Talavari
Seven rooms around a vine-covered courtyard in Sololaki, Old Tbilisi.
ტალავარი, talavari: the canopy of vine over an old Tbilisi courtyard.
A merchant's house that faces its courtyard
The house was built in 1891 for a family who traded silk between Tiflis and Baku. Like its neighbours in Sololaki, it shows the street a sober brick front and keeps its life on the other side: carved wooden balconies, a glazed gallery and a courtyard roofed with vine.
For most of the twentieth century seven families shared it. The balconies held, the vine kept climbing, and the vines and birds painted on the walls of the entrance hall disappeared under whitewash.
Restoring it took four years. The murals came back from under eleven coats of lime and stay as they were found, faded. The gallery's coloured panes were cut again to the old pattern. The vine is the same vine.
There are seven rooms now, one for each of those families, and one long table under the vine.
Built 1891 · Restored 2020–2024 · Three floors and an attic
Seven rooms
Each room takes its name from a part of the house. No two are alike; every one has its own bathroom, a writing table and windows that open.
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Ezo
The courtyard room
Its own door onto the courtyard, four steps from breakfast.
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Bukhari
The fireplace room
An 1890s fireplace in green tiles and two tall windows on a quiet street.
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Brotseuli
The pomegranate room
The smallest room, the one the pomegranate tree grows past.
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Aivani
The balcony room
A carved balcony over the courtyard, wide enough for two chairs and the morning coffee.
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Shushabandi
The gallery room
Behind the glazed gallery, where mornings arrive in amber and blue.
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Mtatsminda
The mountain room
High ceilings, a French balcony and the ridge of Mtatsminda above the roofs.
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Skhveni
The attic
Under the old timber beams, with a skylight over the bed.
Breakfast under the vine
From April to October breakfast is laid in the courtyard, in the shade the house is named for. In winter it moves into the glazed gallery, where the sun comes through coloured glass.
Every morning, 8:00 to 11:00
- Shoti bread from the tone oven on the corner, still warm
- Matsoni with honey and walnuts
- Sulguni and Imeretian cheese
- Churchkhela, and eggs as you like them
- Fruit of the season; figs from the courtyard tree in September
- Tea in glasses, coffee, fresh juice
In the evening the courtyard is lit low and stays open to guests, with a candle on every table. Quiet from eleven.
Sololaki, on foot
Sololaki climbs from Freedom Square towards the old fortress walls: streets of merchant houses, painted entrance halls and a courtyard behind every gate. Most of Old Tbilisi is a walk away; some of it is a climb.
Walking times are approximate, at an easy pace. The map is drawn, not to scale.
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Before you arrive
- Check-in
- From 14:00 to 22:00. Arriving later? Tell us, and someone will wait up.
- Check-out
- By 11:00. Bags can stay in the entrance hall until your train or flight.
- From the airport
- A taxi takes about 30 minutes; we can send a driver who knows the gate. Bus 337 runs to Freedom Square, seven minutes' walk from the house.
- Languages
- Georgian, English and Russian are spoken at the house.
- House rules
- Quiet from 23:00 to 08:00. No smoking indoors; the courtyard has a corner for it. Children are welcome, and cots are free on request. Pets by arrangement only.
- Stairs
- There is no lift: three floors and an attic, joined by a wooden stair. Ezo, on the ground floor, is step-free from the courtyard.