Tbilisi New Year lights and New Year Village in Georgia: dates, meaning and how to experience it

By Mariam Lomidze, GTour desk · Fact-checked against the sources listed · Last checked 25 October 2026 · Editorial policy

What it is

The Georgian word for the season is akhali ts’eli (ახალი წელი), literally “new year,” and the municipal programme that now frames it in the capital is popularly called the akhali ts’lis sopheli, the “New Year Village” (ახალი წლის სოფელი). It refers to the illuminated decorations that Tbilisi City Hall installs each winter along Rustaveli Avenue and around Freedom Square, and to the fenced festival ground that opens on First Republic Square with a market, a stage, food stalls and a central tree. This is a civic and commercial event rather than a church feast, though it runs through the same weeks as the Orthodox Christmas and Epiphany cycle that Georgians still observe by the Julian calendar.

Everyone in the city is, in effect, a participant: residents walk the lit avenue on winter evenings, families bring children to see the tree and the market stalls, and office workers and students treat the lights switch-on as the informal start of the holiday season. Visitors are equally welcome — there is no ticket, no religious protocol and no language barrier at the market stalls, which makes it one of the more accessible ways for a short-stay guest to see Tbilisi in a festive mood rather than as a purely historical city. For an explanation of the underlying religious calendar that the civic lights run alongside, the Georgian Orthodox Patriarchate publishes its own Christmas and Epiphany schedule separately.

Historical background

• 19th century — under Russian imperial administration, the decorated fir tree (yolka) and gift-bringing customs associated with the New Year season spread into Georgian towns alongside older Christmas and Epiphany observances.
• 1918 — the Democratic Republic of Georgia was proclaimed; within a few years Soviet Russia and then Georgia shifted the civil calendar to the Gregorian system, while the Orthodox Church retained the older Julian calendar, a split the Julian calendar still explains today.
• 1920s–1930s — the Soviet state discouraged public celebration of religious Christmas and promoted 1 January as the main winter holiday, with the fir tree reinstated in the USSR from 1935 as a secular “New Year tree” rather than a Christmas one.
• Soviet period — in western Georgia the chichilaki, a conical ornament shaved from dried hazelnut or walnut branches, persisted as a distinct regional alternative to the imported fir tree.
• 1991 — after independence, 7 January (Orthodox Christmas) was restored as a public holiday alongside 1–2 January, reuniting the civic New Year and the religious Christmas season in the official calendar.
• 2000s — Tbilisi City Hall began organising coordinated festive lighting along Rustaveli Avenue and the historic centre each December, expanding year on year.
• 2010s — the square now called First Republic Square, commemorating the 1918–1921 Democratic Republic of Georgia, became the principal site for a dedicated New Year Village with a market, stage and skating area.
• Recent years — the lights switch-on and the New Year Village have become a fixed annual civic programme, with exact opening and closing dates confirmed by Tbilisi City Hall each autumn.

The layering of calendars is the key to understanding why Tbilisi appears to celebrate “New Year” twice. Because the Georgian Orthodox Church did not follow the Soviet-era and later civil adoption of the Gregorian calendar, Christmas falls on 7 January rather than 25 December, meaning the secular New Year of 1 January arrives first. A further legacy, the “Old New Year” on 13 January, survives informally from the thirteen-day gap between the two calendars and is still marked quietly by some families with a smaller supper.

The modern lights and market programme is a recent, municipal layer added on top of these older religious and domestic customs rather than a continuation of any single ancient ritual. It sits on First Republic Square, whose name recalls Georgia’s short-lived first democratic state, and it functions as the city’s main free public gathering point through the darkest weeks of the year, from the switch-on in mid-December to the close of the Christmas–Epiphany season in early-to-mid January.

Meaning and traditions

At home, the central object of the season is the chichilaki (ჩიჩილაკი), a small tabletop tree made of curled wood shavings, traditionally burned on Epiphany (19 January) to symbolise setting aside the old year’s troubles. Children leave shoes or stockings for Tovlis Babua (“Grandfather Snow”), the Georgian Santa figure, while in some regions an older character known as Bass’ila or similar dough figures appear on the New Year table. The supra, or feast table, for New Year’s Eve and Christmas typically includes gozinaki (honey-and-walnut brittle), churchkhela, roast or boiled poultry such as satsivi, and new-vintage wine, toasted with short speeches in the tradition of Georgian table culture; polyphonic songs such as Mravalzhamier (“many years”) are sung at both family and church gatherings.

On 7 January, children and adults take part in Alilo, a Christmas morning procession through town centres in which participants dress in white or in folk costume and carry icons, candles and baskets of sweets, which are often distributed to the needy. Regional variations persist: western Georgian households favour the chichilaki over the imported fir, while mountain communities such as those in Svaneti mark the wider winter season with separate observances, including torch-lit gatherings in January that are distinct from, but close in date to, the Tbilisi lights. The New Year Village itself is explicitly secular and market-driven: stalls sell wine, crafts, honey and street food, a stage hosts evening concerts, and a decorated tree and temporary ice rink anchor the square.

When it happens

There is no fixed calendar rule for the lights and village, unlike the religious dates around them. Tbilisi City Hall typically switches on the Rustaveli Avenue illuminations in the second week of December and opens the New Year Village on First Republic Square shortly after, running the market through New Year’s Eve and the Orthodox Christmas period to around 7 January, occasionally extending toward Old New Year on 13 January. For the 2026–2027 season the municipality has indicated a run of 12 December 2026 to 7 January 2027, to be confirmed closer to the date by Tbilisi City Hall; a similar pattern, roughly mid-December to early January, is expected for 2027–2028, with official dates announced in late autumn each year.

The lights and village are not themselves public holidays, but they overlap with Georgia’s statutory winter holidays: 31 December–2 January, 7 January (Christmas), and 19 January (Epiphany) are non-working days, when government offices, banks and many shops close or shorten hours. Rustaveli Avenue and First Republic Square see temporary traffic restrictions during the festival and especially on New Year’s Eve, when the city centre is partly pedestrianised for the midnight fireworks.

Where to experience it

First Republic Square is the main venue: visitors can expect market stalls from late afternoon into the evening, a stage with concerts on weekends and holiday dates, a large illuminated tree, and food and mulled wine vendors. Rustaveli Avenue, running from Freedom Square to Rustaveli Theatre and beyond, is the principal lit corridor and is best walked after dark, when the illuminations and shopfronts are most striking. On the night of 31 December, crowds gather on and around the square for a midnight fireworks display, and on the morning of 7 January central streets fill with the Alilo procession, which visitors may watch respectfully from the pavement. Those wishing to see the religious side of the season can attend the Christmas Eve liturgy on the evening of 6 January at Sameba (Holy Trinity) Cathedral or at Sioni Cathedral in the old town; modest dress is expected, women commonly cover their heads with a scarf, shoulders and knees should be covered, and photography during services should be avoided unless clearly permitted.

Did you know

• Georgia’s state and church calendars run on different systems: the civil calendar is Gregorian, but the Georgian Orthodox Church still follows the Julian calendar, which is why Christmas falls on 7 January rather than 25 December.
• The thirteen-day gap between the Julian and Gregorian calendars left a cultural trace in “Old New Year” on 13 January, still marked informally by some families decades after the calendar shift.
• The chichilaki, the Georgian equivalent of a Christmas tree, is traditionally burned at Epiphany to carry away the troubles of the past year rather than kept as a lasting ornament.
• First Republic Square takes its name from the Democratic Republic of Georgia (1918–1921), one of the first states in the region to extend suffrage to women.
• The Alilo procession, suppressed during much of the Soviet period, was revived after Georgian independence and is now one of the largest public religious gatherings in Tbilisi each year.

Practical tips for visitors

Tbilisi International Airport connects to the city centre by taxi or shuttle bus; Rustaveli and Freedom Square metro stations put visitors directly on the lit avenue. December and early January are cold, often with snow or sleet, so warm layers and sturdy footwear are advisable, particularly for evening walks or standing at outdoor concerts. Accommodation in the centre fills quickly around New Year’s Eve, so early booking is recommended, and some streets close to traffic around the square on peak nights, which is worth building into any taxi journey. Government offices, banks and many museums close on 31 December–2 January, 7 January and 19 January, though restaurants, markets and the festival stalls themselves generally stay open through the season.

Combine it with

A winter visit to Tbilisi pairs naturally with a day trip into Kakheti, where the new wine vintage features prominently on the holiday table, or with Mtskheta-Mtianeti, home to Georgia’s early Christian monuments and the Jvari and Sveti­tskhoveli churches central to the religious calendar behind the season. Travellers with more time can continue to Svaneti, where mountain villages mark the same midwinter weeks with their own torch-lit traditions, distinct from the Tbilisi lights but close in date.

Questions travellers ask

Is the Tbilisi New Year Village free to enter?

Yes, the market and lighted streets are open public space with no admission charge; visitors pay only for food, drinks or items they choose to buy at the stalls.

Why does Georgia seem to celebrate New Year twice?

The civil calendar is Gregorian, so 1 January is the secular New Year, while the Orthodox Church follows the older Julian calendar, placing Christmas on 7 January and leaving a residual “Old New Year” on 13 January still marked informally by some households.

When exactly do the lights go on in 2026?

Tbilisi City Hall has indicated a season running from around 12 December 2026 to 7 January 2027, though the exact switch-on date is confirmed closer to the time.

Is First Republic Square easy to reach without a car?

Yes, it is within walking distance of the Rustaveli and Freedom Square metro stations and served by city buses along Rustaveli Avenue.

Do I need to dress up or bring anything special?

No special dress is required for the market or lights; warm winter clothing is the main consideration given the cold evenings.

Can visitors attend the Alilo procession on 7 January?

Visitors may watch from the street as spectators; it is a public religious procession, so quiet, respectful observation rather than close interference is appropriate.

Are restaurants open on New Year’s Eve and Christmas?

Many restaurants stay open with special holiday menus on 31 December, though some close on 1 January and 7 January itself, so checking ahead or booking is advisable.

Is this the same event as Georgian Christmas celebrations?

No, the lights and New Year Village are a secular municipal programme; Christmas is observed separately through church services, the Alilo procession and family meals on 6–7 January, within the same general season.

Sources

• Tbilisi City Hall
• Georgian National Tourism Administration
• Georgian Orthodox Patriarchate
• Ministry of Culture, Sport and Youth of Georgia
• Agenda.ge
• Georgia Today
• Civil.ge