The Best Money Exchange In Tbilisi USD To GEL
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The best place to exchange money in Tbilisi is at the airport or near the Obeliani Square Carrefour. This blog post is to provide you with the ultimate guide for money exchange in Tbilisi.
Amongst the three capital cities in Caucasian, Tbilisi is the one with the most money exchanges, especially in the airport, where you can find over 10 money exchange shops just at the arrival hall.
What surprised me is not only the number, it is those shops that have DIFFERENT exchange rates. At Tbilisi city center, you will also find money exchange shops everywhere.
To strive for a balance of the best rates and time, you can make use of my guide below based on my recent visit to Tbilisi.
Determining The Best Rate In Tbilisi
Georgian Lari (GEL) the local currency follows a floating regime. That means its rate to major currencies like USD and EUR fluctuates every day. The best strategy to determine the best rate during your visit is to focus on the bid-ask spread. In specific that’s the difference between how many GELs you get with 1 USD (ask price) and how many GELs you need to pay for 1 USD (bid price).
During my last visit to Tbilisi, the best GEL: USD rate is around 2.795 to 1 USD (how much you can get with 1 USD). On the bid rate side, you will need 2.812 GEL for 1 USD on the same exchange shop. That means for each 1 USD exchange, the money shop only earns around a slim margin of ~ 0.017 GEL (~ 0.006 USD).
So by calculating the margin, you will have an idea whether the money exchange shop’s margin is thin.
What Currency To Be Used For Exchange In Tbilisi
Most major currencies i.e. USD, EUR, and GBP can be exchanged for GEL in Tbilisi. There is not much difference between using USD or EUR. Most good money exchange shops would have a thin bid-ask spread for USD EUR. While for GBP and other currencies, the spreads are sometimes larger, meaning it is less favorable.
Where To Exchange In Tbilisi
For tourists like us, you can find money exchange shops at the airport, at the city center like Liberty Square, and at major attractions like Abanotubani (the sulfur bath area).
TBS Airport – The Best Place For Money Exchange
Despite multiple blogs claiming TBS airport’s money exchange rate is not good, it is actually one of the best places for exchange. There are over 10 exchanges once you cleared the customer available. Based on my observation, most of them have very bad rates like around 1 USD for 2.4 GEL (versus ~ 2.8 GEL for 1 USD on the bid side). However, there are one or two shops like Inteliekpress that have the best rate i.e. 1 USD for 2.795 GEL with a thin margin on the bid side.
If you can’t locate the good rates there, just take a Bolt to the Tbilisi city center for exchange.
Tbilisi City Center
The best money shop is opposite the Obeliani Square Carrefour, the rate during my last visit was around 1 USD for 2.795 GEL.
Overall speaking the exchange rates in the city center (i.e. near the street of Kote Afkhzai, the road from Liberty Square to Meidan Bazar) are pretty decent. At my time of visit, if even they may not provide the best rate at 2.795 GEL, they still would have 2.7 or 2.68.
However, the money exchange shops near the sulfur bath shops (Abanotubani) area are normally bad. This is because some of the bath shops only take cash even for basic packages. Moreover, the basic package is usually 150 GEL plus and any massage service can only be paid by cash. That’s why you don’t want to exchange in that area.
How Much Cash Do You Need
You will need cash in Tbilisi. Basically, all the street vendors in Tbilisi accept cash only. That means you will need that for wine ice cream, Khachapuri, bakery, and souvenirs.
Additionally, some transportation like the cable car from Mother of Georgia to Tbilisi city center accept cash only. The same applies to the bus from Tbilisi to Gori or additional items on the day tour in Gudauri.
On top of that, if you plan to have a traditional Georgian sulfur bath with massage, you should have at least 200 GEL in cash. During my last stay, the hotel I booked had a broken POS terminal and requested us to pay with cash.
On the other hand, you can use credit cards for most of the restaurants, day tours (if booked online), Bolt rides, and Bolt food locally. I spent around 1,200 GEL during my stay
How Much Cash Needed For A Day In Tbilisi
For a full-day visit in Tbilisi, recommend you to have a least 100 GEL at hand during your stay. The 100 GEL shall be more than enough for the local snacks, cable car, and souvenirs that you can only pay with cash.
Again, if you plan to go for the traditional sulfur bath, you should have 200 GEL more at hand.
How Much Cash Needed For A Day Trip From Tbilisi
If you are planning to go for a one-day trip to Gori on your own, you have a minimum of 100 GEL cash exchanged beforehand. That 100 GEL should cover the ~ 10 GEL for the bus to and return from Tbilisi to Gori. The extra would cover the ~ 50 GEL for the taxi to and back from Uplistsikhe and other expenses.
For other day trips, if you paid online in advance, you only need to reserve ~ 50 GEL for a potential add-on with a portion as tips.
Conclusion: The Best Currency Exchange Strategy In Tbilisi
From my experience, you can find the best exchange rate both at the airport and city center. So the most optimal option is to have your first batch of USD (i.e. 100 USD) exchanged for GEL at the airport first. Then to exchange more on demand during your trip. Finding the best rate money exchange shop in the city center usually takes more time. The rate and even spread would fluctuate on the same day. The time cost may not justify the money saved.
In that, you should find the lowest bid-ask margin shop at the airport exchange first. Then only exchange further if needed at city center money exchange that serves decent rate (i.e. acceptable margin).
For planning your stay in Tbilisi, feel free to check out my other post for the planning.
Feel free to leave me a comment or inquiry.
