The National Botanical Garden of Georgia

A large and extensive botanical garden was not what I was expecting to find in Tbilisi. Located in the deep Tsavkisis-Tskali Gorge right behind the Narikala fortress, the gardens were originally established in 1625 as the royal gardens adjacent to the castle above. In 1845 the became the Tbilisi Botanical Gardens and now cover 165 hectares.

The gardens feature, not one but two impressive waterfalls and the steep hillsides are laced with easy walks through Italian cypress and cedars. Overall the gardens contain 3500 different plants.