# Holy Trinity Cathedral (Sameba), Tbilisi > Sameba — the Holy Trinity Cathedral — is the Georgian Orthodox Church's main cathedral, on Elia Hill in Tbilisi's Avlabari district. Entry is free and it's open daily from morning to evening; 40 minutes covers the church, the lower chapels and the garden. Women need a headscarf and skirt, men long trousers. It's a 10–15 minute uphill walk from Avlabari metro. Web page: https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/sameba-cathedral - City: [Tbilisi](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi), Georgia - YesGo score: 52/100 (Yes, go) - Time on site: 40 min - With kids: Fine with kids - Entry: Free — no tickets or booking - Hours: Daily; about 8am–8pm, sources differ - Dress code: Women: headscarf and skirt (wraps lent at the door); men: long trousers, no hat - Where: Elia Hill, Avlabari, on the left bank of the Mtkvari; listed as Samreklo Street - Nearest metro: Avlabari, then a 10–15 min walk uphill - Time needed: About 40 minutes, longer during a service - Coordinates: 41.69750, 44.81667 - Facts checked: 30.10.2026 ## Key facts - **Third-tallest** — Eastern Orthodox church in the world (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Eurasia.travel) - **23 Nov 2004** — consecrated on St George's Day, nine years to the day after the foundation was laid (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Tonkosti) - **≈ 84–86 m** — to the top of the cross — sources measure it differently (source: English Wikipedia: 86.1 m; Russian Wikipedia: 77 m to the foot of the 7.5 m cross) - **Archil Mindiashvili** — the architect whose design won an open contest (source: English and Russian Wikipedia) - **100 m+** — total height including the underground levels (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Tonkosti) - **23 Nov 1995** — foundation laid (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Tonkosti) - **Nine chapels** — five of them underground, in the lower level (source: English and Russian Wikipedia; Tonkosti) - **5,000 m²+** — total floor area of the cathedral (source: English Wikipedia; Tonkosti; Eurasia.travel) - **Up to 15,000** — people the complex can hold (source: Russian Wikipedia; Tonkosti) - **Donations** — paid for mostly by private donors, businesspeople and ordinary Georgians (source: English and Russian Wikipedia) > **Sameba Cathedral dress code** This is a working cathedral and the rules are enforced. Women cover their hair and wear a skirt below the knee; scarves and wrap-around skirts are usually lent at the entrance, but they run short when tour groups arrive, so bring your own scarf. Men wear long trousers and take off hats. Everyone keeps shoulders covered. ## Is Sameba Cathedral worth visiting? Yes, if you want to feel how Georgians worship today. **Sameba** is huge, bright and busy with real services, and its golden dome is the landmark you'll keep spotting from the Old Town, [Narikala Fortress](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/narikala-fortress) and the riverside. Inside, the scale is the point: stand under the dome and the hall seems to keep going up. Be clear about what it isn't: there are no medieval frescoes here. The cathedral was finished in 2004. If ancient churches are your thing, Metekhi and Sioni nearby are older and more intimate. Come to Sameba for the size, the light, a Sunday choir and the view from its garden — and pair it with the Old Town on the same day. ## Sameba Cathedral opening hours and entry The cathedral is **open every day from morning until evening**, and entry is free. There is no official visitor timetable: travel references give 8am–8pm most often, others 9am–7pm or 9am–6pm, so plan your visit for daylight and you'll be fine. Weekend mornings bring the liturgy with a choir, unofficially from around 9am — the most memorable time to be inside, as long as you stand quietly at the back. Bring a little cash in lari if you want to light a candle. Photos without flash are usually fine, but not of people praying. ## What to see inside and around the cathedral - **The main hall.** Stand in the centre under the dome and look up — light pours in from the drum high above. - **The Mtskheta cross.** The cross that once stood above Mtskheta, on the site of Jvari Monastery, is kept in a gilded reliquary. - **The Hope of Georgia icon.** A large enamel icon showing 432 Georgian saints. - **Icons by the entrance.** Among them is an image of the Virgin painted by Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II, who consecrated the cathedral. - **The lower church.** Beneath the main hall is an underground level with chapels, reached from inside and by a separate street door. It's cooler, quieter and often empty. - **The garden and terrace.** Paths and lawns around the cathedral, with views over Old Tbilisi, Narikala and Mount Mtatsminda — best on a clear morning. ## How to get to Sameba Cathedral 1. From Meidan (Gorgasali) Square, cross the Metekhi Bridge, climb past Metekhi Church and along Rike Park, then continue up Meskhishvili Street — 20–25 minutes on foot, uphill all the way. 2. By metro: take the red line to Avlabari. Leave the station and head north along Lado Meskhishvili Street to the cathedral gates — a 10–15 minute climb. 3. From [Rike Park](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/rike-park): stairs and lanes lead up through Avlabari — 15–20 minutes. 4. Metro and buses take contactless bank cards or a Metromoney card — no cash on board. From the airport, bus 337 runs to Liberty Square (Tavisuplebis Moedani); Avlabari is the next metro stop. 5. Skip the hill with Bolt, the ride-hailing app, straight to the main gate. Buses do stop near the cathedral, but route numbers have changed — check the current one in your map app. ## A short history of Sameba The idea for a new cathedral came in 1989, timed to 1,500 years of the Georgian Church's independence and 2,000 years of Christianity. **Archil Mindiashvili** won the design contest with a building that follows the shapes of old Georgian churches, only scaled up enormously. The foundation stone was laid on 23 November 1995 and Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II consecrated the cathedral on 23 November 2004, St George's Day. When Ilia II died on 17 March 2026, Sameba stayed open around the clock for days of farewell as crowds queued in the rain; at his own wish he was buried at the old Sioni Cathedral. The site has a difficult side too. Part of the hill was the Armenian cemetery of Khojivank, already ravaged in Soviet times, and encyclopaedias record that graves were disturbed during construction. Worth knowing as you walk up through Avlabari, once Tbilisi's Armenian quarter. ## Before you go: checklist - [ ] Headscarf and knee-length skirt — or happy to borrow a wrap - [ ] Long trousers for men, shoulders covered - [ ] A little lari cash for candles - [ ] Contactless card or Metromoney for the metro - [ ] Comfortable shoes for the uphill walk - [ ] Going early or after 5pm to avoid tour groups ## Sameba vs Narikala vs Chronicle of Georgia | | Sameba Cathedral | Narikala Fortress | Chronicle of Georgia | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | What it is | Georgia's main working cathedral | Ancient fortress above the Old Town | Giant pillars carved with biblical and historical scenes | | Cost | Free | Free; cable car extra | Free | | Dress code | Strict: scarf, skirt, trousers | None | None | | Time needed | About 40 min | 1–1.5 h | About 40 min plus travel | | Getting there | Avlabari metro and a climb | Uphill walk or cable car from Rike Park | Taxi to the city's edge | Sameba and Narikala sit on opposite banks of the same central walk. Save the [Chronicle of Georgia](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/chronicle-of-georgia) for a separate half-day. ## Churches and holy places in Tbilisi compared Places of worship in Tbilisi, rated by YesGo. - [Narikala Fortress](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/narikala-fortress) — YesGo score 60/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free; cable car 2.5 GEL - [Holy Trinity Cathedral (Sameba)](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/sameba-cathedral) — YesGo score 52/100 (Yes, go) · 40 min · Free ## A day in Old Tbilisi and Avlabari Sulphur baths, the fortress above the city, the cable car down to the riverside park and the climb to the main cathedral. Add them to your route — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers. 1. [Abanotubani Sulphur Baths](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/abanotubani) — YesGo score 57/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 30 min · Private room ≈ 50–250 GEL/hour 2. [Narikala Fortress](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/narikala-fortress) — YesGo score 60/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free; cable car 2.5 GEL 3. [Rike Park](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/rike-park) — YesGo score 61/100 (Yes, go) · 45 min · Free; cable car 2.5 GEL 4. [Holy Trinity Cathedral (Sameba)](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/sameba-cathedral) — YesGo score 52/100 (Yes, go) · 40 min · Free ## Not to be confused with Tsminda Sameba simply means Holy Trinity, and many Georgian churches share the name. The famous one in photos with Mount Kazbek is **Gergeti Trinity Church** near Stepantsminda, about three hours' drive from Tbilisi. Batumi has its own Sameba church, and Vake Sameba is a different church in another Tbilisi district. This page is about the cathedral on Elia Hill in Avlabari. ## Tips - Pair it with Narikala: from the fortress walls you see the whole cathedral, then ride the cable car down to Rike Park and walk up. - The dome is floodlit after dark — the best view of it is from the [Bridge of Peace](https://yesgo.io/georgia/tbilisi/bridge-of-peace) and the riverside. - Don't skip the lower church — most visitors walk past, and it's peaceful down there. - Easy with kids: the garden around the cathedral is a good place to rest after the climb. - Short on time and prefer old stones to sheer size? Choose Metekhi by the river and admire Sameba from a distance. ## Questions ### Is Sameba Cathedral free to enter? Yes. The cathedral, the lower church and the garden are free, with no tickets. At most you might want a little cash in lari for candles. ### What are the Sameba Cathedral opening hours? It's open every day from morning to evening. There is no official visitor timetable; unofficially it's about 8am–8pm, though some references give 9am–6pm or 9am–7pm. ### What should I wear to Sameba Cathedral? Women: a headscarf and a skirt below the knee. Men: long trousers and no hat. Everyone covers their shoulders. Scarves and wraps are usually lent at the entrance. ### How do I get to Sameba Cathedral? Take the metro to Avlabari and walk 10–15 minutes uphill along Meskhishvili Street. From Meidan Square it's a 20–25 minute walk over the Metekhi Bridge, or a short Bolt ride to the gate. ### How tall is Sameba Cathedral? About 84–86 metres to the top of the cross, depending on the source; the cross alone is 7.5 metres. Including the underground levels it's over 100 metres, making it the third-tallest Orthodox church in the world. ### When was Sameba Cathedral built? The foundation was laid on 23 November 1995 and the cathedral was consecrated on 23 November 2004, St George's Day. The architect was Archil Mindiashvili. ### Can you take photos inside Sameba Cathedral? Usually yes, without flash and not during services. Avoid close-ups of people praying or of the clergy. ### How long do you need at Sameba Cathedral? About 40 minutes for the main church, the lower chapels and the garden. Allow an hour or more if you stay for a liturgy. ### Is Sameba the same as Gergeti Trinity Church? No. Gergeti is a 14th-century church on a mountain near Stepantsminda, three hours from Tbilisi. Sameba is the modern cathedral in the city. ## How we checked The cathedral publishes no visitor timetable, so the hours are unofficial: references give 8am–8pm, 9am–7pm and 9am–6pm; we show the most common and mark it as checking. Free entry and the dress code are consistent across all sources. Height is measured differently: English Wikipedia gives 86.1 m to the top of the cross, Russian Wikipedia 77 m to the foot of the 7.5 m cross, so we show a range. Length and width also differ between sources (70×65 m and 77×65 m), so we leave them out, as we do the date of the first service (2000 or 2002). The Samreklo Street address comes from a single reference and is marked as checking. Bus numbers to the cathedral conflict and look outdated, so we don't quote them. Walking times are measured on the map. ## Sources - English Wikipedia: Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi - Russian Wikipedia: Tsminda-Sameba - Wikidata Q36996 - Tonkosti: Tsminda Sameba Cathedral — dimensions, dates, lower level - Eurasia.travel: Tsminda Sameba Cathedral — access, icons, best time - Georgia in Trend: Sameba Cathedral — dress code, services, hours - Advantour: Sameba Cathedral, Tbilisi — address - JAMnews: farewell to Patriarch Ilia II, March 2026 - Tbilisi International Airport: bus 337 --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.