In Joanna Lumley’s Footsteps: Georgia and Azerbaijan

Most flights to Kutaisi arrive in the middle of the night, so we’ll pick you up and whisk you to the best hotel in town to get some rest. After a late breakfast, we’ll spend the day exploring Kutaisi, a city that boasts 3500 years of history and was the capital of ancient Colchis, where King Aeetes kept the legendary Golden Fleece. We’ll stroll around the town centre and local market, have lunch in a delightful local restaurant and visit both Gelati monastery and the gorgeous Motsameta, an 11th century monastery spectacularly positioned on a cliff-top above the Tskaltsitela River. Tonight is in the same hotel in Kutaisi.

After breakfast we’ll head north to Svaneti, a remote, mountainous region famous for its unique 6th century dialect, strange medieval watchtowers and pagan-tinged Christianity. A skein of the Silk Road, this was also where the Georgian treasury was carried to in times of invasion – something that happened a great deal. Around lunchtime we’ll arrive at a tiny, 1000-year old Svan hamlet featured in Joanna’s ITV series, where you’ll get the chance to help make cheese and experience a slice of rural Svan life. You’ll enjoy a wonderful lunch here, and have the afternoon to walk, relax and learn more about life in this remote hamlet. It’s then an hour’s drive to Mestia, where you’ll spend the night in a cosy hotel in the town centre, surrounded by flowed-filled meadows and snow-streaked Caucasian peaks.

After a delicious home-cooked breakfast you’ll drive a short distance to a  nearby village. Here, amid winding lanes flanked by old stone houses and Svan watchtowers, we’ll be shown around a very special 10th century Svan church by the local artist whose family have looked after it for its entire 1000-year history. Joanna adored this church and, whether you’re an art buff or not, we think you’ll love this jewel of a building too. After a late lunch we’ll visit the impressive local museum, then (weather allowing) take a cable car ride up to the Zuruldi Pass. Tonight will be in a family-run hotel in the pretty, watchtower-filled town of Mestia.

It’s a long drive to the capital today (8 hours), but, have no fear, we’ll be breaking it up with wine tasting and a visit to an extremely memorable museum. After a few hours winding down through the beautiful Caucasus Mountains, we’ll stop for a spot of lunch on the road. Afterwards, we’ll drive on to Gori, the birthplace of Stalin, where we’ll visit the museum dedicated to Georgia’s most infamous export. Among the items on show are the house where he was born and his personal train carriage. It’s a few hours’ drive from here to Tbilisi, where we’ll check in to our stylish city centre hotel and dine at a classy restaurant.

Today it’s all about Tbilisi, Georgia’s charming, buzzy capital – a vital stop on the Silk Road and one of our favourite cities on earth. We’ll explore the atmospheric lanes of the Old City and bath-house area, ogle the array of goods on sale at the amazing Dry Bridge Bazaar and stroll up to the 4th century Persian citadel, Narikala Fortress, to enjoy panoramic views over the city. From here you can see the golden domes of Orthodox churches, the spires of Armenian cathedrals and the circular roofs of old Azeri bath houses – reminders of Tbilisi’s place at the crossroads of Europe and Asia. After lunch at a top notch restaurant we’ll visit the fascinating National Museum. In the evening we’ll dine at yet another delicious restaurant. By this point, you’ll understand why everyone who visits Georgia raves about the food and wine! Tonight will again be at our stylish hotel.

We’ll leave Tbilisi after breakfast and drive for two hours into the lush, rolling hills of Kakheti, Georgia’s wine-growing region. Here we’ll visit the stunning vineyard of the famous young wine-maker featured in Joanna’s series, and try some of his much talked about natural wine. Lunch will be at the vineyard – yet another delectable Georgian feast! After lunch we’ll drive 1.5 hours to the fantastically scenic hilltop town of Sighnaghi, where we’ll spend the night in a small, very comfortable hotel.

It’s so lovely here, we can’t leave quite yet! After a few hours exploring the town’s cobbled streets, we’ll drive to nearby Bodbe Monastery to see the tomb of St Nino – the young woman who Christianised Georgia way back in the 4th century. From here, it’s a short hop down the road to the home of the remarkable silkworm farmer featured in Joanna’s series. You’ll meet the worms, feed them fresh mulberry leaves and then enjoy a spectacular meal in the garden, replete with homemade wine and chacha. This is a fascinating experience with a truly wonderful woman. Full and happy, we’ll return to our hotel in Signaghi and enjoy wine tasting and supper in town.

By now, you’ll have fallen hook, line and sinker for this gem of a country. But the wonders of Azerbaijan await. It’s just over an hour’s drive to the Lagodekhi border crossing, where we’ll say goodbye to our Georgian team and cross into the ‘Land of Fire.’ By teatime, after a short drive through the pistachio and hazel orchards of this verdant region, we’ll be in the important Silk Road town of Sheki, enjoying some of its famous sweets in a medieval caravanserai. Tonight will be in a 4* hotel just outside the town.

Sheki’s name and history goes back to 7th century BC, when the Scythians ruled the roost in these parts. Since then this important arts, silk and trade centre has been variously ruled by the Mongols, Ottomans, Persians and Russians, to name just a few. This morning we’ll see the legacy of one of these conquerors, the fantastically intricate UNESCO listed 18th century Khan’s Palace – a building that took two years to build and eight to decorate. After some time to explore the town’s cobbled streets and buy a souvenir or two, we’ll drive several hours east to the lush Ismaili region. Here, in the shadow of the mighty Caucasus range, we’ll visit a world-class vineyard that’s putting Azerbaijani wine firmly on the map. Tonight will be in the vineyard’s hotel, replete with swimming pool and mountain views. Wine tasting and a delicious supper will be served by the pool.

After tearing ourselves away from breakfast and the pool, we’ll drive to the village of Baskal, where traditional Azerbaijani silk scarves, kelagayi, have been made for more than a thousand years. Hand-printed with designs rooted in the country’s pre-Islamic Zoroastrian traditions, these colourful scarves are said to have been worn in battle by female Scythian warriors. The workshop featured in Joanna’s series, and we’ll be meeting men whose ancestors have worked here for untold centuries before them. This will be followed by lunch with a family in the village. The rest of the day will be spent exploring the surrounding range of thickly forested hills – walking between small, traditional mountain villages inhabited by Azerbaijani Turk and Tat people. It’s about 1500 metres above sea level here, and we’ll be walking a fairly easy 5 km through some truly lovely scenery. Tonight we’ll be staying in a 4* hotel in Shamakhi.

After a look around Azerbaijan’s oldest mosque, we’ll drive two hours east to the capital Baku. Dubbed the ‘Dubai of the Caucasus’, this is a glitzy, booming city on the shores of the oil rich Caspian Sea – a world away from the villages we explored yesterday! There’s so much to see and experience here, but we’ll start with the Old City, a UNESCO listed walled citadel inhabited since the Palaeolithic period. Walking through the ancient, winding alleys, past carpet sellers and samovars, it’s easy to forget about the modern city beyond the walls. Tonight will be in a 4* boutique hotel in the Old City.

Today we’ll spend the whole day exploring Baku and the surrounding Absheron Peninsular. We’ll visit the incredible Carpet Museum, marvel at the famous Flame Towers, stroll around Zaha Hadid’s iconic Heydar Aliyev Centre and see the oil fields where the first mechanical oil drill was built in 1871. As well as being featured in the Bond film, The World is Not Enough, these also still fuel much of the country’s wealth. In the afternoon we’ll head to the Absheron Peninsular to visit an unusual shrine and see the Atasgeh Fire Temple, a reminder of the Land of Fire’s Zoroastrian roots. Tonight we’ll have a goodbye dinner at our favourite Baku restaurant.

Most flights from Baku to the UK (and elsewhere) leave in the afternoon or evening, so this morning is yours to do as you wish. We suspect this might involve visiting some of the irresistible shops in the Old City! We’ll then transfer you to the airport and wave you on your merry way.