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ReligiousKakhetiJuly

Atnigenoba (Tusheti)

Tusheti's main summer feast cycle at the village shrines, with sheep sacrifice, beer brewing, horse races and song.

WhenMovable: about 100 days after Orthodox Easter, so late July or early August; villages hold their own days over about two weeks
202621 Jul 2026
202710 Aug 2027 · expected
WhereKakheti
Public holidayNo
OmaloOmaloPhoto: Abramia Giorgi, CC BY-SA 4.0

Atnigenoba is the largest religious festival of the Tush highlanders and mixes Christian and older mountain traditions. Each community gathers at its shrine (khati or nishi), where elders lead prayers and animals are offered. Beer is brewed for the feast, and the days that follow bring horse races, wrestling and long nights of singing.

Shrines are sacred spaces, and women are not allowed close to many of them; visitors of any gender should stay back unless invited. The feasts are spread across villages, so your host in Omalo or Dartlo will know which one is open to guests.

Tips from your host
  • Ask your guesthouse which village is celebrating and whether guests are welcome.
  • Do not bring pork to Tusheti; it is taboo in the highlands.
  • The Abano Pass road is open only in summer; book a 4x4 transfer from Alvani early.

Where to see it

OmaloPhoto: Abramia Giorgi, CC BY-SA 4.0
Cities & TownsOmalo

Tusheti's main village at about 1,880 m, with guesthouses, Keselo's stone towers above, and trails to the region's tower villages.

DartloPhoto: Lidia Ilona, CC BY 2.0
Cities & TownsDartlo

Restored stone-and-slate village in Tusheti's Pirikiti valley at about 2,000 m, with medieval towers and Kvavlo's fortress above.

ShenakoPhoto: Alsandro, CC BY-SA 3.0
Cities & TownsShenako

Small Tushetian village at about 2,070 m with stone houses, wooden balconies and the Holy Trinity church, a walk from Omalo.

Last checked Oct 2026 by the Maspindzeli team. Mountain conditions change: ask us before you go.

Tours around Atnigenoba (Tusheti)

TelaviTelaviPhoto: Jelger Groeneveld, CC BY 2.0
5 days
AdventureMountains & Nature

Tusheti 4x4 Adventure

By 4x4 over the high Abano Pass into Tusheti, Georgia's best-known mountain drive, then on foot to the Keselo towers, Shenako, Diklo and Dartlo.

Moderate · AD-05from $1,130 pp
Abano PassAbano PassPhoto: Chaoseli, CC BY-SA 4.0
6 days
AdventureHiking & Trekking

Tusheti on Horseback

Four days of riding Tush horses through the high valleys of north-east Georgia, from Omalo to Dartlo, up the Pirikiti Alazani to Parsma and Girevi, with nights in family guesthouses and a 4x4 crossing of the Abano Pass.

Moderate · AD-06from $1,370 pp

More in July and after

Full calendar →
Jul 2027 (day to be announced)Art-Gene Folk Festival

A folk music, craft and food festival held among the historic houses of Tbilisi's open-air ethnographic museum.

2027 date expectedFolkTbilisi
Jul 2027 (day to be announced)Black Sea Jazz Festival (Batumi)

Batumi's summer jazz festival, which has brought international jazz, soul and funk names to the coast since 2007.

2027 date expectedMusicAdjara
28 Jul 2027 (expected)Kvirikoba (Kala, Svaneti)

Svaneti's most sacred feast, held at a remote 10th-century church above the village of Kala.

2027 date expectedReligiousSamegrelo & Svaneti