Racha-Lechkhumi & Kvemo Svaneti

Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti is Georgia's smallest and least visited region, and its most quietly beautiful — a highland of pine forests, alpine lakes, wooden balconied houses and a slow, hospitable way of life. It sits in the upper valley of the Rioni river beneath the peaks of the central Caucasus.

Ambrolauri is the small capital; Oni, with its nineteenth-century synagogue, and the eleventh-century church at Nikortsminda are the cultural high points. The lakes at Shaori and Udziro and the resort of Shovi draw hikers in summer. Racha is also a wine region of its own: Khvanchkara, the semi-sweet red from the Alexandrouli and Mujuretuli grapes, comes only from a few villages along the Rioni.

Racha rewards travellers with time — three days or more, ideally in late spring or early autumn, with a car and a driver who knows the mountain roads.