Bakuriani

Bakuriani is a daba and a ski resort in the Borjomi district of Georgia. It is located on the northern slope of the Trialeti Range, at an elevation of 1,700 meters above sea level.

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Geography

The region around Bakuriani is covered by coniferous forests. The resort lies from Borjomi and is located within the so-called Bakuriani Depression/caldera. The resort is connected with Borjomi by an electrified narrow-gauge railway. The present-day area of the town was built up by lava flows from the nearby Mukhera volcano.

Winter sports

Ski resort

The ski area of the resort is split into two separate parts: Didveli and Kokhta/Kokhta-Mitarbi. Mount Kokhta provides a maximum skiable altitude of, whereas the highest lift in Didveli reaches.
The first ski base was opened in 1932. From Bakuriani to Kokhtagori Mountain and Tskhratskaro Pass there are ski lifts, ski tramps. There is artificial snowfall on Didveli skiing routes. Bakuriani is a year-round resort area, with highly developed health tourism. Due to the high demand, the number of accommodation and catering facilities has been increasing.

Sports competitions

In March 2022, Bakuriani was the host city for slopestyle during the 2021–22 FIS Snowboard World Cup, taking place in Georgia for the first time. In 2023, the Georgian Ski Association organized there the 2023 FIS Freestyle and Snowboard World Championships. In the following years, the resort also hosted various FIS World Cup events in Mogul Skiing and Ski/Snowbard Cross specialities.

Climate

The climate of Bakuriani is transitional from humid maritime to relatively humid continental. The winters are cold and experience significant snowfall while the summers are long and warm. Average annual temperature of the town is. The average temperature in January is while the average August temperature is. The annual precipitation is. The depth of snow from December to March is. Bakuriani is also home to the Botanical Garden of the Georgian Academy of Sciences.

Infrastructure

The Borjomi-Bakuriani railway "Kukushka" uses track gauge.
A few km south of Bakuriani lies the trajectory of the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline.

People

It was the home town of luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, who died during event training on the first day of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He lived in Bakuriani for much of his life, and the street he lived on was named in his honor after his death. Georgia's flag-bearing athlete at the opening ceremony, alpine skier Iason Abramashvili, also resides there; he thought of withdrawing, but ultimately decided to compete to honor Kumaritashvili's memory.