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Georgia Atsunta Pass Trek

The flower bouquet trek of Georgia

Dates full? Check out our trek in Kyrgyzstan, which climbs to a stunning blue alpine lake!View Ala-Kul trek in Kyrgyzstan

Trek Difficulty

Moderate - Difficult

Trek Duration

7 Days

Highest Altitude

11,581 ft

The flower bouquet trek of Georgia

The Atsunta Pass trek, we believe, is the greatest trek in Georgia. We don’t say this without reason. The trek passes through the most breathtaking mountainscape of the Caucasus Mountains. 

The grasslands, for which the trek is famous, are perfectly landscaped. They extend as far as your eyes can reach. The lush greenery of these grasslands, with wildflowers growing almost every inch, is something so unique to the Atsunta Pass trek. These wildflowers extend not for a few hundred metres but for kilometres together!

Nestled in these grasslands are the charming Georgian villages that give you an insight into the culture. At Omalo and Dartlo, you stay in these villages, experience the warm hospitality and delicious local food. 

In addition to the villages, the ruins of ancient fortresses decorate the entire remote trail. These are not just heritage but history, many centuries old. While you marvel at these towers jutting out of the grasslands, at Dartlo, you even get to explore one.   

The trek is open only for a short window, from July to September. This is when the snow and rain are less, making the pass accessible. The meadows are at their greenest in July and transition to golden towards September.

The thrill of climbing the high Atsunta Pass is pure adventure. Not many treks in Europe give you the high of a pass crossing as much as the Atsunta Pass. It is no less than any high-altitude Himalayan pass crossing. The landscape shifts dramatically from lush green grasslands to moraine terrain. The changes in the scenery during the pass crossing are stunning.

The drive before and after the trek are as thrilling as the trek itself. You drive to the country parts of Georgia on the bone-jarring dirt tracks. But the scenery on both sides compensates for that. You wouldn’t want to close your eyes, even for a second. The drive and the trek combined give you a unique experience of crossing a mountain pass before, during, and after the trek. This is a rarity on any trek.

Most people have not heard of Georgia, but when you get there, you will be somewhat taken aback. Georgia in itself is worth visiting. The history, tradition, and culture are vibrant. Tbilisi, the capital, is modern and yet holds on to its deep roots. Theatre, music, and the arts are thriving. There is a lot of heritage to see and discover. The food is delicious and wonderful. Georgians are extremely warm and friendly. For us Indians, it is amazing how affordable everything is. 

Please note that the experience of this trek will be different from a typical Indiahikes experience:

  • The trek will be run in an assisted Do-It-Yourself (DIY) style: This means we are going to be doing the trek all by ourselves, without the regular Indiahikes support team. In terms of safety, our highly trained Trek Leaders will be with you. You will not have to carry any tents or sleeping bags but you have to help with cooking meals and pitching tents, including toilet tents.
  • The food will be different: You may not find your usual Indiahikes food. Instead, you will be served good Georgian cuisine. On camp days, the food will be Indian.
  • Apart from these, you can expect to see our own tents, our toilet tents and our Green Trails practices.

The Atsunta Pass trek, we believe, is the greatest trek in Georgia. We don’t say this without reason. The trek passes through the most breathtaking mountainscape of the Caucasus Mountains. 

The grasslands, for which the trek is famous, are perfectly landscaped. They extend as far as your eyes can reach. The lush greenery of these grasslands, with wildflowers growing almost every inch, is something so unique to the Atsunta Pass trek. These wildflowers extend not for a few hundred metres but for kilometres together!

Atsunta Pass - Complete Trek Information

We have always wanted trekkers to be well-informed before they go on a High-Altitude trek. Knowledge is the difference between a safe trek and a dangerous one. It’s also the difference between a wholesome experience and a superficial experience.

Use this section to learn about the Atsunta Pass trek. It has in-depth information about each day of the trek, what to expect, and how you need to prepare for it. Many years of expertise have gone into this content. Trekkers find that extremely useful.

Trek Videos
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Expert Speak

Swathi Chatrapathy, Chief Editor

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Swathi Chatrapathy, Chief Editor

Swathi Chatrapathy heads the digital content team at Indiahikes. She is also the face behind India's popular trekking video channel, Trek With Swathi.
A TEDx speaker and a frequent guest at other events, Swathi is a much sought after resource for her expertise in digital content. Here, Swathi shares her experience of the Atsunta Pass trek.

What I Liked About Atsunta Pass Trek

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Swathi Chatrapathy, Chief Editor

Swathi Chatrapathy heads the digital content team at Indiahikes. She is also the face behind India's popular trekking video channel, Trek With Swathi. A TEDx speaker and a frequent guest at other events, Swathi is a much sought after resource for her expertise in digital content. Here, Swathi shares her experience of the Atsunta Pass trek.

1. The lovely mountain villages that we stayed in

It's hard not to fall in love with the villages you see on the trek, starting right from Omalo, going through Dartlo, Girevi, Pharsma, Shatili and Mutso. They are not just villages. They are living, breathing archeological sites. They are centuries old — many of them nestled within the ruins of old fortresses and towers. With the astounding grasslands around them, the villages themselves are a sight on the trek.  

You stay overnight in two of these villages, in old Georgian homes. The hosts, locals of the region who live in these villages throughout summer, make you feel warm and pampered. With almost motherly care, they feed you their delicious homemade kachapuris, khinkalis, breads, and fresh jams until you are bursting at the seams.

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2. The flower bouquet trails

If there's one thing that is different from most Indian trails in Georgia, it is this. Come July and August, you will see the every inch of the trail exploding with flowers. It doesn't stop anywhere, except for a few hundred metres near the pass. So dense are the flowers, that if you sweep your arm across the grasslands and clutch your palm together, you'll have a bouquet in your hand. 

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3. The manicured meadows and grasslands

This trek is known for its grasslands. And it does not disappoint. It is hard to find such perfectly landscaped grasslands. They stretch out far and wide and on a good day, sun rays light up the grasslands in a grand way. This is when you see the grasslands in all their splendour, with wildflowers and glowing beds of grass!

Once you exit Dartlo, you will see the grasslands transforming into soft, manicured meadows. The sheer expanse from left to right, with the Alazani river flowing in between is hard to take in at a glance. 

Look out especially for the trek from Girevi to Atsunta Base Camp. It is a very long day and thank heavens it is. It is a perfect showcase of the grasslands.

After you cross the Atsunta pass, the Khidotani meadows can make anyone weak in the knees. It is laid out over a ridge top, something rare to see.

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4. The Atsunta Pass crossing

This pass crossing is as thrilling as any Himalayan pass crossing. Right from the base of the climb, where you see the pass as a tiny speck, to finally reaching and crossing over the pass is exhilarating! Not many treks in Europe have such a spectacular pass crossing. The landscape changes dramatically with every meter. Within a few hundred feet you leave the grasslands behind and enter the stone and shale. It is almost too dramatic.

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5. The fortresses in the sky

It's common knowledge that Eastern European countries like Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary are full of mysterious castles and fortresses. Georgia is no less. The entire trail is dotted with ancient fortresses and towers hanging in the sky. At Dartlo, you get a chance to trek to one of these towers and explore the insides. With wind whistling through the walls of the tower and clouds passing in and out of the windows, it's an experience that can send shivers down your spine.

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6. The drive to the basecamp and back, over two mountain passes 

On most treks, the drive to the basecamp is not much of a highlight. But here's something interesting: many tourists come to Georgia just to do the mountain drives that we do while driving to the basecamp. Because along these drives, you are climbing high mountain passes, which climb above 9,000 ft! 

On your onward drive from Tbilisi to Omalo, you drive across the Abano Pass, crossing several vineyards on the way. It's a pleasure to see the countryside of Georgia. 

While returning, it is a long 4½ hour journey over bad roads most of the way. The good part is the superb scenery all along, especially the stunning Datvisjvari pass. It is one last time you’ll see the green Georgian grassland.

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7.  Meeting Russian, Polish, and many other international trekkers

The Omalo-Shatili trail across Atsunta Pass is right at the border between Georgia and Russia. As a result, it attracts several keen trekkers from across the border, making the trail a wonderful place to see trekking culture from other countries. Interacting with them, seeing how they camp, and chatting about their experiences and their viewpoints on trekking is an eye-opening experience.

8. Experiencing the European side of Georgia, at Indian costs

When you land at Liberty Square in Tbilisi, the Capital City of Georgia, you can easily mistake it for a European hub like Berlin or Praguesh . The city is bustling with a sense of modernity, elegance, and polish that you see in the most developed cities of Europe. It's wonderful to experience this modernity, without spending the big Euros that Western Europe costs you. 

This modernity wears off to an extent as you dive deeper into the veins of the city. But there is still a sense of urban luxury almost everywhere you go, with modern restaurants, nail salons, supermarkets, and fast cars all along the capital city.

9. The mouth-watering Georgian cuisine

As Indians, we love flavorful food. While most Western countries fall short by a mile in terms of flavours, Georgia sets a completely different precedent. The food here is delicious, and often, it closely resembles Indian cuisine. Even though bread is a part of their staple diet, they stuff their breads with delicious fillings. Some must trie dishes are kinkhali (dumplings), kachapuri (cheese-filled bread), lobio (made with beans).

Not to mention the copious amounts of fruits they grow, right from grapes to pomegranates (which you can literally pluck off the streets), apples and berries, a fruit-lover will never want to leave Georgia.

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Leaving Mountains Better

Green Trails is our promise to leave the mountains better. We have removed over 1 lakh kilos of waste left behind by others on trekking trails. Yet this is a small percentage of what we do. Green Trails dives into reducing use of resources, reducing our carbon footprint and bringing about a change in the daily practices of our trekkers too.

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