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Where should I travel to for a short term stay Baku, Azerbaijan or Tbilisi, Georgia?

in Tbilisi, Georgia by @jasonmwomack | 5yr 5yr | 9 comments

Baku, Azerbaijan v.s. Tbilisi, Georgia
What are the pros and cons of both destinations for an new digital nomad ?

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@lightmotif | 4yr 4yr

I’d been thinking about going to Tbilisi myself, but it seems pretty difficult to get there from just about anywhere.

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@dvc | 4yr 4yr

@suuzin I’d thought the same, but it turns out you can fly to Georgia for under $250 roundtrip from most places in Europe.

Examples:
Warsaw - Tbilisi $182 roundtrip https://www.google.com/flights/#search;f=WAW,WMI,RWA;t=TBS;d=2016-06-09;r=2016-06-13

Munich Tbilisi $229 roundtrip https://www.google.com/flights/#search;f=MUC,ZMU;t=TBS;d=2016-06-09;r=2016-06-13;sel=MUCSAW0PC320-SAWTBS0PC462,TBSSAW0PC463-SAWMUC0PC319

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@lightmotif | 4yr 4yr

Thanks! It wasn’t just the price, but the crazy flight times… though that Munich flight looks not too bad. I’ll keep it in mind.

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@bg26892 | 4yr 4yr

Anyone been to Azerbaijan lately and know if you can get a transit visa on arrival?

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@nomadcapitalist | 5yr 5yr

Tbilisi hands down. You can get a decent apartment for $400 a month there, and if you’re an entrepreneur it’s probably one of the best places in the world to start a business.

You can read a blog I wrote about life and business in Tbilisi here: http://nomadcapitalist.com/2015/09/21/country-the-next-america/.

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@johnnybd | 4yr 4yr

This post was flagged by the community and is temporarily hidden.

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@don_lee | 5yr 5yr

I’m taking my flight from Tbilisi to Baku Tbilisi so far is the best place I’ve been to, I could stay here my whole life it’s a small scenic city, everything is cheap, public transport is good & convenient, great food, girls are beautiful, internet is fast, people are friendly (I’ve had a bunch of local friends now). And don’t miss trying Georgian wine when you come here.

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@abmohan | 5yr 5yr

I visited Tbilisi in September. It’s very affordable and the people are fairly friendly (though knowing some Russian or Georgian is helpful).

I haven’t been to Azerbaijan, mainly because the visa process was annoying for Canadians ($100 USD) and Baku is notoriously expensive (presumably due to the oil economy, though that may be better now with oil trading so low).

From what I hear, Armenia is great to visit and even more affordable than Georgia.

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@scottbrills | 5yr 5yr

FYI: I have not been to either, but have visited all the neighboring countries.

That being said, I also know MANY people that have visited one or the other, or both.

Hands down, Tbilisi.

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Where should I travel to for a short term stay Baku, Azerbaijan or Tbilisi, Georgia?

in Tbilisi, Georgia by @jasonmwomack | 5yr 5yr | 9 comments

Baku, Azerbaijan v.s. Tbilisi, Georgia
What are the pros and cons of both destinations for an new digital nomad ?

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👎

👍

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@lightmotif | 4yr 4yr

I’d been thinking about going to Tbilisi myself, but it seems pretty difficult to get there from just about anywhere.

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👎

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@dvc | 4yr 4yr

@suuzin I’d thought the same, but it turns out you can fly to Georgia for under $250 roundtrip from most places in Europe.

Examples:
Warsaw - Tbilisi $182 roundtrip https://www.google.com/flights/#search;f=WAW,WMI,RWA;t=TBS;d=2016-06-09;r=2016-06-13

Munich Tbilisi $229 roundtrip https://www.google.com/flights/#search;f=MUC,ZMU;t=TBS;d=2016-06-09;r=2016-06-13;sel=MUCSAW0PC320-SAWTBS0PC462,TBSSAW0PC463-SAWMUC0PC319

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@lightmotif | 4yr 4yr

Thanks! It wasn’t just the price, but the crazy flight times… though that Munich flight looks not too bad. I’ll keep it in mind.

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@bg26892 | 4yr 4yr

Anyone been to Azerbaijan lately and know if you can get a transit visa on arrival?

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@nomadcapitalist | 5yr 5yr

Tbilisi hands down. You can get a decent apartment for $400 a month there, and if you’re an entrepreneur it’s probably one of the best places in the world to start a business.

You can read a blog I wrote about life and business in Tbilisi here: http://nomadcapitalist.com/2015/09/21/country-the-next-america/.

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@johnnybd | 4yr 4yr

This post was flagged by the community and is temporarily hidden.

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@don_lee | 5yr 5yr

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@abmohan | 5yr 5yr

I visited Tbilisi in September. It’s very affordable and the people are fairly friendly (though knowing some Russian or Georgian is helpful).

From what I hear, Armenia is great to visit and even more affordable than Georgia.

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@scottbrills | 5yr 5yr

FYI: I have not been to either, but have visited all the neighboring countries.

That being said, I also know MANY people that have visited one or the other, or both.

Hands down, Tbilisi.

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Post review

To increase honesty, reviews are anonymous. You can only add one review per city or it replaces/edits your old one. Reviews with URLs or emails are removed. If you're writing about data being wrong, please don't do it here as it'll be removed but leave feedback in the bottom right of the frontpage.

We had some crazy situations with apartments scam - so please everyone be aware, that there are people pretending an RE agent. Always do a checkup of a realtor you are contacting. And the statement below that georgian people like to be 'dramatic'. Never experienced so much drama in my life, as from georgian landlords during 6 months of staying in Tbilisi ;)

I disagree with one of the reviews that Tbilisi has no parks. Actually it's super ridiculous thing to say about Tbilisi! The city has plenty of green spaces (Vera Park, Mtatsminda mountain, Turtle Lisi Lake and magical Mziuri and don't forget to mention Vake, where you can climb up the hill and you feel like you just transported yourself outside of the city in ~5mins ). Actually PARKS are my favourite in Tbilisi - because of them, as well as big sidewalks to walk (unseen in Chiang Mai for sure). Person who wrote about the lack of parks had to live on the wrong side of the river - only go for districst like Vera, Vake, Saburtalo and there the choice of parks is broad.

What I didn't like about Tbilisi? I confirm that locals are unfriendly. City is very noisy (drivers are agressive, have no respect to pedestrians and beep a lot).

Georgian goverment wants foreigners in their country so badly but locals mentality (very post soviet one) is not ready. They only want to get your money and the best would be if you dissapear just afterwards.

Also you will have hard time to eat out as vegeterian - vegan. Places fully "green" are just a few. In other spots you can eat salads/chaciapuri which is cheese + carbs (for a vegan stays cucumber tomato salad - i wish you luck getting full with it :D).

1 month ago

I've been living in Tbilisi for 7 months.
The most surprising thing about the city was the welcoming expat community which is larger than I expected. Quality, well travelled people that are generally older (30's+). I met many good friends in a very short period of time.
The downtown area of the city is not ideal and can be noisy and polluted but the suburbs (only a 10min cab ride away), especially upscale Vake, is a better option in my opinion. It has a large beautiful park, lovely shops, restaurants and bars. Rent here is still quite cheap. All apartments are rented out fully furnished. You can get a nice large flat for as low as 200usd but 400 will get you a large modern flat.
Internet is very fast, up to 100mbps for about 30usd per month.
There are also many international restaurants but you may not find it as authentic as in other major cities.
Locals are not friendly generally speaking except in the villages. Communication in English can be difficult but not impossible.
Settling here for short or longer term is very easy, you can open a bank account and work legally on your visa on arrival.
Banks like Bank of Georgia offer savings accounts for 3 months in the local currency with an 11.5% interest rate!
Safety is not an issue for most unless you go to the dodgier bars but at most they will rip you off. As a woman I feel totally safe night and day.
Drivers are aggressive but taxi's are cheaper than anywhere I've ever been to (about 2usd for a 15 minute ride) which you can get quickly and easily on Bolt or Yandex apps.
Overall cost of living is very cheap. You can easily live on less than 1000usd per month and still go out and have fun.
Also the country has handled covid very well and is one of the best countries to ride out the wave, everything is nearly back to normal, borders still closed in mid June.
Weather is mild, even in winter it's not too bad, heating and air-conditioning works well.
I really like it here!

2 months ago

I've lived in Tbilisi for one month. In short: the foundations are here for a great and low cost place to work. But the city lacks liveability (parks, healthy food, noisy, polluted).

The pro's: It is easy to get a visa, has a growing expat community, easy to arrange mobile plan, gym, housing, etc and its all super cheap. Its perfect for bootstrapping and costwise even on par with Chiang Mai. Its also easy to take trips to the mountains and Armenia and taxi's itself are incredibly cheap. The city has a growing number of gems to eat, shop and drink.

Even though all the pro's above I personally wouldn't return. Besides expats it was difficult to make connections. The locals can be rude at times and love being dramatic and driving illogically big SUV's. The city was noisy, dirty and it was difficult finding places to run or relax since parks are non-existent and streets are in bad shape. Cheese, meat and wine sounds great at first but it gets boring real fast and it was difficult to eat healthy.

9 months ago

I've lived in Tbilisi for three months. I started in Kutaisi (fly cheaply to Kutaisi with WizzAir) for a few days before hiking through the Svaneti region for four days. Highly recommend getting to the Caucasus!

If you're looking to bootstrap while you retrain yourself or start your online business, then Tbilisi is a great option. I've spent less in Tbilisi than I did in Chiang Mai. They speak better English than what some may suggest. I've gotten the wrong order a few times, but other than that, I have not had a problem with communicating. Internet is copious. I recommend Hurma and Althaus Tea Room for a couple great cafes to work from.

I found Georgians to be rather unfriendly, and it was difficult to make any local friends. Tbilisi is the worst city for gay life that I have ever been to, so if you're LGBT then don't expect much. On the other hand, Tbilisi is exceptionally safe. I walked home alone from the bar at 3 AM on several occasions and never felt any unease. Ohh, and the drivers in Tbilisi are aggressive, and the cars approach pedestrians too closely. Lastly, Georgian ATMs do not charge a fee and the exchange rates are at market rate. So with my Schwab account, I was able to pull money out completely free. Good and bad as with any city, but I will definitely return to Tbilisi, especially with the 1 year tourist visa and Ryan Air's new routes in Tbilisi.

1 year ago

Lived here for 3 months. Fantastic. Special mentions to Rooms Hotel for the best late-night coding and coffee lounge, Urban Garden for best reasonably-priced gym, Restaurant Tiflis (by the bridge), Duqani, Shatre, and Machahkela resturant chain for inexpensive but great food, and Skola Coffee + Book Corner Cafe (opposite Restaurant Tiflis) for best daytime cafes you can work at. Best ice cream (by FAR): The Cone Culture.

Georgians are very friendly and hospitable. It's also the first ex-Soviet country to legalise 🍁, if you're that way inclined (you'll find Georgians willing to share nearly everywhere.)

However it's an Eastern European country and still poor, you gotta be careful.

I recommend you open a local bank account with TBC Bank (very easy process) and then use Transferwise to exchange into GEL.

(connect with me: scaur.nz)

⭐️ Overall Score	3.76/5 242 reviews
🎒 Nomad Score™	3.76/5
👍 Quality of life score	Good
👶 Family score	Okay
💵 Cost	😙 Affordable: $1,178 / mo
📡 Internet	🏎 Fast: 15Mbps (avg)
😝 Fun	Good
⛅️ Temperature (now)	🌞 Perfect: 28°C83°F (feels 30°C86°F)
💦 Humidity (now)	😊 Comfy: 65%
💨 Air quality (now)	🌱 Good: 57 US AQI
💨 Air quality (annual)	😷 Unhealthy for some: 149 US AQI
👌 Safety	Good
🎓 Education level	Good
❤️ Liked by members	👍8 likes vs. 👎3 dislikes
🙊 English speaking	Bad
🚶 Walkability	Okay
✌️ Peace	Okay
🚦 Traffic safety	Okay
🏥 Hospitals	Good
😄 Happiness	Bad
🍸 Nightlife	Okay
📶 Free WiFi in city	Okay
🖥 Places to work from	Great
❄️ A/C or heating	Bad
😁 Friendly to foreigners	Great
🗯 Freedom of speech	Good
🤚🏿🤚🏻 Racial tolerance	Bad
👩 Female friendly	Okay
🌈 LGBTQ+ friendly	Bad
🎅 Startup Score	Bad

🌍 Region	Europe
🚩 Country	Georgia
⏱ Average trip duration	16 days
📡 Internet speed (avg)	15 Mbps
⛅️ Weather (now)	🌥 28°C 83°F + Humid (65%) = feels 30°C 86°F
💨 Air quality (now)	👍 57 US AQI 🍃 good
💨 Air quality (annual avg)	😷 149 US AQI = 🚬 🚬 / day
🔌 Power	230V 50Hz
🚕 Best taxi app (in country)	GG
🚑 Travel medical insurance	Safetywing
📱 Best wireless carrier	Geocell
💸 10 GEL in USD	USD 3.11
🏧 Suggested ATM take out:	GEL 1,000 = USD 311
💳 Cashless society	💳 Yes, cards OK almost everywhere
💻 Best coworking space	Cospot
🏪 Best 24/7 coffee place	Le Biscuit
🚰 Safe tap water	🚫 No, not drinkable
♻️ Return rate	18% of visitors return
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Population	1,100,000 people
🏞 Foreign land ownership allowed	Yes
👫 Gender ratio (overall)	👨 41% 👱‍♀️ 59%
👫 Gender ratio (young adults)	👨 55% 👱‍♀️ 45%
⛪️ Religious government	Non-religious
🏠 Apartment listings	Airbnb
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier	Atlasjet
✈️ Best int'l air carrier	Qatar

💵 Cost of living for nomad	$1,178 / month
💵 Cost of living for expat	$724 / month
💵 Cost of living for family	$929 / month
💵 Cost of living for local	$265 / month
🏠 1br studio rent in center	$186 / month
🏢 Coworking	$81 / month
🏨 Hotel	$466 / month
🏨 Hotel	$22 / night
🏠 Airbnb (1,001 listings)	$1,197 / month
🏠 Airbnb	$39 / night
🍛 Dinner	$7
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L)	$0.26
🍺 Beer (0.5L)	$1
☕️ Coffee	$1

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Tbilisi

Where should I travel to for a short term stay Baku, Azerbaijan or Tbilisi, Georgia?

Where should I travel to for a short term stay Baku, Azerbaijan or Tbilisi, Georgia?

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