GeorgiaOfficial tourism
Jandari Lake

Where Tbilisi comes to breathe

Jandari Lake

Why go

Jandari Lake spreads across 10 square kilometers of Kvemo Kartli's rolling plains, a reservoir created in the Soviet era that has become the capital's eastern escape valve. Its waters hold mirror-carp, grass carp, and silver carp—stocked deliberately, drawing fishermen who cast from wooden platforms at dawn. On summer weekends, Tbilisi families colonize its muddy beaches with shashlik smoke and inflatable rings, while the lake's far shore remains quiet, marked only by distant shepherds and the rustle of tamarisk. It is not pristine; it is alive, utilitarian, and strangely affecting—a working landscape where Georgians actually live rather than perform tourism.

On the ground See

  • The fishing platforms at sunrise, where local men in waders trade cigarettes and techniques for landing 15-kilo mirror carp
  • The weekend beach scene at Jandari Resort's informal swimming area, complete with Soviet-era concrete changing rooms and fresh churchkhela vendors
  • The lake's eastern reaches by dirt track, where waterbirds—coots, grebes, occasional pelicans—work the reed beds undisturbed by human noise

Practical Know before you go

Best May through September; public marshrutka from Tbilisi's Samgori station runs to Gardabani (1 hour), from where taxis cover the final 8km to the lake shore.

Last reviewed 25 August 2026 · reviewed quarterly