people outside the country still think it must be a ‘warzone’. This is probably due to the monumental fuss made by the international media over an incident last year which has become known as the 2008 South Ossetia war. The reality of this war was a few days of localised conflict on the borders of a region which has been fighting for independence for nearly twenty years, but this didn’t stop it being portrayed as the closest thing to World War III (with a good deal of anti-Russian spin for good measure).
Today, a tentative peace prevails. Ethnic groups arbitrarily united and divided by newly-drawn borders still struggle to accept their neighbours and find justice for past wrongs done against them, but it seems that most people would rather harbour their resentments and get on with the business of eating, drinking, working and having families.
We headed out of Tbilisi – me, Andy and his Georgian mountain-biking friend Dato – towards Zhinvali and the small mountain villages of Georgia; square, tin-roofed, wide-terraced houses of bleached wood and crumbling concrete. Vines pulsed with ripe grapes, chickens, calves and sows roamed the little pot-holed tracks, and the trees were just beginning to dust the ground with the oranges and browns of autumn. It was our last chance to go and explore these high, remote valleys before the onset of the harsh Caucasian winter that Andy and I knew all too well.

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REISE: Kaukasus für Mountainbiker 2008

Im Sommer 2007 hatten wir vier erfahrene Testbiker zu Besuch im georgischen Kaukasus und bieten ab Sommer 2008 eine neue Reise an: Kaukasus für Mountainbiker

Die Reise besteht aus 2 Teilen: 1 Woche Großer Kaukasus in Chewsuretien von Tbilissi nach Schatili über den Datvis- Dshvari- Pass von 2648 m und zurück. 1 Woche Kleiner Kaukasus mit Entspannung am Schwarzen Meer.

Reisetermine 2008:

12.07.- 25.07.2008

Mehr Informationen hier bei Kaukasus-Reisen