Freeride Camp in Georgia: 7 Days of Gudauri and Ortsveri
There’s a version of a ski holiday where you ride the same groomed run until your legs give up. And then there’s this: seven days based in Gudauri, skinning up ridges no lift reaches, learning to read the snowpack, and finishing on the summit of Ortsveri at 4,350 metres with the whole Caucasus laid out below you. That’s our Freeride Camp in Georgia — and it’s built for riders who want a week that actually changes how they ski.
This is what the camp looks like from the inside: the itinerary day by day, who it suits, what’s included, and how to get on one of the four 2027 dates.
What the Freeride Camp Actually Is
It’s a seven-day freeride and ski-touring camp run out of Gudauri, with the final days spilling over into Kazbegi and the Ortsveri massif. Not a tour where a guide drags you from photo spot to photo spot — a camp, with coaching, training and progression.
Two things make it different from a normal guided week:
- Small groups — a maximum of five riders. That’s the number our guide can genuinely coach, keep an eye on, and adapt the route for. It’s also the number that keeps a backcountry group quick and safe.
- Skills, not just descents. You get practical off-piste sessions and evening lectures on snowpack and avalanche risk. By the end of the week you understand why you’re riding a line, not just how.
If you want the broader picture of what freeride in the Caucasus looks like, we’ve written it up in Winter Georgia: Paradise for Freeride and Skitour.
The Seven Days, Day by Day
Day 1 — Arrival, gear check, safety
We collect you in Tbilisi and drive up the Georgian Military Highway to Gudauri. Once you’re checked into the guesthouse, it’s gear and avalanche-equipment time: transceiver, probe, shovel — checked properly, with a partner. The evening closes with a safety lecture. No skiing yet; the week starts on the right foot.
Day 2 — Warm-up and technique assessment
Out into the resort to warm up and find your level. The guide watches how you ride — turn shape, balance, how you handle variable snow — then we head off-piste inside the resort boundary. Evening: a lecture on snowpack and avalanche terrain.
Day 3 — New zones and mandatory avalanche rescue
Into fresh zones off the pistes, working on terrain features. Then the part that isn’t optional: hands-on avalanche search and rescue. You practise finding a buried transceiver, probing and digging as a team. It’s the drill you hope never to need and train for anyway.
Day 4 — First full touring day: Deda Ena
Skins on. A proper touring day to Deda Ena: walking up, efficient transitions, kick turns on the steeper sections, and choosing a descent line on the way down. This is where touring clicks for most people.
Day 5 — Bidara and the Aragvi forest
A second tour, this time to Bidara, with the descent threading through the Aragvi forest. Navigation and group tactics get more attention here — reading the terrain, keeping the group together, riding tight trees.
Day 6 — Kazbegi: Gergeti to the met station
We transfer to Stepantsminda (Kazbegi) and tour from Gergeti over the Arsha pass up to the meteorological station at 3,650 metres, staying the night in a mountain hut. Big views, real altitude, and the sense that the week is building toward something.
Day 7 — Ortsveri, 4,350 m
An early start, roped up and in crampons, across the glacier: Black Cross at 4,000 metres and then the summit of Ortsveri at 4,350. And the reward — a full ski descent back down to the Gergeti valley, then the transfer to Tbilisi. That last run is the one people talk about for years.
Who the Camp Is For
We run two tracks side by side in the same week: one for riders who are new to off-piste and touring, one for experienced riders chasing steep, deep and technical lines. Groups get split when levels differ, so nobody is bored at the back or over their head at the front. We get into the detail in Freeride Guide to Gudauri: The Essentials.
What you do need either way: confidence on-piste, and — for the experienced track — prior off-piste and touring experience. Touring days and the Ortsveri push mean 6 to 10 hours of exertion and up to 1,000–1,200 metres of climbing a day, so a reasonable level of fitness matters.
What’s Included
- A guide for the whole seven days
- Guesthouse accommodation in Gudauri
- Breakfast and dinner
- Transfers: Tbilisi, Gudauri, Kazbegi, and back to Tbilisi
- The full training programme — practical sessions, lectures, avalanche training
- Avalanche gear rental (beacon, probe, shovel)
- Snowshoes, trekking poles and backpack rental
What’s Not Included
- Flights
- Insurance — mandatory, and it must cover freeride, ski touring and mountaineering
- Ski passes and lift tickets
- Personal gear: skis or splitboard, boots, skins, crampons, ice axe, helmet, harness
- Lunches and personal spending
- Hut stays (including the Ortsveri hut), paid separately
If your own kit isn’t up to a week like this, don’t worry — we cover what to bring and what you can rent in Ski Touring: What It Is, What Gear You Need and How to Get Started.
Dates and Price
The camp runs in 2027 on 1–7 February, 15–21 February, 8–14 March and 15–21 March. The price is $1,300 per person, accommodation included. Groups are capped at five, so the popular weeks fill up early. Full itinerary and booking: Freeride Camp in Georgia: Gudauri.
Want a different region or a shorter trip? Browse all freeride tours in Georgia, the freeride camps overview, our week in Goderdzi, or the multi-region Gudauri, Goderdzi, Bakhmaro and Svaneti programme.
Traveler’s FAQ
Do I need to be an expert skier?
No. You need to be confident on-piste. The beginner track teaches off-piste and touring from scratch; the advanced track expects prior off-piste experience.
How fit do I need to be?
Touring days run 6–10 hours with up to 1,000–1,200 m of climbing. If you can manage a full day on the hill, you’ll manage this.
What about the altitude at Ortsveri?
4,350 m is real altitude, but the week builds up to it gradually — two days in the resort, two touring days, a night at 3,650 m, then the summit. Acclimatisation is part of the plan, and the guide decides the final route.
Can I cancel?
50% deposit to book, the balance due at least 7 days before the start. Full refund if you cancel 10 days or more ahead; inside 10 days it’s non-refundable and non-transferable.
The Bottom Line
A normal ski week gives you great runs. This one gives you skills, a small crew who become friends by day three, and a summit at 4,350 metres you earned by walking up to it. If that sounds like your kind of February or March, the details are all on the Freeride Camp in Georgia: Gudauri page — message us and we’ll help you pick the right week.
