Batumi Georgia?

Has anyone visited Batumi? We are going on a cruise ship in Oct 2016- looking for possible day trip tours -recommendations? DIY? recommended sights? Worthwhile places outside city to visit?

:confused:

We visited Batumi from a Black Sea cruise with Azamara in 2013. Here is my "story" for that visit from our travelogue that I send to various friends and relations while we are travelling.

***We reached Batumi about 7.30am Thursday morning. Batumi is a port & commercial centre on the Black Sea coast of Georgia. Tourism is important, but there is also agriculture (such as citrus fruit – this is a subtropical zone), food processing, ship building and light manufacturing. Batumi is on the site of an ancient Greek colony. Under Hadrian (117-138AD) it became a fortified Roman port. It was also occupied briefly by the Arabs, then became a principality before joining the unified kingdom of Georgia at the end of the 10th century. In 1878 it was annexed by the Russian Empire. The town expanded rapidly after 1883, when Batumi became the chief Russian oil port on the Black Sea, after the building of a railway line and a pipeline. Unrest during World War I led to Turkey’s re-entry in April 1918, followed by the British, until 1920. Subsequently it was ceded to the Bolsheviks until the collapse of the USSR in the 1990s.

We docked adjacent to the centre of the city, so did not do an organised shore excursion. We enjoyed just wandering on our own. The city is clearly trying to reinvent itself, and is a strange mix of old and new, tatty and elegant. There are many very grand and some very modern design buildings. There is a very wide boulevard along the seafront, stretching for several kilometres, adjacent to what is a very stony beach. Batumi obviously does not attract too many cruise ships, as the locals were very interested in our ship, watching & taking photos, even though by cruiseline standards the Azamara Journey is quite small. People were able to get up very close to the ship. A band played for 40 minutes on the waterfront adjacent to our berth, to farewell us before our departure at 6pm. ***

We Liked Batumi and enjoyed just wandering the city, which has some interesting architecture, but if you want to go out of the centre of the city I recall that we considered the Gonio Fortress and the Botanical Gardens. Both of these feature as commonly visited attractions near Batumi.

Hope this helps!

We visited Batumi from a Black Sea cruise with Azamara in 2013. Here is my "story" for that visit from our travelogue that I send to various friends and relations while we are travelling.

 

***We reached Batumi about 7.30am Thursday morning. Batumi is a port & commercial centre on the Black Sea coast of Georgia. Tourism is important, but there is also agriculture (such as citrus fruit – this is a subtropical zone), food processing, ship building and light manufacturing. Batumi is on the site of an ancient Greek colony. Under Hadrian (117-138AD) it became a fortified Roman port. It was also occupied briefly by the Arabs, then became a principality before joining the unified kingdom of Georgia at the end of the 10th century. In 1878 it was annexed by the Russian Empire. The town expanded rapidly after 1883, when Batumi became the chief Russian oil port on the Black Sea, after the building of a railway line and a pipeline. Unrest during World War I led to Turkey’s re-entry in April 1918, followed by the British, until 1920. Subsequently it was ceded to the Bolsheviks until the collapse of the USSR in the 1990s.

We docked adjacent to the centre of the city, so did not do an organised shore excursion. We enjoyed just wandering on our own. The city is clearly trying to reinvent itself, and is a strange mix of old and new, tatty and elegant. There are many very grand and some very modern design buildings. There is a very wide boulevard along the seafront, stretching for several kilometres, adjacent to what is a very stony beach. Batumi obviously does not attract too many cruise ships, as the locals were very interested in our ship, watching & taking photos, even though by cruiseline standards the Azamara Journey is quite small. People were able to get up very close to the ship. A band played for 40 minutes on the waterfront adjacent to our berth, to farewell us before our departure at 6pm. ***

 

We Liked Batumi and enjoyed just wandering the city, which has some interesting architecture, but if you want to go out of the centre of the city I recall that we considered the Gonio Fortress and the Botanical Gardens. Both of these feature as commonly visited attractions near Batumi.

Hope this helps!

Thank you so much for the insight into this city. Sounds like a delightful place. What currency do they use?

We will be on the Prinsendam so also a smaller ship. Looking forward to the adventure.

Avril

In 2014 my husband and I were on a Vantage Black Sea cruise which spent a day in Batumi. We were given a city walking tour which encompassed some of the highlights. We really liked Batumi, especially St. Nichols Orthodox Church, which was a visual feast. Built in 1885, it is the only such church in the city to have survived the communist regime and is still an active place of worship.

After the city tour, we were bussed to the Fortress of Gonio, close to town. Some believe the Apostle Mathew is entombed there. Roman baths and 1st century water pipelines had been excavated and all this hard-scape was offset by a profusion of flowering plants and arbors. Just lovely plus there was an interesting museum on site.

I would also like to second the other poster's comments about the local population. They were so excited to see our vessel arrive. Bathers in the sea even started a group "wave" in our honor.

In 2014 my husband and I were on a Vantage Black Sea cruise which spent a day in Batumi. We were given a city walking tour which encompassed some of the highlights. We really liked Batumi, especially St. Nichols Orthodox Church, which was a visual feast. Built in 1885, it is the only such church in the city to have survived the communist regime and is still an active place of worship.

After the city tour, we were bussed to the Fortress of Gonio, close to town. Some believe the Apostle Mathew is entombed there. Roman baths and 1st century water pipelines had been excavated and all this hard-scape was offset by a profusion of flowering plants and arbors. Just lovely plus there was an interesting museum on site.

I would also like to second the other poster's comments about the local population. They were so excited to see our vessel arrive. Bathers in the sea even started a group "wave" in our honor.

Thanks for your insight as well. It looks like we will have a lovely day there.

Avril

Georgia has it's own currency, the lari, or GEL. We had no local currency and did not actually want to spend anything while ashore, so I can't say whether they were willing to take other currencies. I have read that locals only want to take lari, and there are plenty of ATMs available, but I can't say we noticed, as we were not looking for one!

We visited for a day in 2014, when the Regent seven seas Mariner added this as a port after pulling out of Sochi and the Crimean ports. It was a fascinating day with a tour of the city and fort in the morning and then a trip to the botanical gardens in the afternoon. We felt like pioneers with everybody starring at the Mariner when it docked in the centre of town, they do not get many cruise ships here. The town is an odd mix of old and very new with lots of western investment in new buildings, hotels and casinos. They seem to be trying to make this the Las Vegas of the caucuses with attracting in the rich Russians and Turks, in both countries I believe gambling is officially banned.

There were weird new buildings like an upside down house , as if inverted by an earthquake, the tower by the quay with the unique Georgian letters and obvious 'new' money. We went to the Nobel museum, which was surrounded by the typical Eastern bloc apartments, very shabby.

The guides were keen but just kept to the script, not able or willing to answer questions and gave some insights to the country, but from a narrow point of view.They kept stressing the Christian nature of the country, this was suppressed in soviet times and made many pro west ,anti Russian comments. As we were on Regent, the trips were all inclusive and the guides worked for the state tourist company.

Two issues:

1- ladies should wear a skirt, dress especially if visiting the Cathedral as the wearing of trousers/ shorts is disapproved. The Christianity is a branch of Eastern orthodox with some catholic rites.

2- money, they use a local Georgian lek, other currencies are rarely accepted. We were with many US tourists who were hamstrung as no local currency, few had Euros ( I did and bought a few postcards/ souvenirs) howler US$ were not wanted. We did suggest that next time a trip to an ATM's would have given us a chance to support the local economy and buy stuff. Regent noted this should they return. Credit card use seemed limited at stalls etc

In the afternoon , a hot day, we walked the gardens top to bottom a good long 2 mile walk , the café at the end only took local Georgian money, no ATM's, cc's etc. I managed to get a beer for €5, well above the real cost as had a couple of Euros notes in back pocket, was refreshing and felt guilty as the only person who could buy. Beer was great, but alarmed to see it was 7% strong, 2/3 of those and you will not make it back.

You will enjoy a unique day, enjoy.

Sorry auto-write kicked in , it is Lari as currency.

Forgot the band who played as we docked at 7am, to the annoyance of those in adjacent cabins, we thought it was great, and laughed when we heard there had been complaints about being woken up, by this , although I did point out we were Brits when they played the star spangled banner as we disembarked.

Batumi is a wonderful place. We spent 3 days there two years ago. Georgia is very very pro west. Why would they not be as a portion of the country is occupied by Russia. In soviet times Batumi was not even an important port.

I is a great place to walk around. The Muslim section has some nice Turkish restaurants but you will get better. I recommend you find the local heart attack on a plate Ajara katchupuri. Quite a dish.

Enjoy a place few people get to visit. Oh, good restaurants will take you CC.

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Has anyone visited Batumi? We are going on a cruise ship in Oct 2016- looking for possible day trip tours -recommendations? DIY? recommended sights? Worthwhile places outside city to visit?

:confused:

We visited Batumi on our Black Sea cruise with Azamara Journey in 2013. Batumi was one of my favorite ports during that cruise. It is a lovely city, where history meets modern times ... a very historic and thriving resort town.

We took the local bus to the Hagia Sophia and then to the Botanical Garden, then made our way back to the city center and waterfront promenade. Found a cute little cafe/market for some wine tasting too!

We loved Batumi. It was a very pleasant surprise :)

Here is the post from my live thread at the time (in case it helps)

Batumi, Georgia. I don't know what I expected but it sure wasn't this! What a beautiful little spot. Batumi only gained freedom from Communism in 1991 and what they have done is simply amazing. This is a very popular spot in the summer time and this city has had the brains to hace a little cruise port rather than haVe you dock with the tankers and containers. They are in a separate spot.

 

There is a gorgeous sea front promenade that stretches forever with wonderful flowers, trees, statues, bamboo forest, etc. Wonderful spots for children. The water is still warm....around 23 degrees, but do watch out for the jelly fish.

 

The city is clean and bright and the government and city are working hard to eliminate the starkness that the So it's brought and modernizing with beautiful, different buildings. It is truly incredible.

 

Today we had a private tour that Pat (nanonano) had arranged with Batumi Travel. These people simply could not do enough for us and we're anxious to show us their city with they were very proud of as well as a good time. The history of the city is interesting as well and I can't help but admire the people's fortitude here.

 

We have arrived in the slow season when most of the tourists are gone and being the only ship in port we had the pleasure of enjoying the calm and quiet after the rush and the hub but of Istanbul. Amazingly, we visited ruins that have only been uncovered after Batumi gained its freedom, otherwise it would have most likely been destroyed. Found there was a grave which is thought to be the grave of the apostle Matthew.

The statue of Medea holding the Golden Fleece is incredible. This is said to be the original home of the fleece and Medea helped the Argonaults get it. The Greeks believe that the fleece belonged to them and Batumi believes it was stolen from them. It is intriguing to hear the different sides of the story and see the connection as we go from port to port.

 

After our wonderful tour (which by the way cost a whole $20 USD pp) 6 of us stopped at a restaurant recommended by Maia, our guide which was quite close to the port. We we win the only tourists in the restaurant as far as I could tell. We all ordered some Georgian food and YUMMY! Couldn't believe how much we got for the price. DH ordered a type of meat pie, but unlike what we would see at home. The pastry was light and flaky without falling apart. We all took a taste and gave it a huge thumbs up. Gigianne ordered some picked veggies for us all to share (DH got the hot peppers by a unanimous vote). I ordered curd but it was unlike curd at home, a bit sour, but it was delicious when I dipped my crab fajita type sandwich into it. Al and Marlane had these a salad and a type of stew. Both of them were served in a type of bowl ace out of bread. The bread was freshly baked and wonderful. It was a great meal for just a few lari.

 

Lari is Georgia's currency. We couldn't get it before coming and any you are left with cannot be cashed in, so we paid for a souvenir and our lunch with Visa. No problem at all. The little shop at the museum where the old garrison ruins were does take US$ and if you do go, take a look there. They had a couple of very unique things that most of our group liked and. Bought at a very reasonable price (a handcrafted bowl typical of Georgia) which you will not find anywhere else.

 

On our way back to the ship there was a vendor at the gangway selling a few souvenirs and wine! While on tour I have discovered that Georgia makes excellent wine. We're not here every day so.......corkage fee I paid.

 

So, if you are looking at an itinerary with Batumi on it, I hope you find it as enchanting as we all did.

 

I found out later that just 4 years ago after they were bombed in 2008, it looked pretty desolate. They have done a phenomenal job of recovering. Apparently the casinos help foot the tab.

 

Oh, and for you animal lovers, while they have strays, they are tagged

And taken care of by the Government. Gotta like that!

 

Live from the Prinsendam sailing on the Black Sea.

We were on the Prinsendam in 2014 with Jacqui. We did not do an organized tour. We walked off the ship and walked for an hour or so into town. There is a big ugly modern hotel near the cruise port, and we found and exchange booth inside the hotel. I exchanged $50 US for about 200 lari. We walked to a large public park along the waterfront. Since we were walking before noon, no restaurants were open. We were the only cruise ship in port. We shopped our way back. The women in our group bought textiles and knit goods. The vendors were willing to take Euros, but not US dollars. I walked through several grocery stores to try to get a feel for everyday Georgian life, and picked up snacks and candy in case we had food shortages on board. Few people spoke English, French or Spanish (the languages of our group), but we managed to communicate. We stopped for a late lunch at a restaurant in a courtyard near our ship. We had grilled pork skewers (Georgia not being a Muslim country), a cabbage soup, and dumplings filled with meat and vegetables. We had several bottles of local beer and a tasty white white. Total bill for four persons was about $60 US and they took our Visa card. We spent the remainder of our lari for little trinkets from the dock side vendor. We were back on the ship by 3 PM after a six hours on shore. I am glad to have spent time walking the city to see the vestiges of pre WWII construction, Soviet buildings of the post war era and the modern design.