Popular Airport | Kutaisi Intl. Airport |
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Popular Airlines | |
Approximate Flight Duration | 4 hour 30 min |
Approximate Travel Distance | 3715 Km |
The airport, which is approximately 6 kilometers of the city center, is located on Bole Road. In the city where public transportation is not very developed, you can use minibuses to reach the airport. Taxi is another transportation alternative that is frequently preferred by visitors. In addition to these, you can get to the airport from the city center by renting a car or by benefitting from the airport shuttle service in case your hotel offers this service.
You can reach the airport by getting on a minibus from the minibus stops located in the city center. Minibuses generally carry passengers to the airport from 5:30 am to 09:00 pm. Although it is relatively cheaper compared to taxi, you should remember that drivers may demand higher amounts from tourists. The fare is about 5 Birr. They may also charge extra amount for each baggage.
Hotel shuttle service is the most comfortable alternative for your travel to the airport. In Addis Ababa city center, there are both small hotels and accommodation centers of chain hotels such as Hilton, Radisson and Sheraton. Some of these hotels offer airport shuttle service. If your hotel offers this service and you want to benefit from this service for your travel to the airport, you should definitely make a reservation in advance.
There are two types of taxis that you can get on to reach the airport. Mercedes taxis of the National Tour Operator (NTO) operate under a company and offer service with more comfortable vehicles. With their predetermined tariffs, they create a more reliable image in terms of the fares. You can ask your hotel to call a NTO taxi for you.
There is no taximeter in the taxis operating in Addis Ababa, so it is advised to agree on the fare before getting on. These yellow taxis are approximately 10 times more expensive than blue-white taxis. You can also reach the airport in a short time with a blue-white taxi which you can find in the city center or waiting in front of hotels. The average fare is between 80 and 100 Birr. The owners of these taxis aren’t companies but individuals. Since there is also no taximeter in blue-white taxis and fares are not standardized by a company, they are more flexible in terms of fares and you should definitely bargain.
You can rent a car from one of the car rental companies that you can find in the city center or from the offices of tour operators. You can also get help from your hotel about renting a car.
Since some roads in Addis Ababa have no name, there isn’t sufficient number of traffic signs throughout the city and there is no traffic light on many roundabouts, traffic flow isn’t in order. For this reason, renting a car during your visit may not be a good option. If you want to rent a car only for travelling to the airport from the city center, you should prefer a company which has an office at the airport.
In order to get to the airport with the car you have rented, connect to Bole Road in the city center, drive southeastward and follow the airport signs.
There are 2 terminals at the airport. Terminal 1, which offers service for domestic flights, is located in the old building. Terminal 2 offers service for international passenger transportation in the new building.
At Bole International Airport, there are many restaurants and cafes in addition to stores and a duty-free shop where you can do some shopping before your flight.
At the airport, there is also a lounge for passengers looking for a comfortable environment and a much larger lounge is now being constructed. Although there is no left luggage service at the airport, you can find other standard airport services such as pharmacy, currency exchange office and ATM.
There is the Rioni river at the entrance of Kutaisi, which is the second largest and most developed city of Georgia, and this river literally divides the city into two. Kutaisi is located in the Imerati Region in the western part of Georgia and its distance to the country’s capital, Tbilisi, is approximately 221 kilometers. The city’s population is around 201.000. Kutaisi’s urban transportation is mostly composed of buses, trolleys, taxis and mini-buses called marshrutka.
There is also a big train station in the city. But from this train station, daily express trains from Kutaisi to Georgia’s other major cities depart. As the area of the city is small, majority of the visitors walk or use taxis for transportation.
Kutaisi railway terminal is directly connected to Georgia’s capital city, Tbilisi. All of the trains leaving from this terminal are operated by Georgian Railways. You can travel to Tbilisi from Kutaisi in around 5.5 hours by taking the train #18, which departs from Kutaisi I station. There are also daily express trains.
The train starts its trip at 08.50 every morning and arrives at Tbilisi in 6 hours. This train also stops in Mtskheta, the former capital of Georgia. There are also regular bus trips from Didube bus station in Didube, where the metro station in Tbilisi is located at, to Kutaisi. Price for this bus trip is only 10 Lari.
In addition to the marshrutkas and buses, you may also consider using car rental services or taxis for transportation to city centre from the Kutaisi Airport.
After arriving at the Kutaisi Airport, take the exit from the arrival terminal and proceed to the bus stops. As well as the buses, marshrutkas also depart to Kutiasi city centre or suburbans from the bus stops at the area in front of the terminal building. Marshrutka drivers may not accept paying with dollar or euro, so do not forget to stop by the exchange office in the airport just in case.
Marshrutkas leaving from Kutaisi Airport go directly to the Kutaisi bus station just behind McDonalds. Marshrutkas, which run in every 20 minutes, provide transportation services to the town of Samtredia from Kutaisi Airport for a fee of 2 Lari. There are also vehicles named ‘direct marshrutkas’, which have a fare of 5 Lari. These direct marshrutkas will take you to your destination as well.
There are direct marshrutkas running between Kutaisi Airport and Tbilisi, and fare is currently 20 Lari. Likewise, there are also marshrutkas going directly to Batumi, another major city of Georgia, for a fare of 18 Lari.
Bus service timetable are usually updated according to the flights' arrival times. You don’t need to worry if you forget to get Georgian currency, as it is possible to buy bus tickets with euro or dollar as well.
Taxi is the most economical vehicle you can use for traveling to the city centre from Kutaisi Airport. Traveling to the city centre from the airport by taxi costs around 25 Lari, but you can drop the price to 20 Lari by bargaining with the taxi driver.
The only thing that you need to do to go city centre from Kutaisi Airport by your rented car is to take the highway, which passes right by the airport, and follow the direction signs to the city. You can reach the city centre in around 20 minutes by your vehicle.
As well as you can find several rent a car services at the exit of Kutaisi Airport terminal, you can also make benefit of discounts by making an online reservation. People visiting Kutaisi often prefer renting a car as they usually include visiting other Georgian cities such as Tbilisi and Batumi in their travel plans.