Batumi Airport: getting into town and where to drive next

Batumi Airport sits 6 kilometres from the city centre, and a taxi covers that in 10–15 minutes outside rush hour. You can get into town by bus, by taxi, or simply pick up a rental car if your trip starts at the airport itself. From there the routes split: some people drive up the coast towards Kobuleti, others climb into the mountains of Adjara, where getting around follows a completely different logic.

What kind of airport this is

You'll rarely hear the official name, Alexander Kartveli Batumi International Airport — everyone just says "Batumi airport" or uses the code BUS. There's a single building, with no separate terminals and no walking between floors: the plane parks almost at the door, and it's a three-minute walk from the steps to the baggage hall.

There aren't many flights, and that's not a drawback. Check-in, passport control and baggage claim together take 20–30 minutes even on a full load. International routes thin out in winter, and some flights to Tel Aviv, Dubai and Aktau only operate in high season. If you're flying in winter, check with the airline that your flight is actually running rather than trusting a schedule you found online.

Inside there are a few currency exchange counters, an ATM, a café with a couple of tables and the car rental desks. Mobile coverage and Wi-Fi inside the building are stable, but for the first couple of kilometres beyond the terminal the signal can drop — if you need to be online the moment you land, it's easier to sort out a SIM card and mobile internet in Georgia in advance. For comparison, Tbilisi Airport is noticeably bigger both in passenger flow and in what the terminal itself offers, while Kutaisi Airport sits farther from the city and more often handles overnight low-cost flights.

Getting from the airport to the centre

There are three options, each with its own logic.

Bus. Routes 9, 10 and 16 leave from the airport building roughly every 25 minutes, and a ride costs 0.3 GEL. Bus 9 runs to the centre, bus 10 follows the coast as far as the railway station. Slow, but practically free, and there's nothing to book in advance.

Taxi. Private drivers usually wait by the terminal exit offering to run you into the centre for 50–100 GEL. The same distance through an app or a pre-booked transfer rarely comes to more than 15–20 GEL. The difference isn't in the car — it's that the drivers at the door are counting on passengers who are too tired after a flight to haggle.

Car rental. Most rental companies have desks right in the arrivals area, and the car is handed over within a few minutes of signing. With MY.DRIVE you can pick and book the car before you even fly out, then simply walk up to someone holding the keys on arrival, with no queue and no choosing between whatever is left at the desk. That makes sense if your Georgian road trip starts at the aircraft steps rather than a day or two later in Batumi; for a short stop in the city, a taxi or the bus is usually enough.

The drive from the airport into town is simple: one straight road along the coast, with no interchanges or turns you could easily miss. At rush hour, traffic at the city entrance can stall for 10–15 minutes, especially in summer. If you're heading further north, to Kobuleti or Ureki, there's no need to turn around in the centre: the bypass road starts practically at the airport and saves you about twenty minutes.

Do you need an international driving permit in Georgia

For citizens of most countries, including Russia, the EU and the US, a national licence is valid on the same terms as an international one for the whole length of your stay. An international driving permit isn't mandatory, though some rental companies ask for one from customers whose countries have no bilateral agreement with Georgia on recognising licences. Better to clarify that when you book, not when you land.

Where to drive from Batumi

Two directions make sense from here: along the sea, and up into the mountains of Adjara. Don't try to combine both in one day — the mountain roads wind, and they take more time than the straight-line distance suggests.

Along the coast:

• Kobuleti, about 20 km, a wide sand-and-pebble beach and fewer tourists than in Batumi itself;
• Ureki, about 35 km, known for its magnetic black sand, 35–40 minutes on the road;
• Sarpi, about 15 km to the Turkish border, worth a drive just to see the crossing and turn back.

Into the mountains of Adjara:

• Makhuntseti waterfall, about 25 km, asphalt all the way to the car park, fine for any car; Queen Tamar's bridge is right nearby;
• Keda and Queen Tamar's bridge, a little further along the same road;
• Khulo, about 65 km, a switchback climb with a serious change in altitude; past the pass the air is noticeably colder than on the coast;
• Goderdzi, in winter reachable only from the Batumi side, as the road from Akhaltsikhe hasn't been cleared of snow in recent winters. The route to Goderdzi is banned under standard rental agreements regardless of the class of car, and that's worth checking before the trip rather than after.

If you're staying in town for a day or two, start with what to see in Batumi; one easy stop near the coast is the Batumi Botanical Garden: it's simpler to reach from the centre than straight from the plane.

I once drove up to Khulo in a sedan, assuming the asphalt would hold all the way to the top. On the last few kilometres of switchbacks the tarmac ran out, and the fog came down so thick that I ended up driving almost by feel, using the verge as a guide. Since then I take an SUV into the mountains: not for the ground clearance, but because the switchbacks are less nauseating and you sit higher.

Season and road conditions

The road to Kobuleti and Ureki is paved and smooth all year round. The mountain routes, Khulo and Keda, need different preparation in winter: from November to March winter tyres are essential on the switchbacks, because summer rubber loses grip up here even without snow, purely from the low temperatures and the damp air in the Adjara mountains.

In summer it's the other way round: the problem isn't the road but the traffic right along the coast at weekends, when tourists from Batumi and Kobuleti pile in on top of the locals.

In short

Batumi Airport is small, and that keeps the logistics simple: you're in the city less than half an hour after leaving the plane, whether by bus, taxi or your own car. Book taxis through an app rather than taking the first offer from a driver at the exit. The coastal routes work with any car year-round; the mountain ones need winter tyres from November to March, plus an eye on restrictions like the Goderdzi ban. After that it isn't the transport that decides how the trip goes, but how far ahead you planned the route.