Mestia


Mestia is a highland townlet in northwest Georgia, at an elevation of in the Caucasus Mountains.

General information

Mestia is located in the Svaneti region of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti province, some northeast of the regional capital of Zugdidi. Mestia and the adjoining 132 villages form Mestia District. Its area is ; and its population is 14,248, according to the 2002 Georgia census. It was granted the status of a townlet in 1968.
Historically and ethnographically, Mestia has always been regarded a chief community of Zemo, or Upper Svaneti province. It was formerly known as Seti. The population is mostly Svans, a cultural and linguistic subgroup of the Georgians. Despite its small size, the townlet was an important centre of Georgian culture for centuries and contains a number of medieval monuments, such as churches and forts, included in a list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Mestia is served by the Queen Tamar Airport, which is operated by the state-owned company United Airports of Georgia, since 2010.

Architecture and attractions

The townlet is dominated by stone defensive towers of a type seen in Ushguli. A typical Svan fortified dwelling consisted of a tower, an adjacent house and some other household structures encircled by a defensive wall.
Unique icons and manuscripts are kept in Mestia Historical-Ethnographic Museum. Mestia is also a centre of mountaineering tourism.

Gallery

Twin towns

Born in Mestia