Hotel Tricks

The key tip here is in the choice of room. Since the hotel lies within a high-traffic area, noise pollution remains its biggest potential drawback. When checking in, explicitly ask for a room at the back of the building or facing some internal courtyard-if available. The front rooms towards the main street and bus station area will catch all engine noises from marshrutkas and market vendors as early as 7:00 am. If there is no such thing as a quiet room left then good earplugs equals good sleep.

Have breakfast outside, somewhere along the same street as your hotel. Something hot and fresh coming out of a clay oven in one of those bakeries shotis puri or khachapuri will do much better than any bland hotel meal. Waking up to grab a lobiani for less than 3 GEL is both delicious and authentic-at least until you have to argue with a taxi driver over "tourist prices" being quoted near the station. Find where locals are lined up for food.

And keep some cash handy. Didube is still very much a cash economy. Your hotel may accept your card payment, but all those market stalls around the area offer pastries and goodies of every description, plus Marshrutka drivers when you are ready to head up into the mountains-all insist on being paid in GEL (Georgian Lari) currency only! No worries though because there seem to be as many ATMs and currency exchange places near the metro station as anywhere else; probably better rates here than at either airport or Old Town tourist areas too. This is where you break big bills before heading out toward Kazbegi or any other remote area.