National Geographic Travel magazine to include Georgia in guidebook of 100 best destinations

An upcoming National Geographic Travel magazine guidebook will feature Georgia among the top 100 destinations around the world, the Georgian National Tourism Administration announced on Thursday.

The GNTA said Joe Yogerst, a journalist of the publication, was visiting the country to explore its tourist attractions for inclusion in the guidebook, and had already captured visitor interests in the capital city of Tbilisi.

Uplistsikhe. Photo by Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge

The visiting travel reporter was also hosted at the popular tourist spot of central Georgia’s Uplistsikhe cave town, recognised as one of the oldest settlements of the South Caucasus. 

"Tbilisi is a European city with very beautiful architecture of different periods, including modern style. I liked Georgian dishes very much, especially Khinkali”, Yogerst said in impressions on the first part of his visit.

“The first cultural heritage monument I visited after Tbilisi is Uplistsikhe. I thought this place was smaller, however I discovered that it was a cave town where both dwellings and shrines were arranged. I would recommend everyone to come to Georgia and visit these places'', he noted.

Stepantsminda. Photo by Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge

In the remaining legs of the visit, Yogert will visit the hilltop Gergeti Trinity Church in northern Georgia’s Kazbegi municipality, before also travelling to the eastern winemaking province of Kakheti to learn about the long-standing wine producing tradition in the locality.