It’s 8am, the platform is packed with fellow travelers heading to the seaside. We booked Business Class this time- first floor of a double-decker Stadler KISS (sadly, facing backwards- no option to choose our seats), soft leather, 2-2 seats either side of a wide aisle, arm rests, reasonable Wi-Fi, gentle air-conditioning and sockets for the laptops. There are hangers for your suit, a vending machine mid-carriage selling a selection of snacks- sandwiches, chips, chocolate, water and fizzy drinks (2-3 GEL each). There’s also a toilet on every carriage and an attendant. Conductors and security guards walk through on occasion to ensure your comfort. There’s not a seat free- this is one of the extra trains added to cover the summer tourist rush. Announcements are in Georgian, English and Russian.
In the non-business class carriages, the seats are narrower (3 – 2 with an aisle between), harder, and are more basic in style. There is a vending machine at the end of the carriage. In both sections you are given still or sparkling water at no extra charge.
Once our IDs and (e)tickets had been checked, we logged on to the internet and settled in for the 5-hour journey cross-country.
I remember my first train journey from Tbilisi to Batumi, back in 2007. In those days there was one choice: a 9-hour overnight train. Cabins (circa 1970) were ‘decorated’ brown and divided into sections with bunks and tall-backed leather benches. For the ‘upper’ classes, private 2-bunk rooms could be hired, with a small TV (which had probably stopped working circa 1980!) a better option as such trains were also packed to the rooftop, though with far fewer tourists than there are today, in fact, I think I was the only foreigner on board. No air-con, no sockets. The train would stop at what felt like every lamppost and the men would get out en-masse to smoke (far fewer women smoked or did so openly in public back then) or buy khachapuri. There was a lot of alcohol drinking among the men (something I've heard is still common on the slow Tbilisi-Zugdidi route), but how else were they to pass the time – there was no Wi-Fi at all and mobile phones, if owned, were very basic. It could get rowdy, but the women with their children tolerated it from ‘the boys’, only trying to hush them when it approached 3am.
How things have changed…
Nearing the Batumi station as I type, having had two quick stops at Ureki and Kobuleti, I would definitely suggest booking Business Class for seat comfort. That said, sleep was difficult as the seats do not recline.
Expect to be harassed by taxi drivers literally as soon as you step off the train- they wait at the door and bombard you with Russian. Don’t be alarmed if they touch your arm- they mean only to draw attention to themselves and will immediately back away if you say a clear Ara! or No! Instead, head outside the station and take a taxi from the street in your own time. Standard fare is 10 GEL to the city proper.
Business ticket (single): 61 GEL
Standard class(single): 25 GEL