Advantour Team: Tbilisi Office

Yuriy graduated from the Riga Technical University and had worked for the Latvian Branch of the Company called ‘International Travel Network’ (USA). He speaks English, German, and Georgian. He has been with Advantour since 2012 and he is responsible for processing tour requests all across Central Asia and Caucasus. Yuriy thinks that the only thing better than a mountain is lots of mountains, which is why his favorite places in Georgia are the mountains in Kazbegi, Khevsureti, Svaneti, and especially Tusheti, a real fairy-tale location that only opens itself up for true admirers. As for Georgian culture, Yuriy especially loves polyphonic choral music and dances, plus the fact that Georgians like to wake up later on Sunday mornings, so the streets are quiet and calm. Yuriy also likes to travel to Kakheti in September with a lively group of people to harvest grapes, especially because of the feasts in the evenings, called “supra”.

His most memorable day is the first time he played his favourite song on a guitar and immediately wished to form a rock band. Yuriy plays guitar, the drums, and is learning to play the piano. He is a real bookworm who enjoys reading books in English. Yuriy collects fiction books in English, folk and jazz music CDs from different countries.

Ketevan (Keti) graduated from Tbilisi State University with a degree in tourism. She started working in the tourism industry while still a student. Since joining the Advantour team in February 2018, Keti has been using her excellent communication skills and previous experience as a tour operator to help tourists from all around the world book accommodation, restaurants, and tours in the South Caucasus. Keti speaks fluent English and Russian, and a little bit of Turkish.

Keti’s favourite place in Georgia is Racha, a highland area in the north. From time to time she loves to escape the chaos of the city to relax in Racha and enjoy its beautiful mountains. Keti hopes that, with recent infrastructure investments, Racha will become a more popular tourist destination and that one day she will welcome foreign guests to her family’s guesthouse.

Keti practices yoga and believes that this is the best way to reduce stress and improve quality of life. In her spare time, she also tries to maintain an active lifestyle. Keti loves hiking and cycling, and has recently started skiing. Lucky for her, Georgia offers many places for such activities throughout the year.

Davit graduated from Tbilisi State University with a degree in business administration. After working in the bank for over two years, he decided to hone his skills in the tourism industry. He worked for several prominent international hotel chains in Georgia before joining Advantour in April 2018. He is responsible for booking transport and guides for tours. Davit is fluent in English and Russian in addition to Georgian and possesses excellent mathematical skills and Eidetic memory.

Davit’s favorite place in Georgia is Gergeti Trinity Church, built at the hill top with an absolute breathtaking view! He often goes there to gaze at the nearby Caucasus Mountains.

Davit is a big fan of sports and music. He likes to play basketball and football with colleagues or friends in his free time and believes that being physically active helps people to be more productive at work. Listening to music also helps him to relax. His favorite rock group is Pink Floyd. He prefers listening to 70s and 80s music rather than new albums.

His life goal is to see as many countries as possible.

Mari graduated from Tbilisi State University with a degree in law. While a student, she took part in various training courses, conferences, and student competitions, which gave her the chance to meet people of many different nationalities. She also worked for a university newspaper and as a volunteer for the Red Cross.

Before joining Advantour in April 2019, Mari gained invaluable experience in a wide range of industries. She worked as a Russian- and English-speaking tour guide, a manager in a large mobile phone company, and an English teacher for refugee children from South Ossetia. While living in China for 6 months teaching English, she made the most of the opportunity to travel around China and neighbouring countries.

Mari loves contemporary art, jazz, reading, and listening to audio books while taking long walks. She also has a passion for foreign languages—she already speaks English, Russian, and Spanish and is learning Portuguese. She wants to go and spend some time in Portugal to immerse herself in the country’s language and culture. One day soon Mari would also love to hike to the K2 base camp.

Mari loves Georgia’s nature and advises all visitors to her country to go hiking in the snowy mountains of Svaneti and then spend some time on Batumi’s Black Sea beaches.

Anna graduated from the Ural State University of Economics ( Yekaterinburg, Russia) with a degree in Tourism. Anna discovered her love for traveling in her school years. She studied in Sochi for a few years, worked in a local travel agency and was involved in hotel selection and booking. Then she returned to her hometown Yekaterinburg, graduated from university and got a job in a Ural travel agency, where she spent 2 years organizing tours and events. In 2022 she fell in love with Georgia and moved here to live and work. In March 2023, Anna joined the Advantour team and now she is involved in developing travel routes across the entire region, interacting with tourists, and strives to enrich each tour so that travelers fall in love with Georgia just as she did.

Anna speaks English and Russian, and also knows a little German. Her main hobby is traveling, even a little - every few weeks Anna goes to the outskirts of Tbilisi and other regions of Georgia to discover something new. She loves easy mountain hikes.

Anna loves the mountains, and her favorite place in Georgia is Svaneti, which attracts with its clean air, bright nature and majestic towers. Even Anna's cherished dream is connected with tourism - one day she will open her own guest house somewhere in the mountains or on the seashore.