Category Archives: Information

Information, News

Renting and driving a Car in Tbilisi: Beware of New Traffic Fines in Georgia

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If you’re planning to rent a car in Tbilisi or explore other parts of Georgia, it’s important to be aware of the latest road regulations: stricter penalties for several traffic violations have just come into force.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has introduced tougher fines to improve road safety. Here’s what you need to know to drive with peace of mind during your trip:

Exceeding the speed limit by 15 to 40 km/h now results in a fine of 100 GEL (roughly double the previous amount). Dangerous driving behavior is penalized even more severely: drifting that causes even minor damage to property or health carries a 500 GEL fine and a 6-month driving ban.



Basic safety rules are also strictly enforced: not wearing a seat belt results in a 50 GEL fine and points deducted from your license, as does using a mobile phone without a hands-free system.

Parking violations are treated seriously as well: parking on sidewalks or pedestrian crossings in major cities like Tbilisi can cost 100 GEL. Driving on sidewalks is even more serious, with a 200 GEL fine and additional penalty points.

Using dedicated lanes (such as bus lanes) or driving in the wrong direction leads to significant fines, especially for repeat offenses. Stopping near fire hydrants (marked with new signs) can also result in a hefty fine and vehicle towing.

These rules apply not only in the capital but also in major cities such as Batumi, Kutaisi, and Rustavi, as well as in popular resort areas.



The reason behind these stricter measures is serious: road accident statistics in Georgia are alarming. In 2025 alone, there were 469 fatalities and more than 8,000 injuries on the country’s roads.

Renting a car is a great way to explore Georgia freely, but now more than ever, it’s essential to respect the rules. A little extra caution will help you enjoy your trip without unpleasant surprises.

Information, Travel, Wedding

April and May: the perfect time to book your wedding in Tbilisi

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If you’re thinking about getting married in a simple, fast, and cost-effective way, April and May are the ideal months to plan your wedding in Tbilisi. During this period, some of the best travel opportunities become available, making this choice even more accessible and strategic.

Thanks to direct flights, along with special offers from various airports, reaching Tbilisi has never been easier. The low cost of flights allows you to plan an international wedding without high expenses, turning what was once a complex project into a practical and affordable solution.

But the real advantage of getting married in Tbilisi is not just financial—it’s organizational.

In just 2 days, you can arrive, get married, and complete all the necessary procedures. The bureaucracy is extremely streamlined, allowing you to obtain official documents very quickly, often with the option of having them delivered directly to your home in Italy.

If you prefer a more relaxed experience, you can turn your wedding into a short vacation in Georgia. Within a few days, you can both enjoy a unique life moment and complete all the required steps to register your marriage in Italy—stress-free and efficiently.

Getting married in Tbilisi means combining:

  • significant cost savings
  • fast and reliable timelines
  • simple and secure procedures
  • the opportunity to enjoy an international experience

April and May are the strategic time to book: affordable flights, ideal weather, and greater availability make this period perfect for saying “I do” in a smart way.

If you are considering a modern, efficient, and alternative solution, Tbilisi is today one of the most surprising and advantageous destinations for your wedding.

Contact us!

Information, Wedding

How to register in Egypt the wedding that has taken place in Tbilisi

In the last years many Egyptians got the opportunity to get married in Tbilisi having a lovely honeymoon in one of the best and affordable places in the world.

The procedure to get married in Tbilisi is quite smooth if you follow our advices and/or apply for our photography service including the help to manage your wedding bureaucracy.



Once everything is done, your marriage has been taken, there are path you should know and to follow by yourself.

Egypt is not in l’Hague convention and all official documents released in a foreign country need some step more to be recognized in Egypt.

To understand better the difference between Apostille and Legalization refer to my recent post clicking here.



Once a Egyptian guest wish to get married in Tbilisi and require to register the marriage in his country, we always provide the certificate of marriage with the official translation in English or Arabic language and the legalization seal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The next step to register the wedding is belong to the guest. Unfortunately Embassy of Egypt does not have headquarter in Georgia but all consular services are in charge at the Embassy of Egypt in Armenia at this address:



Arabkir 17 street, 10/4,

Yerevan – Armenia

tel.: +374 010 250023       +374 010 250024

Email: embassy.yerevan@mfa.gov.eg

We advise before to come in Georgia for your wedding, to contact them just to know the right procedure to get their legalization stamp in the official certificate of marriage released in Tbilisi.

After the marriage in Tbilisi or once you have the official document, you should mail to them the original. They will stick the stamp of Embassy of Egipt and this stamp certified that the georgian certificate of marriage is official.



Then you get back from the Embassy the original with stamp, you can proceed to register the marriage in your municipality in Egypt. We kindly advise to check directly with your Embassy this procedure as updates could occur at any time.

Looking for the most reliable service to proceed for wedding in Tbilisi and to get photography memories of your knot? just get in touch with us! Write me!

Information, Wedding

How to register in UAE the wedding that has taken place in Tbilisi

In the last years many Emirates citizens and expats in UAE got married in Tbilisi having a lovely honeymoon in one of the best and affordable places in the world.

The procedure to get married in Tbilisi is quite smooth if you follow our advices and apply for our photography service including the help to manage your wedding bureaucracy.



Once everything is done, your marriage has been taken, there are path you should know to get your goal.

UAE is not in l’Hague convention list and all official documents released in a foreign country need a few more steps to be recognized compared to those to which the Apostille is accepted.



To understand better the difference between Apostille and Legalization refer to my recent post clicking here.

Once a couple want to get married in Tbilisi and require to register the marriage in UAE, we always provide the certificate of marriage with the official translation in English or Arabic language and the  legalization seal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.



This is not enough to register your wedding in UAE. The next step is to apply at the Embassy of UAE for an official seal (Uae legalization). Embassy of UAE has its headquarter in Tbilisi and you should ask to your provider to apply for legalization seal. We always do it. Only with the legalization seal of the UAE Embassy your certificate of marriage will be accepted in UAE and you will register the marriage successful.



We always propose this step in our service. It requires some days more after the release of the Georgian certificate of marriage translated and sealed by the Georgian Ministry of the Foreign Affairs. That is why, if you have a short stay in Tbilisi, we handle all the procedure and we will send you the whole paperwork by express mail.

If you are not UAE citizen but just expat in UAE and you wish to register the wedding in your national country, you should require an extra certificate of marriage with the seal of Apostille or Legalization belong your country request.



Being the need of different nationalities not always the same, kindly write to us for a tailor-made information.

Looking for the most reliable service to proceed for wedding in Tbilisi and to get photography memories of your knot? Just get in touch with us! Write me!

Information, Wedding

How to register in Lebanon the wedding that has taken place in Tbilisi

In the last years many Lebanese got the opportunity to get married in Tbilisi having a lovely honeymoon in one of the best and affordable places in the world.

The procedure to get married in Tbilisi is quite smooth if you follow our advices and apply for our photography service including the help to manage your wedding bureaucracy.



Once everything is done, your marriage has been taken, there are path you should know and to follow by yourself.

Lebanon is not in l’Hague convention and all official documents released in a foreign country need some step more to be recognized in Lebanon.

To understand better the difference between Apostille and Legalization refer to my recent post clicking here.



Once a Lebanese guest wish to get married in Tbilisi and require to register the marriage in his country, we always provide the certificate of marriage with the official translation in English or Arabic language and the legalization seal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The next step to register the wedding is belong to the guest. Unfortunately Embassy of Lebanon does not have headquarter in Georgia but all consular services are in charge at the Embassy of Lebanon in Armenia at this address:



Dzoragyugh Azgagrakan 14
Yerevan
Armenia
Tel: +374 10 501301/3/4/5
Email: libanarm@gmail.com

We advise before to come in Georgia for your wedding, to contact them just to know the right procedure to get their legalization stamp in the official certificate of marriage released in Tbilisi.

After the marriage in Tbilisi or once you have the official document, you should mail to them the original. They will stick the stamp of Embassy of Lebanon and this stamp certified that the georgian certificate of marriage is official.



Then you get back from the Embassy the original with stamp, you can proceed to register the marriage in your municipality in Lebanon. We kindly advise to check directly with your Embassy this procedure as updates could occur at any time.

Looking for the most reliable service to proceed for wedding in Tbilisi and to get photography memories of your knot? just get in touch with us! Write me!

Information, Wedding

Simplest and cheapest way to get married in Tbilisi

You do not want formalities and really you just need to get married and to get the marriage certificate. You will think about parties when you will be back home or when your life situation will give you the right moment to organize that. There are a lot of people in the world, expats, digital nomad, foreigners in other countries that just need to tie the knot out any traditional scheme.

So, you did your search and you find in Tbilisi and in the Georgia country the option suitable for you. What everybody names “simple” package, it is just a sign in a paper in a public hall, usually the city Hall. This procedure usually includes the assistance to the documents, translation, notary, witnesses and everything related to set up this document. No frills at all.



Do you think you are saving money?

In Tbilisi the difference in money between a simple path in a public crowdy place and one clean, nice wedding lounge is very short. What nobody will explain you clear is the lost in time you will spend probably losing all the day from the moment you get in the public place administration till the moment you will be out with your certificate of marriage.

What can be exactly?

Few times everything went smooth and I can say in less time than I expected but the most of time these are the common issues:



– You have to understand you are giving your application of marriage (completely in Georgian) to an operator that does hundred different documents and operations during the day. He/she is not always ready to insert properly your name and surname and all your private data, from your foreign language to Georgian language. Any letter will be translated back in an official document for your country and if there is only one letter mistake, your country can refuse the document in the future. Furthermore, many operators, even if you pass the Georgian boarder regularly, can ask you for your visa translation. It means you must go out to the public hall, to find a translator and notary, to do the document and to be back to the public hall. Of course, you will need to do a new queue, you will meet a new operator and restart to insert your data in the Georgian system.



When this operation is over, the operator will say to you to go away and to wait for a sms to come back with your witnesses later on. There is not a fixed time, can pass some hours and even all day. In that moment you will understand you did not save money. Even worst if you decided to go with the help of one citizen that of course will not have nothing in charge if your documents have problems or any issues could occur.

If you wish to understand the difference and how much you save in stress and time, continue reading at this point about a Basic Service with a private wedding lounge.

By the way, if you are easy going person and you do not care about warning and you wish this simple way to get married, here you find a link for the service for “Simply” Wedding in Tbilisi.



 

 

Information, News, photography, Restaurant

Tbilisi Restaurants and Pubs crisis on April 2021

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Early April 2021. Catholic Easter, a period in which the city of Tbilisi saw an extraordinary incoming of tourists, at least until 2020 since the covid-19 pandemic, the lockdowns and various restrictions have ditched an exponentially growing market for over three years.

Shardeni street in Tbilisi on April 2021 – ©Alessandro Sanna – phototbilisi.com

The 7 million tourists are a distant memory. Only a few sporadic people and small groups of intrepid vacationers survivors meet on the almost deserted streets of the historic center under a shining sunny day.

Restaurant empty in Shardeni street – ©Alessandro Sanna – phototbilisi.com

We have photographed everything to make you better understand the surreal situation that still does not see an end after a year.

To notice this disaster it is enough to take a walk in the street of restaurants of the old city, the famous Shardeni street. Empty chairs and tables and lots of rent and sale signs point make a feeling of desolation, a sense of loneliness in what used to be one of the busiest places in the city  during the night and day.

KGB restaurant one of the most famous meeting places ©Alessandro Sanna – phototbilisi.com

A lot of decorations and ornaments have been removed from many places, taking the time back more than ten years. The takeaway service does not work in this area. It was the area of ​​the tourist refreshment, of the daytime and evening meetings, that of the crowd bath, the walk among the people.

The famous Cafe Konka in Tbilisi ©Alessandro Sanna – phototbilisi.com

In this photo reportage, you can get an idea of ​​the situation, while still admiring the beauty of a city like Tbilisi that hopes to rise soon. The complete photo shoot on phototbilisi.com

An empty Meidan square in the late morning ©Alessandro Sanna – phototbilisi.com
Information

To get married in Tbilisi during the Coronavirus Covid-19 2020

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Dear guests, As we go through these difficult times, we would like to update you on what’s been happening in Tbilisi. We have sadly had to suspend all our photography and wedding management services until the 20th of August 2020 (updated) due to the ongoing situation and measures taken against COVID-19.

We’re so much looking forward to the days when we can happily welcome you again and be a part of your story again.  We would like you to know that as Tbilisilovesyou.com  we continue to work determinedly to solve the issues we collectively face and to provide accurate and up to date information regularly by email to our clients that already subscribed for information or already confirmed their booking and it has been postponed.

We are sorry to all our guests who couldn’t travel due to cancelled flights during this unprecedented time.

We miss sharing your excitement as you travel to your love great date, and getting your images of your greatest moments in the life.

May and June are extremely optimistic time to think everything will restart as usual. Due to the consequences of the spread of the COVID-19 virus, in compliance with the provisions of the Georgian Government regarding safety and prevention of contagion, the Ministry of Justice suspended all the official Wedding Houses activities until a later date. And now a day (May, 19th), still wedding houses does not have a date of reopening till at least 1st July.
It is has been set a provisional 11th of May (already posponed from previous 21st April) as light restart from lockdown but as you know, in all the world, daily updates born since some monthes.
Update : State of emergency has been postponed till the 22nd May Included and it will be note extend (updated 19th may 2020).
All flights in and out of Georgia have been suspended till 1st July 2020 (updated on the 19th May 2020.)  The Prime Minister declare from 1st July Georgia will be ready to attend the foreign tourism. We are still missing information how and what the tourist need to arrive in Georgia following a safe protocol belong the path  of the Ministry of health coordinated with the Airports and Airline Companies of the different countries.
By the way all official wedding services are not allowed till  July ( at the moment we are writing (19th May 2020).
Curfew is mandatory from 21:00 till 06:00 am till the 22nd of May.
All transport inside Tbilisi  including taxi and private cars are banned through the 27th April included (Updated).
All transport in and out the main cities are banned till the 22th of May (Updated). Only private cars can travel out Tbilisi from the 11th of May.
This is the provisional plan of reopening (updated on the 7th May 2020 at 20:30 Tbilisi time):

Second phase of reoping will start around May 5th:
– Building
– Construction supervision
– Companies that manufacture building materials
– Automotive services including car repair and auto-service facilities

around May 11th
– Computers, daily repairs and other services
– Recreational areas

Third phase, May 11th:
-Retail and wholesale stores (except shopping centers, clothing and shoes shops) with entrances separated from the streets
– All types of outdoor markets
– All types of production
– Publishing services

Fourth phase, around June 8th:
-Shopping centers
-Restaurants with outdoor spaces
-All types of financial services
-Beauty salons and aesthetic medicine services

Fifth stage, around June 15th:
– Closed markets
– All types of restaurant business

– Tourism inside Georgia (only local tourism)

Sixth phase, approximately July 1st:

-Entertainment services, sports and leisure, art
-Games and casinos
– Hotels and Tourism from foreign countries
-Educational institutions
–All other types of activities (including Wedding houses and wedding ceremonies).

The opening dates of the various stages may be subject to change, depending on the epidemiological developments in the country. Some restrictions could be reintroduced.

Roles to get in the Georgia boarder could be applied. Updates will be coming soon about protocol of entrance.

People will be required to observe distance rules at all times during the six phases.

We will keep you update as this emergency will be over adding you in our stand-by list if you wish. Just email us with your planned programme and auctomactically we will add you to our stand-by list.
 
Information, Wedding

My wedding in Tbilisi Apostille or Legalization seals?

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One of the most frequest question is what does mean Apostille or Legalization in your certificate of marriage. The difference is very important to be learn as it can make a big issue to register the marriage later in your country or in your embassy or in a third part country where you are expat and temporary or permanent residents.

Sometimes people does not get attention at all to this matter and frequently they arrived in Tbilisi without to get the proper informations.



The wedding in Tbilisi could be very smooth and fast but it will be not so easy, smooth and fast to register the wedding if you get wrong in this matter.

All countries related l’Hague convention are belong Apostille that practically by-pass your embassy and make quite fast to approch for the registration of your wedding hold abroad. if your country is not belong l’hague convention list (e.g. Lebanon, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, South Africa), you must require a certificate of marriage with legalization.

The first legalization seals are from the country issuing the certificate. So the certificate of marriage will have the Legalization seals by Georgian law. On contrary the Apostille, the certificate with Legalization  is not enough for a lot of countries and many Nations requires their seals stamped as well in that document. It means after the release of the official certificate of marriage in Georgia with the Legalization seals, you will need to get the stamp of the related embassy as well.

There are some exception like Canada and few other country and we try constantly to be updated but our advice is to check directly with your embassy or municipality what to get to register your marriage abroad.

Did you find usefull this article? Please support us with a small donation.

Due to the covid-19, the wedding services are down since one year. If you find out these infos usefull to you please support us with a small donation by PAYPAL just clicking the link below:

You can set any ammount you wish to donate and you will get a nice gift. Thank you very much to support us!

 

Information, Theatres

Italian Opera Night in Tbilisi

A special Italian evening by Italian Embassy organization will be held on 21st October in Tbilisi to celebrate the XV edition of the Italian Language week in the world under the Patronage of the President of the Italian Republic.

settimana,lingua,italiana
The Italian Opera night will feature some of the pages most enchanting of Italian operatic repertoire, with arias by Verdi, Puccini, Rossini , Donizetti and Cilea.

Italian, opera, night, tbilisi
The evening will take place at the Grand Hall of the Conservatoire of Tbilisi ( 8 Grivoedov st.,- Tbilisi ) and will feature the Orchestra of the opera studio of the Conservatory, directed by Goghi Tchichinadze , the soloists of the Opera and Ballet Theatre of Tbilisi and the singers of the Conservatory of Tbilisi. Free admission.

gogi_chichinadze