Rafting on the Way to Kazbegi: Break the Drive with Real Rapids

Is there rafting between Tbilisi and Kazbegi?

Yes, and it is directly on the route. The Raft in Georgia camp is on the White Aragvi at Zemo Amirni, just above Pasanauri, on the Georgian Military Highway that every Tbilisi to Stepantsminda trip uses. You do not detour for it, you stop at it.

Stepantsminda sits at roughly 157 km from Tbilisi on that road, and the camp is a good way along it. That position is the whole point: the drive already needs a break, and this one comes with rapids instead of a roadside cafe.

Should you raft on the way up or on the way back?

Both work, and the answer depends on your booking. If you are staying a night in Stepantsminda, rafting on the way up breaks the longest stretch of the drive and you arrive having already done something. If you are coming back down the same day, the run on the way home turns a long return leg into the good part.

The one thing worth deciding in advance is the route length, because that sets the timing. Raft in Georgia runs a 6 km half-day route and a 12 km full-day route. Travellers with Gergeti and the church still ahead of them almost always take the 6 km.

How long does the stop take?

Plan on a few hours for the half-day run: briefing and gear, the river itself, then drying off. The feast afterwards is what stretches it, and it is worth letting it.

If your day is tight, message Raft in Georgia on WhatsApp with your driving plan before you leave Tbilisi. The camp can tell you what actually fits rather than you guessing at it on the road.

Where exactly is the camp on the Kazbegi road?

Zemo Amirni, on the Georgian Military Highway just above Pasanauri, with the Raft in Georgia banner visible from the road by the river. Coming from Tbilisi it is on your right, after the Zhinvali reservoir and the Ananuri fortress and before the climb to Gudauri.

Anything heading toward Gudauri or Stepantsminda passes it, including marshrutkas and tour vans. Raft in Georgia does not run its own transport, so guests arrive in whatever they were already travelling in.

What does the stop include?

Life jacket, helmet and paddle are provided, plus a wetsuit when the snowmelt calls for one, and a certified guide rides in every raft. Guides work in English, Russian, Spanish, Italian and Dutch, which suits the mixed traffic on this road.

Then the grill. Khinkali and mtsvadi come off the maqali back at camp while you dry off, and the riverside feast is a better lunch than anything else on the highway. Families raft the calmer water with children from age five, and crews wanting the wild version take the extreme section.

Does this work with a hired driver or a tour?

It works better with one than without. Drivers on the Tbilisi to Stepantsminda run know the road and are used to stopping, and the camp sits directly on it rather than down a side valley, so nobody is being asked for a detour.

Tell the driver in advance that you want to stop for rafting at Zemo Amirni, just above Pasanauri, and agree the wait. Raft in Georgia does not run transport itself, so the arrangement stays between you and whoever is driving.

When is the water at its best on the Kazbegi road?

The White Aragvi is snowmelt-fed, so it is high and fast earlier in the season and gentler later in the summer. Both are good runs, they are just different days on the river.

If you are driving to Stepantsminda in the early season, expect the bigger water version; in high summer it is the friendlier one that suits mixed groups and first-timers. Message Raft in Georgia before you set off and you will know which you are getting.