12 Alternative Things to Do in Sighnaghi, Georgia

An alternative guide to Sighnaghi, featuring offbeat and lesser-known things to do in Kakheti wine region.

Located 100 kilometres east of Tbilisi in Kakheti, the medieval walled city of Sighnaghi is one of the most popular places to visit in Georgia.

While it’s not my favourite place in the wine region (I would much sooner spend a weekend in Telavi, Gurjaani, Dedoplistskaro…), I still enjoy visiting Sighnaghi once or twice a year.

In the early 2000s, the hilltop town was branded ‘The City of Love’ as part of a tourism campaign. Sighnaghi has really leaned into the charm and romance angle – quite a good fit given its multitude of winding streets, beautiful houses with wooden balconies, and fortifications. The wedding hall famously offers 24/7 nuptials on demand, so it’s common to see wedding parties cruising around the streets in a barrage of honking horns.

Most tourists come to Sighnaghi as part of a Tbilisi day trip for mountain views, a visit to Bodbe Monastery, and a wine tasting at one of the established cellars. But there is more to Sighnaghi beyond the must-sees.

I have visited Sighnaghi more times than I can count, in every season. In this dedicated guide, I want to highlight some of my favourite lesser-visited spots for travellers who are looking to get off the beaten path, or to spend longer than a morning in Sighnaghi. This includes things to do in Sighnaghi town, plus points of interest in the surrounding villages. I highly recommend travelling with your own car.

Here are my 12 alternative things to do in Sighnaghi that most travel guides skip.

→ For a balance of alternative and classic Sighnaghi activities, my full Kakheti itinerary shows you how to spend 1-3 days in the wine region.

12 things to do in Sighnaghi

1. Climb the secret tower at St. Stephen’s Church

One of the largest surviving fortifications in Georgia, Sighnaghi’s city walls were created in the mid-18th century under the patronage of King Erekle II, who ruled the Kingdom of Kakheti. As well as serving a military function, the walls were designed to protect traders and townsfolk alike, who could retreat to the safety of the citadel when the area was under siege.

The walls span 4.5 kilometres, with 23 watchtowers and half a dozen arched city gates, each named for one of the nearby villages.

There are several places where you can safely scale the walls via stairs and ladders to get a sweeping view of the Alazani Valley below. My favourite viewpoint is the tower beside St. Stephen’s Church. It’s a little trickier to locate, which is why you’ll often find it empty.

The tower sits at a north-western corner of the wall, with the entrance located inside a churchyard, which is in turn accessed via a long flight of stairs from the street. At first, it looks like you are entering the adjacent Burji restaurant – but follow the stairs to the top, and you will see that this is in fact the way into St. Stephen’s.

Continue climbing up beyond the door to the church, and you will find yourself standing on the flat-topped defensive watchtower. A panorama of Sighnaghi and the valley – framed by clay tile roofs and the church belltower – unfolds at your feet. There are segments of wall nearby that you can (very carefully!) walk on.

Since the entrance to the tower and this portion of the wall is located on the grounds of the church, it can only be accessed when the church is open. I have found it closed on occasion, especially in winter. For the best chance of getting inside, I recommend visiting in the early afternoon. The gate should also be open on Sunday mornings as well.

There is often a woman at the gate who requests a donation of 1 GEL to enter. Churches are free to visit in Georgia, but to avoid confrontation, I always just pay the fee. Remember to bring coins with you.

The Monastery of St. Nino at Bodbe – AKA Bodbe Convent – is one of Sighnaghi’s most-visited attractions. When I first came to Georgia, it was still a quiet, reverent place where you could wander the gardens in peace. The addition of a cafe and a big parking lot out front – which is perpetually full of tour buses – has somewhat detracted from its charm.

Despite always being crowded, Bodbe is still one of my favourite Orthodox sites in Kakheti. I especially enjoy visiting in spring, when the sisters are out tending to their beautifully manicured flower beds. On a clear day, you can see every crack and snow-filled crevice in the Greater Caucasus mountains on the opposite side of the valley.

There is another special church in this area that most tourists skip – or rather don’t have enough time to visit. The tiny St. Zavlon’s and Susanna’s Church is dedicated to St. Nino’s mother and father. It is crafted from riverstones, a contrast to the flashy, marble-clad church completed for their daughter a few years ago.

Below the chapel, arched cloisters conceal a natural freshwater spring. This water source is said to have emerged when St. Nino – who spent her final years living at Bodbe, and is buried on the churchgrounds – knelt down to pray at this spot in the forest.

The blessed waters are coveted for their curative properties, drawing pilgrims who come to drink from the source. Unlike most other springs in Georgia, you can also bathe in St. Nino’s Spring. Facilities have been installed so that you can immerse your whole body in the small pool, with men and women taking turns to duck behind the shower curtain.

It might surprise you to learn that one of the country’s best beer breweries is located here in the wine region.

Two kilometres outside Sighnaghi, close to Bodbe Monastery, Lost Ridge is a boutique inn, horse ranch and craft brewery. I have been coming here for years, and I know the team well. From ethical horseback tours to meals made with garden-grown produce, everything here is exceptional.

Sighnaghi is not the best destination in Kakheti for a wine tasting – I much prefer to be at the bottom of the hill, on the vineyard, where you can be in situ surrounded by the vines.

Here is a shortlist of my favourite wineries in Kakheti.

If you do want to do a wine tasting in Sighnaghi, there are a dozen or so cellars in town that produce wine from grapes sourced in the valley and beyond. The popular ones are well-documented – but for something slightly left of field, I recommend Kerovani. This small family cellar has a couple of grapes and cuvées that I haven’t come across anywhere else – including Simonaseuli, a rare endemic grape that was saved from the brink of extinction. Here, it is used for a dry red.

The family behind Kerovani are extremely welcoming, inviting guests to tour the cellar and eat dinner in an intimate dining room that opens onto their kitchen. They have a gorgeous cat, who is aptly named Grape!

For a wine tour out of Sighnaghi, my partners at Eat This! Tours offer itineraries that highlight small family wineries and authentic experiences, including the autumn vintage. Use the code wanderlush to get 5% off any of their programs.

Launching in late 2024, Bodbe Hotel sits at the crest of the ridge directly above Sighnaghi, with an incredible view of the citadel and its brick belltowers jutting out like an isthmus into the valley. If you’re familiar with Rooms Kazbegi, this place has a similar vibe: exceptional interior design, and a big outdoor terrace.

We were recently invited to stay at Bodbe and try out some of the facilities. I particularly enjoyed the Tea Lounge, a cosy space on the ground floor that is open to the public. The bar serves both Georgian teas and international black, herbal and blended brews under the in-house label Sheleaf, which was created as an homage to the women who power the global tea industry.

If you have an eye for Soviet-period monuments and architecture, you will find many treasures in and around Sighnaghi. Aside from the WWII Memorial in town, there are more monuments and mosaics dotted around the outer villages.

Peace by Nugzar Manjaparashvili is the highlight. I will never forget the first time I saw this work in person. It’s hard to describe just how impactful this work is – it has a real presence.

Sculpted in the 1970s, the statue depicts a woman with flowing hair, outstretched legs, and a gentle grin on her face. The reinforced concrete form and the plinth she lays on are weathered and withering, adding to the sculpture’s enigmatic character.

Separating the knoll where the sculpture sits from the road, there is a small wooded forest and a freshwater spring. As one reader informed me, this patch of 400 trees was planted to commemorate WWII, with the Angle of Peace installed nearby.

Find her near Zemo Magharo, on the way into Sighnaghi.

Niko Pirosmani, Georgia’s national artist, was born in the village of Mirzaani south-east of Sighnaghi in 1862. While you can view a collection of his artworks at the Sighnaghi National Museum in town, another essential stop on a Pirosmani pilgrimage is to visit the painter’s birthplace.

Like other such museums in Tbilisi and around Georgia, the Niko Pirosmani House Museum is dedicated to Nikala’s early life. It centres around a wooden cottage that the painter built for his sister and her 10 children. This plot of land belonged to the family, and is the place where Pirosmani himself was born and raised. Inside the humble house, there is a collection of period furniture including five original items from his era.

Also on the property, an impressive modern art museum was built during the Soviet period to display Pirosmani’s surviving canvases and oil-on-cloth works. It has been closed for the past two years, and is still undergoing renovation works. Some of the works you now see hanging in the Sighnaghi National Museum belong to this institution.

Entrance to the museum complex costs a nominal fee of 1 GEL per person, including a guided walk around the house.

While you are in this area, be sure to visit a few of the nearby villages – see below.

The foothills south of Sighnaghi are dotted with interesting villages: Kvemo Magharo, Arboshiki (be sure to visit blacksmith Zaza Aladashvili’s workshop), Mirzaani, Tibaani. My favourite is Lower Machkhaani, a 25-minute drive from Sighnaghi.

The centre of village life here is the Machkhaani Theatre, which opened in 1899, and was famously built with money raised from the local community over the course of a decade.

In the mid 2010s, there was a Council of Europe initiative to help restore the theatre – it went as far as to host a series of performances. I am not sure why this theatre was singled out – it is not the grandest nor the most beautiful I’ve seen. I am sure the residents of Machkhaani have been very active in bringing attention to their theatre.

Sadly, we found it abandoned and derelict once again. We circled the building to try and find a way in, but every door was nailed shut. All we could manage to see was the details of a partially collapsed ceiling and a stage backdrop painted with a forest scene. Through one of the broken windows, we could see remnants of a sculpture or relief panel.

Machkaani is a very beautiful village that is well worth a wander or drive through. It has a notable WWII memorial, and a collection of houses with decorative wooden balconies to rival any other in Georgia. Photographers and urbex lovers will enjoy a stop here.

9. Attend the Bodbiskhevi Bazar on a Sunday

Sunday markets are a big part of life in rural Georgia. I’ve been lucky enough to attend several in the past few years. Bodbiskhevi Bazar, held in Jugaani in the valley below Sighnaghi, is one of the biggest and most beloved.

You can find a huge array of produce at the farmers’ market where Sighnaghi’s restauranteurs (and homecooks from across Kakheti alike) come to stock-up on supplies. Look for wild honey, foraged mushrooms, stonefruit or tea depending on the time of year.

The market is a Sunday-only affair, kicking off at 6am and wrapping up just after noon.

10. Frolic in the fields at Nukriani Lavender

Nukriani Lavender is one of several lavender farms in this part of Georgia. It is home to more than 4,000 English lavender plants, which are raised using organic methods. Just a 20-minute drive from Sighnaghi, Nukriani opens its gates to tourists in the blooming season for photoshoots. There is also a small shop where you can buy seedlings, cooking products, and essential oils. I keep their lavender sachets all over my house!

Normally the fields are open over select weekends in early summer. The lavender tends to flower in mid to late June. In 2025, the farm was unfortunately closed – so it’s important to check ahead of time. Get in touch with the team via Facebook to organise your visit.

Well and truly off the tourist trail, the church is unique for its massive conical dome (added in the 10th century), and its interconnected eukteria side chapels. The light inside this church is really spectacular. On one of the walls, you can see an inscription from 1822 that thanks Tsar Alexander I for sponsoring its restoration.

The churchyard is strewn with old gravestones, and commands a great view of the town.

How to get to Sighnaghi

Sighnaghi is just over 100 kilometres by road from Tbilisi via the Kakheti Highway. This road is currently undergoing improvements, with new bypass sections constantly coming online. Travel time is around 2 hours, and getting shorter.

If you do not have your own car, shared transport (marshrutka vans and shared taxis) are available from Central Bus Station and Isani throughout the day. See this transport guide for full details on how to get to Sighnaghi (including departure times and ticket prices).

A final option is to hire a private car and driver to take you to Sighnaghi, stopping at some of these places of interest along the way. Prices for a private transfer start from 175 GEL when booked through GoTrip.

Where to stay in Sighnaghi

The new Bodbe Hotel is a perfect location to base your stay in Sighnaghi. If you are driving, the property has ample onsite (valet!) parking.

Lost Ridge is my top choice for a boutique stay. Be sure to organise lunch or dinner, and book in a beer tasting.

If a small guesthouse is more your vibe, you will find several options in the centre of Sighnaghi. See my full guide on where to stay in Kakheti for my favourites. 

Onward travel: Where to go next after Sighnaghi