Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi

Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi tickets: which one to buy

Entry is free and there is no ticket of any kind; the cathedral is a working church rather than a monument. It stands on Elia Hill across the river from the old town, about twenty minutes on foot from Avlabari metro station or a short taxi ride that costs a couple of lari. Most city tours include it as a stop, usually paired with the old town, the sulphur baths and a viewpoint; those cost a moderate amount and the cathedral portion takes half an hour.

Private drivers for a day around Tbilisi and Mtskheta cost more and are the efficient way to combine Sameba with Jvari and Svetitskhoveli, the older and in many ways more interesting churches half an hour north. Bike tours and evening tours pass the cathedral for the view of it lit up. There is nothing to book and no busy season in the ticketing sense. Taxis are cheap and plentiful, but the drive up the hill is one-way and drivers sometimes leave passengers at the bottom of the steps.

Visiting Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi: what to see

Sameba, as everyone in Tbilisi calls it, was begun in 1995 to mark 1,500 years of Georgian church independence and 2,000 years since the birth of Christ, and consecrated in 2004. It is the third-tallest Orthodox cathedral in the world, 87 metres to the top of the gilded cross, and deliberately built as a summary of Georgian architecture: the pointed conical dome, the pyramidal massing and the carved stone ornament all quote medieval churches, at a scale none of them ever attempted.

The complex covers a whole hilltop with nine chapels, a bell tower, a monastery, a seminary and a residence for the patriarch. Inside, the space is enormous and still filling with frescoes, painted in a modern hand that follows old conventions. Its construction was controversial: the site included part of an old Armenian cemetery, and Armenian groups protested. What is undisputed is the view from the terrace back across the river to the old town. The lower church, built into the hill beneath the main floor, is quieter and darker, and is where most of the weekday services happen.

Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi opening hours and the best time to go

Open daily from early morning to evening. Services are long and frequent in the Orthodox manner, and visitors may stand at the back, which is often the best way to see the building working. Sunday mornings and major feasts fill it completely. Sunset from the terrace is the moment most photographers come for, with the old town and the Narikala fortress opposite. Tbilisi summers are very hot and the hill is exposed; winter is grey and the interior is cold.

Dress code is enforced by the women at the door: shoulders and knees covered, and women must cover their heads, with scarves provided free at the entrance. Photography inside is discouraged and sometimes forbidden outright. Allow forty minutes, an hour with the grounds. Candles are sold inside and lighting one is the normal courtesy. Wedding parties arrive all Saturday afternoon and are part of the spectacle rather than an obstruction.