Spring: March to May
March in Tbilisi is still cool and showery, with daytime temperatures in the low teens, but hotel rates in the Old Town around Abanotubani and Sololaki are at their lowest of the year and the sulphur bath houses are quiet. By April the city's plane trees leaf out along Rustaveli Avenue and the bars of Fabrika on Ninoshvili Street fill their courtyard again. This is the window for Mtskheta, 25 minutes by marshalrtka from Didube station, and for Davit Gareja, though the monastery track can be muddy after rain.
May is the sweet spot: warm, mostly dry, and the terrace season opens in earnest. Kakheti's vineyards around Telavi and Sighnaghi are in full growth, and the drive from Tbilisi takes about two hours on the Kakheti highway. Book Sighnaghi's small guesthouses early for the second half of the month, when weekend demand from Tbilisi spikes. If you want one recommendation, I would book the last week of May: you get long evenings, working wineries and prices still below the summer peak.
Summer: June to August
June and July are hot in Tbilisi, regularly topping 30°C, which is why locals decamp to Batumi and the Adjaran coast. The train from Tbilisi to Batumi takes around five hours; the drive on the S1 is roughly the same without stops. Batumi's seafront promenade and the old quarter near Piazza run at full capacity from mid-July, and rooms near the beach roughly double against spring rates. Kobuleti and Shekvetili, 20 to 40 minutes north along the coast, are quieter and better value for families.
The mountains are the alternative. Kazbegi, reached in about three hours from Tbilisi along the Georgian Military Highway, sits at 1,740 metres and stays pleasant in July, with day hikes to Gergeti Trinity Church. Mestia in Svaneti is cooler still and the gateway to Ushguli. August is the busiest month nationwide, so reserve accommodation in Kazbegi, Mestia and Batumi at least six to eight weeks ahead. Skip the coast in the first week of August if crowds frustrate you.
Autumn: September to November
September and October are the best all-round months for a Georgia trip. Tbilisi is warm but no longer punishing, Kakheti holds its harvest, and the road to Kazbegi is usually clear. The Rtveli grape harvest brings activity to Telavi, Gurjaani and the Alazani Valley, and guesthouses there book out for harvest weekends. Prices in the capital sit between the summer peak and the winter low, and the city's museums and the National Gallery on Rustaveli are comfortable to visit.
November turns cool and damp in Tbilisi, with grey days in the low teens, but it is excellent value and good for urban travel: the bath district, the dry bridge flea market and the cafés of Vera and Vake. Mountain roads toward Svaneti can close with early snow, so keep high-altitude plans flexible. If your priority is hiking, I would book late September; if it is city food and wine, the first half of November is the better call.
Winter: December to February
Winter is quiet, cheap and underrated. Tbilisi rarely drops far below freezing and snow in the streets is uncommon, so walking the Old Town and riding the funicular to Mtatsminda are still comfortable. Hotel availability in the centre is at its widest and rates at their lowest. Gudauri, about two hours from Tbilisi on the Georgian Military Highway, is the main ski base; Bakuriani, reached via Borjomi, suits families and beginners. Neither resort is large by Alpine standards.
Expect short days, with sunset before 6pm in December and January, and check mountain road conditions before setting out, since the Kazbegi route can be held by snow. Winter is also the season for hearty Georgian cooking, from khinkali houses in Pasanauri on the way north to the taverns of Telavi. For a first visit focused on Tbilisi and day trips, I would book February: days lengthen, prices stay low and the city feels local rather than crowded.