Looking back at 2024, plus a preview of what I have planned in travel, blogging and business for 2025.
Read my previous yearly reviews for 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017.
End-of-year wrap-ups are a tradition for me. But this year, for the first time ever, I really hesitated to write this annual review.
A combination of things – ongoing events in Georgia, extreme stress in my personal life, and being on the move for the final months of the year – have made it very difficult for me to ‘resolve’ 2024.
Christmas came and went, and even though we had a lovely New Year’s Eve with friends and a small gathering at our house to mark Bedoba, I still feel like the year sort of just fizzled out.
Fortunately in Georgia, we get a second go at it. Today is Old New Year and another opportunity to turn the page on 2024.
Even if it feels wrong to be excited about the future, and even if I feel guilty for being sad about seemingly trivial things that happened over the past 12 months, I know I would regret skipping my 2024 Annual Review. So here it is.
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Let me begin with a few milestones:
2024 was our first full year living in our house in Kutaisi. And I can honestly say that I loved every moment of being here ‘at home’. I am a hermit at heart, so having a little corner of the world that I can retreat to whenever I want is incredibly important to me. This year we had fun hosting friends, continued building relationships with our dear neighbours (mainly by exchanging food gifts), and harvested almost 100 kg of mandarins and lemons from our garden. We accidentally adopted a clowder of neighbourhood cats this summer, and having them around to keep us company (especially our rescue kitten, Poppy, who is definitely part of the family now) has brought immense joy to our lives.
2024 was the year I published my first ebook, The Tbilisi City Guide. I can’t articulate how many hours of work and how much financial investment went into creating this thing, and I am incredibly proud of how it turned out! I was humbled by the reception it received – a big thanks if you bought a copy. I am working on the second edition of the guide as we speak, with a planned release date of early spring.
2024 was the year we bought a car! This is not something I have talked about on the blog or social media because (like the house) it was a bit of a saga that ate up a lot more mental energy and time than we had expected. But oh gosh was it worth it! Our first road trips in Georgia have been incredible, and we constantly ask ourselves why on earth we waited so long to get our own wheels. The car (his name is Victor after the previous owner who left his FedEx ID behind in the glovebox) will be a huge part of my life and travels in 2025.
2024 in travel
This year I visited five countries outside of Georgia: Italy, Malta, Turkiye, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. I haven’t written about most any of those trips yet, but the reason is a lack of time/bandwidth rather than a lack of enthusiasm. I am excited to share my impressions of all these places (especially Central Asia), and I promise that I will catch up on publishing those drafted guides eventually.
After a quiet start to the year at home, in February we visited Gudauri and I had my first skiing experience in Georgia. Both the mountain scenery and the general ‘winter resort vibe’ blew my expectations out of the water. I am a total convert, and I apologise for anything bad I have said about Gudauri in the past. I loved everything about that trip – including (very surprisingly) the skiing itself – and I’m looking forward to at least two more trips like it this winter.
Later that month, Ross and I spent two weeks in Malta and a couple of days in Rome/Vatican City. The weather was perfect, and although we had a packed schedule, it was quite a relaxing trip. I don’t know if Malta is quite my scene – I’m not rushing to go back, but there are things about it that I really enjoyed. Especially Carnival in Valetta! Given the choice, I will always go for mountains over the beach, but I must admit it was soul-nourishing to gaze out at the sea every day.
In spring and summer we did a couple of big trips in Georgia, including to Khevsureti and Pshavi, the last ‘major’ mountain region I had left to tick off my list. That trip was epic and definitely a highlight of the year. We were lucky to have fantastic company in Mindia Lomidze, a friend who I have travelled with three summers in a row now, his partner, and our buddy Kat from Australia (whom I met through the blog).
My ‘trip of 2024’ has to be our long awaited return to Svaneti in September. It was our first proper road trip in the new car, made all the better by the beautiful new roads that had just opened up in the region.
One of my intentions for 2024 was to do more hiking. In the end I got a few excellent day hikes in, starting with Kvamli Mountain in early June, Juta Valley later that month, the Abudelauri Lakes Hike in July, Chalaadi Glacier in September, and Rkoni Valley in October. Two of those were with our friend, hiking guide Timothy Merkel, and his wife Sopho.
This year I visited several places in Georgia that were new to me, including Bakhmaro and Anaklia. I made multiple trips back to my favourite spots in Kakheti, Kazbegi and of course Tbilisi, and spent another birthday in Guria, which is becoming a bit of a tradition. We attended a bunch of festivals, including the Gurjaani Wine Festival, the Gemo Food Festival in Zugdidi, and the Bakhmaro Cup horse race.
In autumn, we drove around Tianeti, Racha, Chiatura and Adjara in search of fall colours. The latter part was with my dad, who came over from Australia to visit us for the second year in a row.
The three of us finished the year with a fortnight in Uzbekistan and a couple of days in Istanbul and Shymkent on either side. Uzbekistan had been on my wish-list for a long, long time, and it absolutely lived up to my high expectations. I think we got in at just the right time, too. Clearly the country is gearing up for big things in tourism, and we were lucky that we managed to avoid any crowds (travelling in November certainly helped).
It was quite something to finally see that magnificent Silk Road architecture up close. But strangely, the parts of the trip that I enjoyed the most were not the cities as I had anticipated… My favourite experiences were overnighting in a yurt on the Aral Sea, and spending a day hopping between castles around Khiva. Maybe it’s a sign that I need to spend more time outdoors this year.
Another theme from 2024 that I’m planning to carry forward to 2025 is travelling with friends. In summer, we met up with friends from Canada in Tbilisi, and in September we returned with some Australian friends for a gig.
I got to hang out with a bunch of my colleagues in February when the travel blogging conference Traverse came to town. But nothing could top spending a day in Kutaisi with Pete Rojwongsuriya of Bucketlistly. I am a huge admirer of Pete’s work, and he is such an inspiring, genuinely kind person. When you operate in a highly competitive online space – and when a good chunk of your time is spent working alone, sending your thoughts and feelings out into the abyss of the internet – the opportunity to spend time with someone likeminded who just ‘gets it’ is really so valuable. If you’re reading this: Thank you, Pete! I hope we can meet again later this year.
2024 in business
The past 12-18 months have been a challenging time for independent content creators like myself. Changes to the Google algorithm and the rise of AI are both having a big impact on the industry. Blogging will never be the same again.
For someone who loves the creative process but tries to avoid the messy backend as much as possible, it has been complicated and confusing. What I do know is that most of us have taken a hit to our traffic, and thus our morale.
I consider myself extremely lucky that I have only been impacted in a minor way. I finished 2024 with 6 million page views, down about 12% year-on-year compared to 2023.
Ever since I started tracking the numbers in 2019, I have seen exponential growth on my site. In my last year in review, for example, I wrote that my pageviews increased by 60% in 2023 compared to the previous period.
So while my income thankfully remained stable last year, I would be lying if I said the downward trajectory (especially over the summer, when my traffic loss was closer to 30% some days) hasn’t had an impact on me mentally. It’s difficult to stay motivated when you feel like your work is not being seen – or worse still, when you are quite sure that your work is being parsed by AI.
The former issue – feeling unsure if anyone out there is actually reading or using my content – is nothing new to me. When I think back to the start of this journey, I am reminded that despite struggling through every learning curve and seeing no upside whatsoever for several long years, I persisted with blogging because it was something that I enjoyed doing and wanted to get better at. Nowadays I am fortunate to receive messages and emails of thanks on a daily basis. Whatever the algorithm says or however grim the numbers are, I am pretty confident that my work – specifically my work in Georgia – is making a difference.
When I have faced challenges in the past, my strategy has been to double down and focus on what I am good at (I’m stubborn like that). Should I stop overthinking things and just stick to what I know and love?
This is all very relevant because 2025 is the 10-year anniversary of this website. It all started in a Chiang Mai hotel room back in August 2015… I cannot believe how far I have come. I don’t know how I’m going to celebrate, but I know I have to do something special. And it will definitely involve reuniting with Thailand!
Not to bring down the mood again, but another big challenge I faced in 2024 was around intellectual property and people imitating my work. Dealing with plagiarism is probably the most frustrating part of my job – it just zaps all the joy out of it. In some ways I know it is just the cost of doing business online, but I take these things personally. Too personally. 2025 might be the year I get more proactive about putting a stop to it.
In 2024, I published 27 new blog posts, most of them about Georgia with a few guides for Albania and Azerbaijan sprinkled in. 80% of my time these days is spent updating existing content, and I managed to keep most of my core guides relevant.
While my focus was very much on the blog, I continued to accept freelance commissions, mostly writing for National Geographic. It was nice to see my name in TIME Magazine last year, and even nicer to see it beside articles about two of my favourite destinations, rural Albania and my beloved Kutaisi!
An email from a stranger inspired me to fix up my portfolio website, which has been nothing more than a holding page for several years. If you’re interested, you can see it here.
My plans for 2025
I want 2025 to be a year of focused, intentional work, and I want to try and enjoy the ‘fun’ part of my job (i.e. travel) more than I have been. I struggled to find any photos of myself from 2024 to add to this post… I think that’s an indication of where my head has been lately.
I am entering into this year with clear goals, but with fewer expectations around the numbers. While the chaos of 2024 has been bringing me down, the change of mindset it inspires might end up being a good thing for the year ahead.
One of my big goals is to revisit all my Caucasus content, including my older guides from 2017-2019 that desperately need a rewrite. I also plan to add a bunch of new Georgia guides to the site for destinations including Bolnisi and Dmanisi, Chachuna Managed Reserve, Lagodekhi, Kintrishi National Park and Gudamakari Gorge.
Now that we have a car, anything feels possible – so I want to do everything this year. We are planning a Mega Georgia Road Trip where we (okay, Ross – sadly my license expired) will attempt to drive around the entire country over 6-8 weeks, focusing on backroads and off-the-beaten-track places.
But before that, I have winter and spring to look forward to. Tomorrow we set off for our first proper road trip of the year, visiting Bakuriani (for more skiing) and Javakheti for a special festival. Our first international trip will be a quick four days in Athens at the end of January. I have been to Greece many times but never to the capital, so I’m very excited to put my tourist hat on and eat as much tzatziki as humanly possible.
We will try to squeeze in trips to Mestia, Bakhmaro, Sairme and Sabaduri while there is still snow on the ground before flying to Cologne in March to meet up with our friends from Canada. April will be a quieter month finishing some final jobs on the house.
In May, we will head to a new country: Moldova. The idea is to spend a week or so driving around, focusing on Transnistria and Gagauzia. We will likely spend a few days in Bucharest afterwards before meeting friends in Plovdiv for a concert at the Roman Theatre.
In June, I have a friend coming to Georgia for the first time, and I’m excited to show her my favourite spots. In addition to our big road trip, I want to squeeze in visits to Armenia and Azerbaijan over summer and autumn.
We plan to spend all of November in Thailand (Ross’s special request for his 40th birthday) ahead of a long overdue trip back to Australia in December.
I have a lot to look forward to, and most of all I’m excited to lean into what I love – experiencing different sides of Georgia and documenting what I learn. At times like this when it’s difficult to look forward – or back – because of all the uncertainty, knowing there is a real person out there on the receiving end means the world to me. Thank you for being here, and thank you for your support throughout 2024.
Wishing you a Happy New Year!
Awesome write-up, Emily! Aww, it was nice meeting you too! What a blast and we definitely have to do it again when you get to Thailand! Congrats on the featured pieces as well. Gotta love seeing a restaurant I was just there on Times, thanks to you haha. I wish you the best for 2025 and let’s hope all will be better this year!
Cheers, Pete! Wishing you all the best for 2025!
I have been devouring your blog ever since I discovered it when planning a trip to Georgia last April. Your guides and itineraries were invaluable, so much info, so up to date, so many insider tips and such wonderful photography. Honestly, simply the best! So much so that you became our go-to when we went to Albania in October. Now I can’t wait for your write-up on Central Asia as my next big trip is hopefully going to be to Uzbekistan. (No pressure!) Thank you for creating such exceptional content.
Thanks so much, Phoebe! I really appreciate the feedback! Uzbekistan content coming very soon! Wishing you all the best for 2025.
I love reading your blog, and SO appreciate the help it gave my friend and I when we traveled to Georgia and Armenia in the summer of 2023. Following you on Instagram makes me realize how much more of Georgia I want to explore! My nephew married a Georgian-American woman in New Jersey in August, and it was really fun to chat with her Georgian relatives about how much I love their country. Wishing you the best with your 2025 blogging and traveling adventures.
Thanks so much, Jennifer! I hope you will get a chance to return soon. Happy New Year!
Hi Emily,
I can’t tell you how much I relied on your blog last year – from securing drivers to navigating the climb in Kasbegi, you were always right there with me. And, you were never wrong. I appreciate all your insights, and I was particularly grateful for the best places to access local and authentic crafts in Tbilisi – the tablecloths I purchased are magnificent. Interestingly, I am heading to Uzbekistan this summer, and I would love any tips you could share since you were just there!
Thanks so much, Mary! I’m so happy to hear that. I will try to have my Uzbekistan guides up in the next couple of weeks. You are going to love it!
I hope you keep going Emily. I really enjoy your articles. I was first in Georgia 40 years ago and returned 5 years ago mainly on your blogs. I have since returned every 2nd year exploring new areas. Thank you!!!
That’s awesome to hear, Ken! I would love to hear your tips for Georgia – I’m sure you have more than a few insights to share with me! Happy New Year!
Always a joy to read your thoughts and recaps. This past year had been so rough and you are in good company. But your presence makes the web a better place and I am so grateful to call you a colleague and friend 🩵 hope to see you in 2025! Sending hugs!
Thanks, Megan! I really appreciate your support. I probably would not be here if it weren’t for your blog – you have always been a huge inspiration to me. Happy New Year and see you in 2025 (this is the year!).
Thanks for an excellent website and blog Emily – just returned to Australia after spending a marvellous 3 weeks in Georgia and a week in Yerevan in Armenia. Enjoyed Tbilisi & Yerevan , but really impressed by the lovely Kutasai and can see why you are based there. Every restaurant in town seemed to know you once they discovered we were Australian !
Your website / guides made travelling in the region very simple and way more interesting.
Keep up the good work, and safe travels for 2025.
Thanks so much, RB! I’m glad you enjoyed your time here and especially happy that you liked Kutaisi! Happy New Year!
Emily. how could you doubt that people don’t follow your blogs. They are so inspirational & informative, l love to read them. Have been following you for around 8 yrs now & will continue to do so, your the reason I visited Georgia, Azerbaijan & Armenia. Am looking forward to yr Central Asia write up as well. Thanks again. Kris
Thanks so much, Kris. That’s very kind. You have been here almost since the beginning! I can’t thank you enough! Happy New Year.
Nice update. Keep up the good work. db.
Cheers, David!
I found your blog while searching for best sulfur baths to visit at Tbilisi. As I was working on my more than two weeks road trip around Georgia I had to dive in from sulfur baths and spent many days during next months to explore your blog, find great ideas to visit, some interesting restaurants and lots of information about regional cuisines and so on and on. It was my best travel advisor beside Bradt guidebook and almost only one outside of bigger cities actually. There are so much more to discover at Georgia thanks for you. And you are quite well know. I met American girl at backstreets of Mestia (huge pigs were walking to home around us at the evening) . We were talking about places to see around Mestia and transport options. When I mentioned that there is one great blog to look for more information then she asked if I mean Wander-Lush. Yes of course. What else do you need while travelling at Georgia.
Thank you for all your great work you have done!
That’s so lovely to hear! Thank you so much, Erki!
Sounds like a great year! Looking forward to your blog updates about your Central Asian travels. Sorry to hear that AI is impacting you. As a teacher, it has disrupted learning greatly (at much environmental cost) so I feel your angst. Let us know what we can do to promote your blog so it reaches more people!
Thank you, Owen! I can only imagine. I really appreciate your support – see you soon!
Hi Emily,
Your blogging was a key ingredient in the success of our May 2024 honeymoon in Albania with many great tips for experiences, food and accommodation! Thank you!
Doug and Rose
Wow, I’m so pleased to hear that! Albania is such a nice choice for a honeymoon. Wishing you both a very Happy New Year!
Keep at it Emily, you do great work and were instrumental in my wife and I enjoying a fantastic road trip around most of Georgia and a bit of Armenia in April & May last year. Your blog was so useful and informative!We still read your blog and certainly would like to get back to Georgia some day.We plan to go to Sicily & Malta this year but after reading your comment on Malta, maybe back in Georgia would be better?!
Thank you so much, Stan! That’s really so nice to hear. Ohh poor Malta – I would definitely give it a shot, it’s probably more to do with me than the country itself that I didn’t enjoy it as much as I was hoping. Rabat and Gozo were the highlights for us, if I could go again, I would spend a lot more time on Gozo.
Really appreciate your content – including this review of 2024. I’ll be getting back into your material in the months ahead as I plan my next trip to Georgia this summer.
All the best!
Thanks so much, JB! Lots of new content coming before then that will hopefully be useful for your trip!
I love your blogs. So informative even if I never visit that particular place. Planning on Azerbaijan in April (we used to work there in 2008/9 as TEFL teachers. I bet a lot has changed!) Then 3 of the stans in May/June. Happy New Year. I hope it is a good one for you.
It will be wonderful to go back and see what has changed! Thanks Trish, wishing you a great 2025!
Dear Emily!!!
it is such a pleasure to read your words!!
i can mentally travel with you!
Please… keep strong on what you do! it is a gift for all of us!
may travel last year to Caucasus was such a memorable experience and this is just because of you!!!! I followed every step and recommendation i could get from your blog!
i will be always grateful to you!
Great to hear from you, Laura! Thank you so much! I really appreciate it. I’m so happy you enjoyed your time here. Thank you for your support!
Hi Emily. Your work has been both educational and inspirational. Just this past year, during our third visit to Georgia, we spent two weeks in Terjola after reading about and meeting ‘the wine whisperer’ Gia and his wife Tea, toured Racha with Timothy, and finally decided it was ok to rent a car. And a big plus, we hosted a Supra for our Tbilisi friends at a wonderful restaurant that you recommended. Thanks so much! Your writing has brought richness and joy to our lives. May 2025 bring you many happy and fulfilling travel adventures – that you pass on to us. ❤️🇬🇪❤️Joy
Nice to hear from you again, Joy! What an experience. I’m so glad I was able to assist, and I’m just so happy you got to spend time with Gia and Timothy. They are both wonderful people. I hope we can meet in person next time you visit!
Dear Emily, I always look forward to your updates. Yes, we are out there, enjoying your content. I’m a keen traveller myself and Georgia is definitely one of my favourite countries. I’ve visited and toured already six times, mostly associated with choral concerts and it is always a great pleasure. Georgian friends in Tbilisi are struggling and hurting right now because of the political situation. I’m not sure what it is like in Kutaissi, I hope this will not become an issue for us travellers.
Thanks Sue, I really appreciate your comment. All is well here in Kutaisi. Tourism continues, and I do hope people are not too dissuaded from visiting as I am now starting to see businesses start to suffer from a lack of visitors. Wishing for a peaceful year for Georgia in 2025, and all the best to you!
Hi, I started reading your write up’s several years ago and have followed your recommendations in Georgia, Armenia and the Balkans.
I am a full time perpetual traveler and need good quality travel reports like yours. Pete, also gave good info on Ani, Turkey which motivated me to go, several years ago.
Question: I would like to learn the basics of becoming a travel writer. I think the best way for me to learn this craft is to travel and learn directly with the blogger.
Any recommendations who provides this service???
Hi Mateo, thanks so much for following my travels! That’s a very interesting concept – perhaps a writers retreat or similar run by a blogger is what you are looking for? I will keep an eye out for you.
Thank you for all you do! I really enjoy your blog and the treasure trove of information and resources you provide! Human connection and human experience can not be replaced by AI. Keep up the amazing work and good luck to you in 2025!
Thanks so much, Svetlana. I really appreciate that. Wishing you all the best for 2025!
We love your Year in Review posts and look forward to them all year long. I thought you might skip it this year due to the rollercoaster 2024 was for most bloggers.
All the best in 2025. Looking forward to seeing Moldova through your eyes soon.
Thanks so much, De Wet! Always nice to hear from you. I hope you are both doing well! All the best for 2025.
Thank you for your update
Me and my wife visited Georgia and Armenia for the first time this August with immense help and inspiration from your blog and book.
We were so thrilled about the experience that our adult son Søren got inspired to visit Tblisi and Kutaisi with a friend this September.
We have had many loving thoughts to the people of Georgia this autumn and wish the best for all to endure the political turmoil that they’re facing today.
We are looking forward to visiting Georgia again and we wish you all the best for the year to come.
Best regards Bjørn Denmark
Thank you, Bjørn! That is terrific to hear. I hope your son and his friend will also enjoy their time here. Fingers crossed for a peaceful 2025.
Thanks for all the newsletters. I found your blog when planing for a family vacation in 2022. Ever since I left a piece of my heart in Georgia. All of it was thanks to your blog.
Even though I am not going back to Georgia this year I am always reading your news letters with interest. Thanks for a great web page.
Thank you so much, Poul! I really love to hear when people maintain a strong connection with Georgia. I hope my writing and photos offers you a little window back onto the country. I appreciate your support.
Thank you for writing your blog! Because of your blog I’ve been inspired to come visit Georgia for the first time this Fall. I’ll be traveling there with a friend in early September. I’m so excited!!
That’s so nice to hear, Shelley! Great decision to come in autumn! I hope you will have a chance to participate in the wine harvest. Thanks so much for your comment and kind words!
I just want to send you a virtual hug and to let you know I hear your blogging struggles loud and clear. If you ever need to talk, I’m here for you. And I truly hope we will see each other in 2025 again!
Thanks, Kami! I hope you make it to the Caucasus this year – and if not, we are overdue a trip to Poland! Wishing you all the best for 2025.