Tskaltubo: Stalin's spa town and its abandoned sanatoriums

The spa town the Soviet Union built — and what it became

Tskaltubo is one of the most unusual places in Georgia. Under Stalin’s direct patronage in the 1930s and 1940s, it was built into the flagship health resort of the Soviet Union — a purpose-designed spa town of monumental Stalinist neoclassical sanatoriums, a grand central park with mineral bath pavilions, its own theatre and railway station, and enough capacity to receive 125,000 visitors a year. Stalin himself came here for his rheumatic arthritis.

After 1991, central Soviet funding stopped overnight. Most sanatoriums closed. The Abkhazian war of 1992–93 redirected approximately 5,000 internally displaced Georgians into the abandoned buildings as emergency accommodation. Families lived for decades in rooms designed for single-week health-retreat stays, in buildings slowly losing their roofs, their windows, and their electricity.

Relocation programmes from the late 2000s gradually moved these families to new housing. The buildings were left behind. What has happened since varies dramatically: one sanatorium is now the Radisson Collection, a five-star hotel. Most others remain in various stages of dramatic ruin. The central bath house still operates. The mineral water still flows.

The result is a travel experience unlike anything else in the Caucasus — and in many respects unlike anything else in Europe.

The waters: what makes Tskaltubo mineral springs distinctive

Tskaltubo’s springs produce naturally warm water at 33–35°C, mildly radioactive from dissolved radon and rich in bicarbonate and calcium. This is the specific combination that generated the Soviet interest: radon water at body temperature, available in quantities large enough to supply dozens of bath rooms simultaneously.

The therapeutic claims focus on rheumatic conditions, nervous system issues and circulatory problems. Modern medical consensus on radon water therapy is cautious — the radioactivity is low but real, and extended treatment courses should involve medical consultation. For a standard tourist visit of one or two baths, the exposure is well within accepted safety limits.

The sensation is distinctive. The water at 33–35°C sits just below body temperature — warmer than cool, not hot. It feels unusually enveloping and soft, an effect attributed to the dissolved minerals and radon. After 20–30 minutes, the overall result is the kind of profound relaxation that rarely comes from a standard spa. This is a genuinely therapeutic water, not a heated swimming pool.

Stalin’s favourite resort: the history

The first reference to Tskaltubo’s springs appears in Georgian chronicles from the 7th century. Russian imperial interest began in the 19th century. But the transformation that defines the town today happened under Stalin.

Stalin suffered from rheumatic arthritis from his 40s onward. He began visiting Tskaltubo in the 1930s and found the radon baths genuinely effective. He directed major investment into the town — not as a personal luxury but as a flagship of Soviet healthcare: the idea that the working class deserved real, effective medical treatment, delivered in grand surroundings.

The sanatoriums of the peak era (1930s–1960s) were built with the full weight of Soviet architectural ambition. Stalinist neoclassical facades with monumental colonnades. Entrance halls with chandeliers and marble staircases. Ballrooms, theatres, cinemas, libraries. Bath facilities designed for systematic medical treatment with dozens of individual rooms. Each sanatorium served a different sector of the Soviet economy — miners, steelworkers, agricultural workers — and represented the prestige that sector’s leadership wanted to display.

Sanatorium Shakhtiori (Miners’) was the most famous. Today it is the Radisson Collection.

The abandoned sanatoriums

Several of Tskaltubo’s sanatoriums remain substantially as the evacuated residents left them — grand architectural shells in various stages of collapse, with fading frescoes, collapsed chandeliers, rusted bed frames, and the occasional personal belonging left behind.

Sanatorium Medea: The most dramatic ruin. The main staircase, ballroom and theatre are substantially intact as ruins. Painted ceilings remain visible in the upper floors; the bath facilities are accessible. Best visited with a local guide who knows the structural condition.

Sanatorium Imereti: Large classical complex with a dining hall, concert hall, and extensive bath facilities — all abandoned. The architecture is formally impressive; the state of decay is advanced.

Sanatorium Metalurgi: A more modernist/brutalist structure, visible from the main road, increasingly known among architectural photography communities internationally.

Sanatorium Tbilisi: Partially restored, partially abandoned — useful as a reference point for seeing both states of Tskaltubo simultaneously.

Practical considerations for exploring abandoned buildings:

• Do not go alone
• Wear sturdy closed shoes — floors are uneven and in some buildings genuinely unsafe
• Bring a torch even in daylight; the interior rooms have no natural light
• Do not remove or disturb anything, including personal belongings
• Respect locked doors and any posted restrictions
• Photograph freely; the buildings have become internationally known photography subjects

Local guides can be arranged through the Tskaltubo visitor centre or your accommodation. A guide with current knowledge of structural conditions is worth the cost.

The Radisson Collection: the restored version

The conversion of Sanatorium Shakhtiori into the Radisson Collection — a five-star hotel that opened in 2024 — is Tskaltubo’s most significant contemporary development. The project preserved the Stalinist facade, the monumental public spaces, and much of the original interior detail while converting the accommodation wings to modern hotel standard.

Staying here provides the most coherent version of the Tskaltubo experience: a luxury property occupying one of the most historically charged buildings in the region, with the nine remaining ruined sanatoriums immediately visible through the windows. The contrast is not incidental — it is the point.

The hotel integrates mineral water treatments into its spa programme, using the Tskaltubo springs. Room rates are at Tbilisi luxury-hotel levels. The location — inside the ruins of a Soviet monument to workers’ healthcare — is not replicable.

The central bathing complex

The central bathing complex in Tskaltubo’s main park — a grand Stalinist structure with marble-faced halls — continues to operate for both walk-in visitors and multi-day treatment courses.

Individual bath sessions cost 30–60 GEL for a private room; extended treatment packages at 80–150 GEL per session. The experience of taking a radon bath in the original bathing hall, in a room designed in the 1940s for the Soviet elite and their workers, is not available anywhere else. The room architecture — individual marble bath enclosures, tile work, the sound of the water — carries its own weight.

Walk-in access is possible on weekdays. Book ahead for weekend visits and for treatment programmes.

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Prometheus Cave: the essential add-on

Prometheus Cave — the largest and most developed show cave in Georgia — is 20 minutes from Tskaltubo. The combination is not accidental: most visitors combine the spa town with the cave for a natural full day.

The cave’s scale is genuinely impressive — a series of vast limestone chambers connected by walkways, with colour-lit stalactite and stalagmite formations and an optional underground boat ride on the cave river. The cave remains at a constant cool temperature year-round, which makes it a particularly good choice in summer heat.

Full details are in the Prometheus Cave guide. The standard day pattern: morning in Tskaltubo (sanatoriums, bath, central park), Prometheus Cave in the afternoon.

What else is nearby

Sataplia Reserve: 15 minutes from Tskaltubo — dinosaur footprints in limestone, a karst cave, and a glass-floored cantilevered viewing platform above the Imereti forest. See the Sataplia guide.

Kutaisi city: 15 km away. Bagrati Cathedral, the extraordinary Gelati Monastery (one of the great medieval buildings in the Caucasus), Motsameta Monastery, and a good restaurant scene. Worth at least half a day.

Martvili and Okatse canyons: 45–60 minutes from Tskaltubo. The Martvili Canyon boat ride and the Okatse Canyon suspension walkway are among the best natural attractions in western Georgia.

Practical information

Getting there:

• From Kutaisi: 15 minutes by taxi (25–40 GEL); regular marshrutka service
• From Tbilisi: 3.5–4 hours by road (combine with the broader Imereti circuit)
• By train: Tbilisi overnight train to Kutaisi, then taxi

Kutaisi has its own international airport (KUT) with budget flights from multiple European cities. This makes Tskaltubo accessible directly from Europe without transiting Tbilisi.

Duration:

• Half-day: Central park, baths, one or two abandoned sanatoriums. Add Prometheus Cave in the afternoon.
• Full day: Thorough sanatorium circuit, bath treatment, Prometheus Cave.
• Two days: All of the above plus Sataplia, Gelati, and Kutaisi city. This is the recommended minimum for a proper Imereti circuit.

Season: Year-round. The abandoned sanatoriums have particular atmospheric quality in autumn mist and winter snow. Summer is most comfortable for outdoor exploration. The restored bath facilities and Radisson Collection operate without seasonal gaps.

Food: Central Tskaltubo has modest local restaurants. The Radisson Collection offers full restaurant service. Kutaisi, 15 km away, has significantly better choice.

Language: English is limited outside the Radisson and major tourist services. Russian is widely spoken.

A two-day Tskaltubo and Imereti itinerary

Day 1:

• Morning: Central park exploration, mineral spring taps, central bath house treatment
• Midday: Abandoned sanatorium circuit (Medea, Imereti) with local guide
• Afternoon: Prometheus Cave (book the boat ride in advance)
• Evening: Dinner at Radisson Collection or Kutaisi

Day 2:

• Morning: Sataplia Reserve
• Midday: Kutaisi lunch
• Afternoon: Gelati Monastery and Motsameta Monastery
• Optional: Martvili Canyon if energy and time allow

FAQ

Is it safe to visit the abandoned sanatoriums? The town is entirely safe for normal tourist visits. The abandoned buildings require caution — unstable floors, potential falling debris, flooded basements. A local guide provides current structural assessment and useful historical context.

Can I actually take the mineral baths? Yes. The central bath complex operates for walk-ins at 30–60 GEL for a private room session. The Radisson Collection integrates mineral treatments into its spa programme. Book ahead for weekend visits.

Is Tskaltubo ethical to visit? The internally displaced families who lived in the sanatoriums have been relocated. Visiting and photographing respectfully is considered acceptable. Do not remove anything from the buildings.

Is Tskaltubo worth an overnight stay? Yes — one or two nights at the Radisson Collection provides an excellent base for the town circuit, Prometheus Cave, Sataplia, and Kutaisi. The combination of sleeping inside a restored Soviet sanatorium and spending the morning in the ruins of the others is not easily replicated.

Related guides

• Borjomi mineral springs — the other great Georgian spa town
• Best thermal baths in Georgia — full spa destination comparison
• Prometheus Cave guide — the essential Tskaltubo add-on
• Soviet heritage in Georgia — broader context for the Stalinist architecture
• Imereti destination guide — the full western Georgia circuit