Georgia: The White Path — 8-Day Gudauri Mountain & Ski Expedition

A structured backcountry assessment on Day 3 — avalanche awareness and deep-powder technique in Gudauri's off-piste zones, led by a certified ski mountaineering guide.

3-hour horseback expedition in the shadow of Mt. Kazbek (5,047m), riding to the 15th-century fortress village of Gaiboten and the frozen Arsha Waterfall.

800-vertical-metre snowshoe ascent through untouched powder to Lomisa Monastery — a remote ridge-top sacred site, accessible only on foot in winter.

Meeting the monks of Lomisa: a community living year-round above 2,000m in the frozen Caucasus, cut off from the valley below all winter.

Gergeti Trinity Church at 2,170m above Stepantsminda, with Mt. Kazbek (5,047m) as its permanent backdrop — the most dramatic church setting in Georgia.

The Ananuri Fortress on the turquoise Jinvali Reservoir — a medieval stronghold with intricate stone carvings, on the descent road back to Tbilisi.

Who this is for

Active travellers who want a mountain winter expedition with a genuine physical progression — not just consecutive ski days. The itinerary is a build: Day 3 is calibration, Day 5 is endurance, Day 6 is the strenuous summit. You should be comfortable on intermediate ski terrain, able to sustain several hours of effort in cold conditions, and prepared for the Lomisa ascent — a strenuous winter mountain hike with significant vertical gain. No prior horseback experience is needed for Day 5, but good overall fitness is required. Minimum age 15.

Journey type

A progressive winter mountain expedition combining:

What makes it unique

This itinerary treats Gudauri not as a destination but as a base — a training ground from which to reach terrain and places no ski-resort itinerary touches. The horseback day under Mt. Kazbek and the Lomisa ascent are expedition objectives in their own right: the former follows trails used by mountain clans for centuries, the latter is inaccessible by vehicle in winter. The result is a trip that uses Georgia's mountains as a complete landscape — skied, ridden and walked — rather than a backdrop for après-ski.

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