9 festive experiences to enjoy in Tbilisi this Christmas

Combining Georgia’s deep religious roots and a passion for letting loose, you won’t want to miss out on Tbilisi’s city-wide Christmas celebrations.

Few cities celebrate Christmas with as much gusto as Tbilisi.

The holiday period is the perfect time to visit Georgia – one of the world’s oldest Christian nations – with Orthodox traditions showcased alongside vibrant European-style markets, cultural events, and extravagant fireworks displays. The festive season starts in mid-December and lasts until the first weeks of January, with December 31st the biggest night on the calendar. Here are nine unforgettable experiences to have in Tbilisi this Christmas.

Credit: Tbilisi Tourism Board

1. Take part in the Alilo Christmas procession

The ritual of Alilo captures the spirit of Christmas and the values of faith, generosity and giving. Held on Orthodox Christmas Day (which, according to the Julian Calendar, falls on January 7th, a fortnight after Western Christmas), Alilo marches take place all over the country, with the biggest procession in the capital.

Starting in the early afternoon from First Republic Square, thousands of people gather to walk in unison down the streets of Old Tbilisi dressed in religious garments and festive costumes. Floats and bull-drawn carts join the cavalcade. Led by members of the clergy bearing flags and banners, Alilo participants hold out baskets to collect chocolates, churchkhela (a sweet treat made from nuts and grape juice) and other foodstuffs from onlookers, later donating them to families in need. Anyone is welcome to observe or join the parade, which winds its way through the city before culminating at Sameba Cathedral.

2. See a puppet show

Winter is the peak of Tbilisi’s cultural season, when ballerinas grace the stage for performances of The Nutcracker and music recitals ring out from the State Conservatoire almost every day of the week. For a uniquely Tbilisian night out, visit the Rezo Gabriadze Marionette Theatre in Kala Old Town, where tales inspired by regional history and Georgian folklore are acted out with elaborate puppets and whimsical stage sets.

The playbill rotates between half a dozen different productions, with Alfred and Violetta – a local take on Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata set in Mtatsminda District – a favourite. Gabriadze, the Kutaisi-born playwright behind the stories, was also responsible for creating the theatre and the adjoining Clock Tower, a symbol of the city pieced together with materials salvaged from old houses. English subtitles are provided, and tickets are available online or at the box office. Get in early, as Christmas shows always sell out.

Credit: Tbilisi Tourism Board

Credit: Shutterstock

3. Visit the Christmas markets

Christmas markets and festive villages appear all over Old Tbilisi in the weeks leading up to December 31st. The main market is held on Orbeliani Square and features an open-air food court where you can find everything from gourmet hotdogs to mtsvadi (local barbecue) and mulled Georgian Saperavi wine. It also has an ice skating rink, and a stage for nightly concerts. A second Christmas village is staged in the riverside Dedaena Park and features more food stalls plus a kids’ zone with Santa Claus’s house and various activities.

Meanwhile on Rustaveli Avenue, downtown Tbilisi’s main thoroughfare, the STALL Street Market showcases local entrepreneurs and artisans. This is a great place to pick up a traditional Christmas gift or souvenir such as a lurji supra (blue-and-white printed tablecloth), cloisonne enamel jewellery, leather goods or felt crafts. The markets are at their liveliest in the late afternoon and evening.

4. Enjoy an open-air movie screening

Winters in Tbilisi are typically mild. While you can expect a dusting of snow towards the end of the season, December’s blue-sky days and brisk evenings are still suitable for spending time outdoors. There are several open-air cinemas in the city where you can don a blanket, grab a glass of Georgian vino and settle in to watch a film under the stars. The Fabrika Cine-Club is held on the rooftop of the popular hostel complex and screens arthouse movies, contemporary documentaries and independent productions from emerging filmmakers. Cinema Mziuri in Vake neighbourhood’s Mziuri Park shows family-friendly films in English and is free to attend. If you would rather be indoors, Cinemaholics plays world cinema flicks twice a day, the Cinema Hall at the National Archives shows classics from their repository of Georgian pictures, and Tbilisi Movie Nights combines film screenings with a special themed set dinner menu for an immersive experience.

Credit: Alamy

5. See the lights on Rustaveli Avenue

The dazzling light displays that take over Tbilisi’s streets and squares are the centrepiece of Christmas. In years past, the entire length of Rustaveli Avenue has been adorned with thousands of dangling star-shaped lamps, illuminating some of the capital’s most iconic landmarks including the Neo-Moorish Opera and Ballet Theatre, the Soviet-era post office and telegraph building, and the ultra-modern Biltmore Hotel towers. St. George’s monument in Freedom Square is draped in string lights, and other major thoroughfares – including Atoneli Street, Gudiashvili Square, Kostava Street and Chavchavadze Avenue – receive their own displays themed around world landmarks or galactic stars and planets.

On the opposite bank of the river, you can see lights twinkling in front of Aghmashenebeli Avenue’s restored Art Nouveau facades. The switch is flicked in the middle of December to coincide with the grand unveiling of the Tbilisi Christmas Tree, which is erected in front of the Parliament building on Rustaveli Avenue.

6. Warm up with festive Georgian foods

Christmas is traditionally a time to spend with family, which in Georgian culture means plenty of feasting. The national cuisine features a gamut of hearty dishes – meaty stews, brothy soups, rich dairy-based sides – that are made for winter. Look out for Guruli khachapuri, a special crescent-shaped Christmas version of Georgia’s famous ‘cheese bread’ that is stuffed with soft curds and hard-boiled eggs. Suckling pork with spicy ajika, and satsivi, a dish of turkey or chicken in a chilled walnut sauce, are always prepared for the family New Year table and have made their way onto restaurant menus around Tbilisi. Nigvziani badrijani, charred aubergine wrapped around walnut paste and topped with pomegranate jewels, and pkhali, a vegan pâté made by blending vegetables with walnuts, are always eaten at this time of year, too. For a sweet treat, diamond-shaped gozinaki is a traditional Christmas sweet made of walnuts or hazelnuts set in chewy honey brittle.

Traditional Guruli khachapuri (Alamy)

Traditional Guruli khachapuri (Alamy)

7. Admire Tbilisi’s unique Chichilaki Christmas trees

While it’s common to see spruce trees decorating Tbilisi, Georgia has its own traditional Christmas tree called a Chichilaki. These curious characters are fashioned from the dry branches of hazelnut or walnut trees, shaved down to form curly strips. (Some say the texture references the bushy beard of St. Basil, whose feast day is on January 1st.) Chichilaki come in all different shapes and sizes – from tiny dashboard-sized trees to shoulder-high giants – and might be decorated with coloured ribbons or strung with candies and dried fruit. A beautiful arrangement of Chichilaki trees can be seen at the Presidential Palace on Orbeliani Square.

You can buy your own at the Dezerter Bazaar, Tbilisi’s main agricultural market. On the eve of Orthodox Epiphany (January 19th), it is customary to set fire to your Chichilaki. In Georgian culture, burning the tree symbolises letting go of the previous year’s troubles and misfortunes to usher in a new beginning.

Credit: Alamy

8. Search for treasure at the Dry Bridge Market

The Dry Bridge Market is a sidewalk flea bazaar that takes place 365 days a year. At Christmastime, you will see retro holiday decorations, tree ornaments and greeting cards mixed in with the usual array of ephemera. Retro vinyl records, vintage cameras and wristwatches, second-hand ceramics and silverware, old maps and posters, medals and other military memorabilia – even antique kilims and carpets – can all be found amongst the jumble.

Vendors set up along the bridge and the adjacent streets, displaying their wares from old suitcases and car boots. A clear December afternoon is the ideal time to browse the aisles – and if something catches your eye, don’t be afraid to bargain. In the neighbouring 9 March Park, a handicraft market offers painters’ canvases, panduri stringed instruments, hand-knitted socks, and a range of other original items. The Dry Bridge traces its history back to the 1990s and is a Tbilisi institution.

Credit: Shutterstock

9. Witness incredible firework displays

The snap and crackle of fireworks is the soundtrack to the holidays in Tbilisi. With firecrackers readily available at markets, everyone gets in on the action. Things come to a head on the night of December 31st, when a raucous display of fireworks launched from street corners, rooftops and even apartment windows illuminates the skies above the city.

Come midnight, the best vantage point to watch the light show is from the top of one of Tbilisi’s many hills. Ride the funicular to Mtatsminda Park, climb the stairs to Sololaki Ridge, or stake out a table at one of the numerous rooftop bars and restaurants in the Old Town. A stage set at the top of Rustaveli Avenue is the venue for a New Year’s Eve gala concert, which features traditional music and dance ahead of the midnight countdown. A second, smaller fireworks extravaganza takes place on Orthodox Old New Year’s Eve, January 13th.