Tskaltubo

Tskaltubo grew around springs of mineral water that emerge at around thirty-three to thirty-five degrees, warm enough to bathe in without heating, and from the 1930s onward it was developed into a major spa resort with a ring of enormous sanatoriums set in parkland around a central bathhouse complex, built in a heavy classical manner with colonnades, domes and grand stairs. Some bathhouses still operate and treatments continue. Many of the sanatoriums have stood empty for decades, their halls open to the weather; others are lived in as homes and are private, not sites to walk into. The park at the centre and the working baths are what visitors can properly see.

History

The "waters of immortality" at Tskaltubo were probably known by the 7th-9th centuries, the date of the oldest records, and from the 18th century foreign researchers described their healing powers, among them the Berlin Society of Friends of Natural Science in 1782 and J. Klaproth in 1815. By 1920 chemical analysis had shown how unusual the water is, and the place was declared a spa; building began in 1926, and in 1950-1951 the architects I. Zaalishvili and V. Kedia planned a town of sanatoriums set in a ring around a park and the baths. It became a city in 1953, and over the years 19 sanatoriums and guesthouses, nine bathhouses, the resort park and a branch of the institute of balneology were built (Wikipedia, Tsqaltubo).

Highlights

• Warm mineral springs - water emerging at bathing temperature.
• The central bathhouse complex - colonnades and domes in the park.
• Monumental sanatorium architecture - the ring of buildings around the town.
• The park at the centre - the planted grounds between the buildings.

When to go

April to October. Half a day from Kutaisi. Bathhouses keep set hours and treatments are booked. Ask before entering any building.

Before you go

Many of the derelict buildings are unsafe, and a number are people's homes; walking into them is trespassing and intrusive regardless of what photographs online suggest. Structures are decaying with real hazards. The working baths are dated and utilitarian.

Nearby

Prometheus cave is north; Kutaisi lies south-east.

Key facts