I was in Georgia between the 17th of September and the 7th of October 2022 and then again between 16-20 of October. The currency in Georgia is Lari and prices are relatively cheap.
However, the period when I visited was marked by the announced Russian mobilization for the war in Ukraine, which led to many new Russian emigrants entering Georgia and jacking up the prices.
Prices were thus higher than I expected.
Read on to find out how much you need for a backpacker’s budget for Georgia.
Accommodation
Accommodation in hostels varies between 8 euro and 16 euro. I paid for 17 nights in hostels and guesthouses
I spent 2 nights in mountain guesthouses in the Svaneti region, which were definitely quite expensive (29 euro with breakfast and dinner included).
Total accommodation cost came to around 157 euro making the average 6.04 euro per night in total or 9.24 if you only count the nights I actually paid for.
The rest of the nights I spent Couchsurfing with hosts in Batumi and Tbilisi. Thanks, guys!
Food
Food in Georgia can be cheap, but also quite expensive.
Tbilisi is definitely more expensive than the rest of the country.
Shawarmas are readily sold on the street for between 3 and 5 euro, while simple khachapuris will set you back just 1-2 euros.
In total, I spent 179 euro making the average 6.88 euro per day.
Yeah, I didn’t eat a lot in expensive restaurants in Tbilisi where a meal can cost you 6-15 euros.
Transport
For transport, I mainly used public buses and marshrutkas.
In total, I paid 107 euro for transport, including the train to Armenia, which at 30 euro was the bulk of the transport expenses.
The average daily cost came out to 4.12 euro.
Insurance
For travel insurance, I use Safety Wings, which provides a subscription model of insurance best for long-term travelers. Their premiums are the best on the market and the claims process is simple and streamlined.
It cost me 42 USD for 4 weeks, so 26 days are ~39 euro or ~1.5 euro per day.
Culture and Activities
There are quite a lot of museums to visit in Georgia.
The caves and corresponding museums around Kutaisi are quite expensive at around 8 euros per entrance.
The National Museum in Tbilisi cost 11 euros, so I skipped that. I was pretty tired of museums at this point, don’t judge – there are many free things to do in Tbilisi.
In total, I paid 26 euros for entrance fees. The average cost per day comes to 1 euro.
Other
Everything else not covered above I consider incidental expenses.
I needed winter shoes which I managed to buy for about 40 euros and I broke the back panel of my smartphone, so I had it fixed for 28 euros.
In total, I paid 78 euro or average per day: 2.96 euro.
A Backpacker’s Budget for Georgia
| Accommodation | 157 euro |
| Food | 179 euro |
| Transport | 107 euro |
| Travel Insurance | 39 euro |
| Culture | 26 euro |
| Other | 78 euro |
| TOTAL | 586 euro |
In total, I spent 586 euro for 26 days, which makes the average 22.54 euro per day.