Georgia has become a genuinely cheap way to have a serious ski holiday, and the two main resorts are so different that choosing between them is easy once you know what they are. Gudauri sits high on the main road north, above the treeline, with long open slopes and the off piste and helicopter skiing that put the country on the map. Bakuriani sits lower, in pine forest, with a real town at the base and a mountain that a family can actually use. Neither is the answer for everybody.
Gudauri
High, above the treeline, with the longest season and the most reliable snow.
Long open slopes, wide and treeless, which is superb in good visibility and hard in cloud.
Off piste and heliskiing, which is the international reputation.
Paragliding, tandem, which is a genuine attraction rather than a novelty.
Two hours from Tbilisi on the main road north.
Thin at the base: hotels and apartment blocks rather than a town.
Bakuriani
Lower and wooded, which means shelter, definition in flat light and shorter seasons.
Gentler terrain, and the better place to learn or to bring children.
A real town at the bottom, with restaurants, shops and a history as a resort.
Near Borjomi, which makes a non skiing day easy.
A narrow gauge railway up from Borjomi, slow and charming.
Around three hours from Tbilisi.
What both share
Low prices, on lift passes, hire, lessons and rooms, against Alpine equivalents.
Variable grooming, which is the honest trade for the price.
Lift queues at weekends, when Tbilisi arrives.
Good instruction available cheaply, including in English at both.
Georgian food at the bottom, which is a real advantage over most ski resorts anywhere.
A season roughly from December to early April, with year to year variation.
Practical notes
Book equipment hire in advance at busy periods rather than turning up.
Check the road status for Gudauri in winter, because the pass above it closes.
Altitude at Gudauri is high enough that a first day feels harder than expected.
Cash is useful at smaller places at both resorts.
Weekends are considerably busier than weekdays at both.
Sunscreen and goggles, because the light at Gudauri is fierce when it is clear.
Where this fits in a Georgia trip
A week at either, or three nights bolted onto a winter city trip.
For choosing the month and what each season delivers, our guide to the best time to visit Georgia covers the year.
For the town below Bakuriani and the spa region around it, our Borjomi and Bakuriani guide covers the area.
And for what the rest of the country is like in the same months, our guide to Georgia in winter covers the season.
The short version
If you want both rather than a choice, our five days on snow in Georgia puts two days at Gudauri, one at Bakuriani with the narrow gauge railway, and a last afternoon in the Tbilisi sulphur baths.
Gudauri if you want big open terrain, the longest season and the off piste the country is known for, and you can afford to lose a day to cloud. Bakuriani if you are learning, bringing children, or have only a few days, because trees give you a skiable mountain in flat light. Both are far cheaper than the Alps and both trade grooming and infrastructure for that. Read your insurance off piste clause before the first lift, and check the road status for Gudauri in winter.
