Location, Hospitality, Hosts, Food and cooperation and vibes.

Probably nothing.

Great location. You can see vardzia cave town from the hotel.

Not so clean. There was a toilet with urine on it. A lot of flies in the room even though there are screens in front of the Windows. Expensive stay, you only pay for the great location.

The fact you were almost a part of the family and you could see the way a local family of farmers lives. Food was divine and truly genuine! Home made jams, cheese and bread, house eggs, milk and honey. Superb experience gastronomically speaking!

The rooms look démodé and it was almost “camping style”, with small beds (not very suitable for tall people), bare decoration and no table lamps. Spartan kind of facilities.

We liked thé kindness of Tina and his husband. Thé breakfast and the diner were very good with fresh products direct from their garden.

Nothing

The location is great. The room is simple - just like on the photos. There is an adorable kitten :)

The biggest problem was with the breakfast. We were asked at what time we would like to have breakfast but we were not informed about the cost of breakfast - even though we asked about that.It turned out it was 25 Lari per person and the breakfast was good but simple - not worthy 50 lari obviously. If we had known earlier how much the cost was, we would not have wanted to eat it. One day before we paid 10lari for 2 people for breakfast (5lari per person). After discussion with the host, we were given some money back. If it was not this situation, everything would be okay. The main issue is to communicate clearly in advance how much they want to charge their customers for particular things.

Staying in Vardzia for 3 nights at Gvala was a great decision. Most people do day tours to the caves and only spend 1.5 hours or so before eating at the restaurant and leaving back to Tbilisi or Kutaisi. That is a lot of driving for a rushed tour of a massive cave city complex. If you're coming this far, stay overnight and do so at Gvala. The photos of the area don't do it justice, as the landscape is more dramatic than we expected. There is some nice hiking/ walking opportunities from the entrance to the caves and fortress ruins worth visiting. The area is in the countryside and was a refreshing break from the rest of our busy trip. There's no bank or atm in the area so make sure to bring enough cash with you. Tomas and his wife were very nice hosts and extremely generous with their food and wine (and chacha). Breakfast (20 GEL) and dinner (30 GEL) were delicious and there was always more than enough food. Everything is homemade including the honey, jam, and wine. For one dinner they brought us terrific kinkhali from a local restaurant. Tomas was helpful shuttling us in the area and we even had an after hours visit to the local sulfur bath. They also helped us with our laundry for free. Saba, their grandson who helps them over the summers, is very attentive and fun. He speaks excellent English and was very helpful for us when communicating with his grandparents. Whenever we were relaxing he was offering us complimentary coffee, tea, and juicy watermelon to snack on. We had a great time and are very happy we stayed at Gvala.

The owner of the place was very friendly, took care of us, and sat with us to talk even tho we had a bit language barier. Everything he served us for dinner was home made, starting from wine till his own bread flour and cheese. Very friendly people, more than fair prices and great location from Vardzia. Fast comunication and when we had a problem to find a place we have find owner randomly waiting for us on main road to help us and welcome us. Very exceptional experience with locals.

GVALA is a great getaway in the country. The home-cooked food is absolutely superb. So much better than anything you will find in a restaurant. Fantastic location, superb views from the terrace and most importantly, the most accommodating and helpful hosts. If you are looking for super fast internet and power showers, then this is not the place for you. However, GVALA offers an Amazon rural experience and incredibly good value for money!