Caucasus

Wow, this looks like a great trip! Georgia was one of our most favorite trips- we only had 10 days and focused on Tbilisi, Kahketi, and Kazbegi (Stepantsminda). Have you checked out the Wander-Lush travel blog? She is an absolute wealth of information.

Do not miss the monasteries in northern Armenia. We did this as a day trip from Tbilisi. Haghpat was our favorite. We also really liked Davit Gareja Monastery on the border between Georgia and Azerbaijan- the latter side was closed. We did not go into the rest of Armenia or any of Azerbaijan. You need to be careful which order you visit the countries in due to the ongoing dispute.

Driving distances are much longer than you think. We rented a car and actually felt much safer when we were driving than when others' were. It was a full day drive from Tibilisi to Kazbegi. The roads in Kazbegi are atrocious but I didn't think the Georgia Military Highway was as bad as expected. We're used to driving in Jordan, though, which helps.

All three have been on my radar for years. There are direct / discount flights from where I live to all three. Azerbaijan will probalby be first. Maybe this year, so please do post your final plans and a trip report.

From the research I have done, looks like I could enjoy 3 nights in Baku, but the places outside of Baku scream to be visited and it looks to be another 7 nights.

I suspect when i dig down into Georgia and Armenia I will find the same need for 10 days to two weeks each. But as mentioned in the previous post, I need to find out if having a passport stamp into Azerbaijan or Georgia causes a problem entering Armenia or vise versa. No idea.

In all three for what a private tour guide costs, thats the way I would do it. Just so much easier. I have started collecting names and websites for that.

We are on the verge of signing up for a tour of these 3 countries with a company called Wild Frontier. A UK company with max 12 people. I think public transport is difficult in these countries so while we would prefer to travel independently, to see these 3 we like this tour option.

Gate 1 Travel has a good looking tour of Georgia and Armenia.

How safe are those countries. Is Armenia still having a conflict with the Azeris?

How safe are those countries. Is Armenia still having a conflict with
the Azeris?

Last time i checked, waiting to explode again
https://theconversation.com/armenia-and-azerbaijan-are-at-loggerheads-again-heres-why-tensions-are-rising-247533

Then there are the issues in Georgia.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/15/europe/georgia-protests-authoritarianism-fears-intl-cmd/index.html

From the US Dept of State

Armenia
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/armenia-travel-advisory.html

Azerbaijan
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/azerbajian-travel-advisory.html

Georgia
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/georgia-travel-advisory.html

I saw some pictures of the protests in Tiblisi today (yesterday). What a mess. I wonder if this will play out like Ukraine. The people force out the pro-Russian government and the Russians respond with invasion .... sorry, "protection".