Permits for Hiking in Border Territories in Georgia

There are 5 categories of areas you may want to hike in.

1. Places where no permit is necessary

Most of Georgia.

2. Places where no permit is necessary, but your passport data will be recorded by border guards.

These include some areas near the border, particularly those frequently visited by tourists. Sometimes the guards will contact their headquarters by radio, while other times they will simply write down your passport and permit information in a book. Usually the border guards will find you themselves and meet you on the trail. They are almost always friendly and helpful, often offering tea, coffee, sugar, firewood, a place to camp nearby, etc.

3. Places where a permit (საშვი, or 'sashvi') is necessary and can be obtained from border guards on location if you have your passport (or residency card) with you.

These include most mountain valleys adjacent to the Russian border. Sometimes, the border guards will find you themselves, but not always. For instance, in the vilage of Girevi (Tusheti) you will need to find the border control office yourself to get a permit. As of 2012, you needed to get a permit to visit Devdoraki glacier in Kazbegi. The border posts have a hierarchy of their own, and only certain larger ones (central to their respective areas) can issue permits. A permit is a white sheet of paper with your information on it and a stamp.

There are also locations where you will be escorted to your destination by border guards for your personal safety. For instance, Black Rock Lake of Lagodekhi National Park (as of 2012), which straddles the border with Russia. Border guards also escorted the author and his friend to a pass near Zeskho in Svaneti simply to make sure we found the correct route. On that same hike (2012) we were met by border guards as we descended into Ghebi (Upper Racha), and they arranged for transportation for us all the way down to Oni.

4. Places where a permit is necessary and must be applied for in advance from the Border Department of the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs. 

These include certain mountain valleys immediately adjacent to some sections of the Russian border or to South Ossetia. As the situation changes on the border, places formerly in category 2 or 3 may move to category 4, and vice versa.

In Tbilisi the Border Department of the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs is located at the intersection of Kandelaki Str. and Tashkent Str. in Saburtalo District. Contact: Guladi, 599-14-05-11 (9-17:00 on weekdays). Applications need to be submitted a week in advance of the planned hike. There is no special form for the application. It needs to be written in Georgian and contain: a list of the hike participants and their passport information, copies of their passports, and a description of the route and the dates planned. It may help to submit a map printout with the route drawn on it, including expected campsites.

You'll probably need to visit the Border Department three times: to talk to staff, to submit your application, and to pick up your permit. They speak Georgian and Russian. Not sure about English.

Learn more about the procedure at the Ministry's website.

5. Occupied territories where hiking is not possible for Georgian citizens and problematic for foreigners.

These include Abkhazia and South Ossetia, currently occupied by Russian troops. You can enter Abkhazia only at the border crossing near Zugdidi, Georgia, or from the Russian side. You can enter and exit South Ossetia from the Russian side only, but you will encounter problems with Georgian officials if they learn that you have entered an occupied territory through a foreign country (i.e. Russia).

Also, in areas very close to the border, you will probably not be allowed to wander off hiking trails and climb up the mountain towards the border. Border guards scanning the slopes with their binoculars would find you and chase you down, so don't try it.