Georgia, nestled at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, is quickly becoming one of hottest new holiday destinations among the UAE residents.

Surrounded by the Black Sea on the west, Caucasus Mountains in the north, and deserts to the south, this multi-ethnic country offers an amalgamation of Turkish, Persian and Greek cultures. Apart from Tbilisi, the capital and most cosmopolitan city of Georgia; Kutaisa, Adzharia, Borzhomi (famous for mineral waters) and Bakuraini (mountain skiing resort) are also popular among tourists.

Travel searches for Georgia, which was negligible until the last few years, saw a 300 per cent growth since the last year with latest stats from the Georgian National Tourism Administration revealing that Georgia received 852,377 visitors in August– a 10 per cent increase from the same period in 2014.

The number of guests who visited Georgia between January-August was also higher than previous years. In the first eight months of 2015, a 6 per cent increase was seen in the number of visitors to Georgia (more than 3.9 million visitors.) The country has also recorded a 36 per cent increase in visitors from Kazakhstan while 54 per cent more guests came from Belarus and 35 per cent more came from Moldova.

Visa on arrival, a short flight duration and a unique mix of the European and Asian cultures, is making Georgia a favoured destination for the Middle East residents. Travellers with valid UAE residency visa or UAE citizenship can get Visa on Arrival to Georgia.

Air Arabia, Etihad Airways as well as Fly Dubai have regular direct services to Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia from Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. - TradeArabia News Service