Bakuriani

Bakuriani (Georgian ბაკურიანი ) is a resort in the Georgian region of Samtskhe - Javakheti administration. It is located at 1,700 m above sea level. NN on the northern slope of the Trialeti mountain range in the Lesser Caucasus. He is considered Georgia's winter sports capital. In summer it is popular with walkers.

The place is surrounded by coniferous forests, in which the Caucasus spruce dominated. It lies in the Bakuriani Valley, which is called a caldera. The floor is made of lava from the volcano Mucheri. The climate is relatively humid. The summers are long and hot, winters are cold. From November to fall up to 64 cm of snow. The average annual temperature is 4.3 ° C. In January the average temperature is -7.3 ° C, August 15 ° C. The annual rainfall is 734 mm.

Hotels were built in Bakuriani Already at the beginning of the 20th century. 1901 joined the Georgian Railway the tourist destination by a small train on narrow gauge rails with the Borjomi spa town, 30 km away. The route leads through the Gudsaretis - Tskali Gorge. During Soviet times were added sanatoriums and rest homes. The buildings were privatized after Georgia's independence in 1991 and now modernized. Georgia's new upper class pompous villas has been built.

In winter, the place is home to around 2,000 holidaymakers. The white season starts in November and ends in March. Difficulty of downhill runs at the local mountain Kochta Gora (Eng. Beautiful mountain, 2255 m above sea level. NN ) is mild to medium. The slopes usually have towing or chairlifts. There is a ski jump. In addition to ski and snowboard rental and snowmobile, horse carriage rides and horseback riding are available in the resort.

Founded in 1910, The Botanic Garden of Bakuriani is 17 hectares. It shows about 1,200 alpine plants from different regions Caucasus, about 300 plants from Asia and 66 different Caucasian trees and exotic plants. Since 1937 it is managed by the Georgian Academy of Sciences.

Above Bakurianis runs the Baku -Tbilisi -Ceyhan pipeline. Because the place is at the same time in an earthquake region, the route is controversial among environmentalists.