GD8 Narikala

June 2012 - The medieval fortress of Narikala sits on a ridge above the old city of Tbilisi, and is one of the most popular destinations and photo opportunities in Georgia’s capital. Those who wanted to visit the old castle and the neighboring church had a long march in the past. This has changed with the opening of the new 8-seater LEITNER ropeways gondola on June 18, 2012. Visitors and locals can now easily reach the famous castle. The monocable gondola lift represents a combination of urban and tourist benefits. The Tbilisi Development Fund is responsible for this new project. Manuchar Makhatadze, the architect and project coordinator of the new ropeway, is a member of the Fund: “The goal of the fund is to restore a large part of Old Tbilisi as well as promote projects to improve the quality of life for our residents. In addition, we are aiming to increase its attractiveness for tourists.” Many parts of the city have already been extensively restored, and additional projects have been carried out.

An extraordinary ride

The new Narikala gondola lift is unusual and innovative in many respects. In addition to the basic idea of people transport, the LEITNER ropeways gondola also offers an extraordinary ride experience. The glass bottoms in the gondolas provide exciting views down onto the Old City and traffic. The seats are upholstered with genuine leather imprinted with historic themes of Old Tbilisi. This is in perfect harmony with the destination. Once at the fort, visitors can expect to find an impressive view of Tbilisi and the Botanical Gardens. This provides further evidence on how modern gondola lifts can perform tourism duties efficiently, and increase the attractiveness of a destination.

More cable cars mean fewer cars on the streets

Manuchar Makhatadze has concrete plans for additional ropeways, which in his opinion offer the best conditions for such solutions. Thus a long tradition is revived and continued. Because of Tbilisi's hilly topography, gondola lifts are needed to overcome height differences of up to 700 meters. New gondola lifts will contribute to reducing the high number of taxis and small buses in the city center, and reduce pollution in the atmosphere. The Tbilisi Development Fund has found the right man for the coming projects in this series. He grew up in a Georgian village, where up to 45 ropeways were in use when he was a child.