Martvili Canyon is a 700-metre walk, rated 3.9 from 305 reviews

Almost nobody criticises the canyon itself. Reviewers describe turquoise water, cliffs covered in vegetation, waterfalls and a near-tropical feel, and the trail as easy to walk with several good viewpoints. The score is dragged down by how the site is run. Several say it is overcrowded and feels like an amusement park operation, with tour cars honking and vendors shouting. One reports people at the entrance pushing overpriced extra experiences and turning confrontational when refused, though a different visitor saw none of that.

The circular walk is 700 metres and the boat trip about 300 metres. Reviewers put the walk at roughly ten minutes and several say the boat ride is too brief to enjoy. Combined tours from Kutaisi that bundle the canyon with Prometheus Cave are listed as running anywhere from five to fifteen hours, so the bulk of that day is travel. If you are driving yourself, plan on the canyon being an hour of your day rather than a half-day, and fill the rest of the itinerary accordingly.

Reviewers report that boats were not running on rainy days, and one says the boat at times ran through ankle-deep water. If the boat ride is the reason you are making the detour, the forecast matters more than the season. One visitor found the canyon uncrowded in August, which cuts against the general complaint and suggests timing within the day matters as much as the month. The practical advice that emerges from the reviews is to go on a dry weekday and go early.

The gap between the photographs and the 3.9 score is where complaints come from, and it is closable with one honest sentence before departure. Tell guests the walk is short, the boat is shorter, there will be people selling things at the entrance, and the water colour is the point. Guests who arrive expecting a half-day wilderness experience leave disappointed; guests who arrive expecting a beautiful twenty minutes and a boat usually do not. Confirm the current entrance and boat prices at the gate, since the reviews give no consistent figure.