Ready to fly to Batumi? We have good news if you're planning a trip to Georgia's "Las Vegas of the Black Sea." There are new and easier ways to get there from Europe — and if you're flying from one of the Scandinavian capitals, we've done all the research for you.
I almost didn't go to Georgia. The flights from Oslo looked ridiculous — 17 hours, two stops, a 6-hour layover in Warsaw at two in the morning. It seemed like the kind of trip you endure, not the kind you enjoy. So I closed the browser and forgot about it for a while.
Then a friend in Tbilisi sent me a screenshot. A Wizz Air ticket from Madrid to Kutaisi for €79. And I thought — wait. I can fly to Madrid for almost nothing. I love Madrid. What if the "long journey" is actually the best part of the trip?
That's what this article is about. Not the fastest way to get from Scandinavia to the Black Sea, but the smartest one. Because once you start looking at it this way, the flight stops being a cost and starts being a bonus. A weekend in Barcelona. A day in Rome. A night in Budapest. Several holidays for the price of one.
Prices in this article are given in NOK (Norwegian kroner). As a rough guide, 1,000 NOK ≈ €90.
Two Georgian airports, and why it matters
Georgia has two airports you can reach from Scandinavia: Batumi (BUS), right on the Black Sea coast, and Kutaisi (KUT), about 1h 47m inland by road.
Batumi is where you want to end up. Kutaisi is where the cheap flights go.
That's the trade. Batumi has fewer connections and higher fares. Kutaisi has Wizz Air, which is aggressively, almost absurdly cheap and connects to cities all over Europe. If you fly into Kutaisi, you simply take a bus to Batumi — and that bus ride, through the green hills of western Georgia, is honestly one of the nicest parts of arriving.
Which route should you pick?
Every option to Georgia from Scandinavia involves a stopover somewhere in Europe. The question isn't whether to stop — it's where, and with whom. Here's a quick comparison:
- Budapest (Wizz Air) — the shortest flight to Kutaisi from Europe. Roughly 3h 30m. Monday departure only.
- Rome (Wizz Air) — beautiful city, easy to explore on a long layover. Weekend departure. Around 4h to Kutaisi.
- Madrid (Wizz Air) — fewer weekly flights, but a proper Spanish weekend. Around 5h to Kutaisi.
- Barcelona (Wizz Air) — the most frequent Wizz option. Up to 4 flights per week. Around 4h 50m to Kutaisi.
- Istanbul with Turkish Airlines — the fastest overall. Around 9 hours total, one 1h 35m connection. The comfortable choice.
- Istanbul with Pegasus Airlines — the low-fare option via Istanbul. Same route, cheaper tickets, longer layovers.
Let's go through each one properly.
Route 1: Via Budapest — the shortest flight
Budapest is the closest of the Wizz stopover cities to Kutaisi, which means the longest leg of the trip is the shortest. If you just want to get there with minimal time in the air, this is your route.
The Budapest route runs on Mondays. Here's how the timing works:
- Oslo (OSL) → Budapest (BUD) — departs 20:10, arrives 22:45 local time
- Overnight in Budapest — a few hours at an airport hotel, or a nap in the terminal
- Budapest (BUD) → Kutaisi (KUT) — departs 05:25, arrives 11:25 local time
Total travel time from Oslo to Kutaisi: around 15 hours, but only 5h 45m of it is actually in the air. The rest is the overnight stop, which — with a proper airport hotel — is more of a rest than an ordeal.
The closest of the Wizz stopover cities to Kutaisi, with the shortest flying time. Runs on Mondays.
- Oslo → Budapest: 20:10 → 22:45
- Overnight: Airport hotel or terminal nap
- Budapest → Kutaisi: 05:25 → 11:25
- Total travel time: Around 15 hours, 5h 45m in the air
- Best for: Travellers who want the shortest flight, and don't mind an overnight stop
Route 2: Via Rome — the Italian detour
The Rome route runs on weekends, and the timing is generous. You fly out on Saturday morning, arrive early afternoon, and have a full evening and night in Rome before the flight to Kutaisi departs Sunday morning.
- Oslo (OSL) → Rome (FCO) — departs Saturday 10:10, arrives 13:30. Around 409 NOK one way.
- A day and evening in Rome — enough time to see the Trevi Fountain, eat proper carbonara, and sleep in a real bed
- Rome (FCO) → Kutaisi (KUT) — departs Sunday 06:10, arrives 12:10. Around 19,240 HUF (roughly €50 or 570 NOK)
The Rome route is for people who'd rather have a proper evening in a great city than a nap in an airport. If you've never been to Rome, this is a two-in-one trip. If you have, you already know why it's worth the stop.
Landing at FCO at 13:30 gives you about 14 hours before the Sunday morning flight. That's enough for a real evening in Rome if you plan it right.
- Take the Leonardo Express train to Termini — 32 minutes, €14
- Drop your bag at a hotel near Termini, or use a luggage locker at the station
- Walk to the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and Piazza Navona — all within 30 minutes of each other
- Dinner at a trattoria away from the tourist squares. Carbonara, cacio e pepe, a glass of Frascati
- Back to FCO by 04:30 for the 06:10 flight
It's tight but doable. And a night in Rome is a night in Rome.
Route 3: Via Spain — the weekend away
This is the route I recommend to anyone who wants a proper holiday on the way to their holiday. Fly from Oslo to Barcelona or Madrid with Norwegian, Iberia, or Vueling. Spend a weekend there. Then connect to Kutaisi with Wizz Air.
The reason this works so well is simple — Norwegians already love flying to Spain. There are multiple daily departures from Oslo to both cities, prices are competitive, and the flight is only about 3h 30m. You're not adding a chore. You're adding a destination.
Spain to Kutaisi with Wizz Air
- Barcelona (BCN) → Kutaisi (KUT) — up to 4 flights per week. Flight time around 4h 50m. One-way fares from around €46 in the cheapest months (November, January), typically €60–90.
- Madrid (MAD) → Kutaisi (KUT) — around 2 flights per week. One-way fares from around €80, with occasional sales down to €66.
Oslo to Spain — the easy first leg
- Norwegian — multiple daily departures from Oslo Gardermoen to both Barcelona and Madrid. Around 3h 20m–3h 45m.
- Iberia — flies directly Oslo to Madrid, one to two times daily.
- Vueling — flies Oslo to Barcelona, with fares often from around €66 one-way.
Barcelona — Gaudí, the Gothic Quarter, tapas, the beach. Wizz flights leave from Terminal 2 (the budget terminal), so allow extra time to transfer from T1 if you arrive on Norwegian. Up to 4 flights per week to Kutaisi.
Madrid — the Prado, Retiro Park, jamón, late dinners. Fewer Wizz flights to Kutaisi (around 2 per week), but a calmer and more affordable city for a short stay.
Both have excellent metro connections from the airport to the centre — 30–40 minutes, under €10.
If you're flying Wizz Air on multiple legs — say, two people, two legs each — the Wizz Discount Club Standard membership (€59.99/year) usually pays for itself on the very first trip.
Here's the math. Members get €10 off every flight priced over €29.99, plus €5 off checked luggage. On four Wizz flights (two people, two legs each), that's up to €40 off the flights alone — plus another €10–20 off bags. That's €50–60 saved, against a €60 membership. You break even the moment you book.
If you're travelling as a group of up to six, the Standard Plus tier (€99.99/year) covers everyone on the same booking. For a family trip, it can save €200 or more in one go.
Buy the membership before you book the flights — the discount applies immediately and stays active for a year of future bookings.
Route 4: Via Istanbul — the fast option, two ways
Istanbul is the fastest route to Georgia from Oslo, and you have two airlines to choose from. Both fly the same basic route — Oslo to Istanbul, then Istanbul to Batumi — but they offer very different experiences and price points.
Turkish Airlines — the comfortable choice
Turkish Airlines is the premium option. Oslo (OSL) to Batumi (BUS) via Istanbul, total travel time around 9 hours, with a comfortable 1h 35m layover in one of the best airports in the world.
A proper meal included, a checked bag, a reclining seat, and Istanbul Airport itself — worth a wander even if you're just passing through. Round-trip fares typically land between 6,000 and 7,500 kroner depending on season and how early you book.
Pegasus Airlines — the low-fare option
Pegasus flies the same route, but from Istanbul's Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) instead of the main IST airport. It's a low-cost carrier, so the ticket is cheaper — but you pay for bags, food, and seat selection.
The advantage is price. Pegasus often comes in 1,500–2,000 kroner cheaper than Turkish on the same dates. The trade-off is longer layovers, which can push total travel time to 17–24 hours. If the budget matters more than the schedule, Pegasus is worth checking.
Pegasus flies the Istanbul to Batumi leg in about 1h 45m, with multiple departures per week. Round-trip fares from Oslo to Batumi with Pegasus typically start around 4,000 kroner on good dates — but the cheapest way to fly this route is often a mix of carriers.
Here's what makes the Pegasus route stand out: your bag is checked all the way from Oslo to Kutaisi. You don't collect it in Istanbul, and you don't go through security again. The 4-hour layover is long enough to eat a proper meal at Sabiha Gökçen — a modern, comfortable airport that's been expanded in recent years — and short enough that you don't lose a whole day.
The other detail worth knowing: this flies from Oslo Gardermoen, not Torp. If you live in Oslo, the train to Gardermoen takes 20 minutes and costs around 120 NOK. Getting to Torp requires a bus that takes 1h 30m and costs 300+ NOK. Same route, same price, but Gardermoen saves you time and money on the way to the airport.
Unlike most European budget flights, this fare includes things you'd normally pay extra for:
- 20 kg checked luggage — included per person, both ways (on the Pegasus leg)
- Baggage checked through — no need to collect and re-check in Istanbul
- Departure from Oslo Gardermoen — the main airport, 20 minutes from Oslo S by train
- 4-hour layover at Sabiha Gökçen — enough time for a meal, and the airport is modern
On a comparable Wizz Air fare, checked luggage alone would add 600–1,200 NOK per person round trip.
Here's a real search result from a recent trip search. One traveller, outbound 4 November, return 10 November:
- Outbound: Wizz Air. TRF (Torp) → WAW (Warsaw) → KUT (Kutaisi). Total 6h 40m. Departs 09:40, arrives 19:20. Self-transfer in Warsaw, 1h 20m layover.
- Return: Pegasus Airlines. KUT (Kutaisi) → SAW (Istanbul Sabiha) → OSL (Gardermoen). Total 11h 25m. Departs 04:10, arrives 12:35. 5h 20m layover in Istanbul.
- Total round-trip: 2,056 kr (roughly €190 or $205).
What makes this the best value: the outbound is cheap and fast — under 7 hours with a short, easy Warsaw connection. The return is longer, but it comes with two things Wizz Air doesn't include: 20 kg of checked luggage, and a longer layover at Sabiha Gökçen that gives you time for a meal and a rest before the final 3h 55m hop to Oslo.
The cheaper option on the same search: 1,799 kr — Wizz Air both ways via Warsaw. Total travel time 16h 45m outbound (with a longer connection) and 6h 40m return. No checked luggage included.
So you have two real choices: 1,799 kr if you travel hand-luggage only and don't mind a long outbound day, or 2,056 kr if you want the bag included and a more comfortable return. Either way, under 2,100 kr for a return flight from Oslo to Georgia.
Turkish Airlines — flies from Istanbul Airport (IST). Meal included, checked bag, comfortable seat. Round-trip 6,000–7,500 NOK. Best if you want a relaxed journey.
Pegasus Airlines — flies from Sabiha Gökçen (SAW). Cheaper tickets, 20 kg bag included. Round-trip 4,000–5,500 NOK. Best if you want to save money and don't mind longer layovers.
Both land at Batumi Airport (BUS).
For Wizz Air flights to Kutaisi, the cheapest fares from the Oslo area often leave from Sandefjord Torp (TRF), not Oslo Gardermoen (OSL). Torp–Kutaisi fares have been seen from as low as US$67 one-way.
From Gardermoen, Wizz Air Malta also flies, but connections are longer (14+ hours) and fares are higher. Check both airports before booking.
Torp is about 1h 30m south of Oslo by bus. Allow time to get there.
Flying from Stockholm and Copenhagen
If you're not based in Oslo — or the fares from Gardermoen look high — Stockholm and Copenhagen are both viable starting points, but with one important caveat: there are no direct Wizz Air flights from either city to Kutaisi. Both routes involve a stopover, usually in Warsaw or Budapest.
Stockholm
- Wizz Air flies from Stockholm Skavsta (NYO) to Kutaisi with one stop — usually Warsaw. Journey time varies from around 8h 20m to over 28 hours depending on the connection.
- One-way fares from around US$48 on good dates.
- Note: the direct Skavsta–Kutaisi route was discontinued in 2022. Don't book expecting a non-stop flight.
- Skavsta is about 1h 20m from central Stockholm by bus, not Arlanda.
Copenhagen
- Wizz Air flies Copenhagen to Kutaisi with one stop — usually Budapest or Warsaw. Journey time is around 10–13 hours.
- One-way fares from around US$85–101 depending on dates.
- Note: there is no direct flight from Copenhagen to Kutaisi. Every connection involves a stop.
Wizz Air — the budget option. Flies to Kutaisi from 22 European cities, including Rome, Budapest, Madrid, Barcelona, Copenhagen, and Warsaw. The cheapest way to reach Georgia. Book each leg separately.
Turkish Airlines — the comfortable option. Oslo to Batumi via Istanbul, around 9 hours total. Meal and bag included. Round-trip typically 6,000–7,500 NOK.
Pegasus Airlines — the low-fare option via Istanbul. Often 1,500–2,000 NOK cheaper than Turkish, but with longer layovers and paid extras.
Wizz Air doesn't sell connecting flights — each leg is its own ticket. That's part of why it's so cheap, and why you should always leave a generous gap between legs, in case the first flight is delayed.
Getting from Kutaisi to Batumi
Once you land in Kutaisi, you're 1h 47m from Batumi by road. The simplest way to cover that distance is with Georgian Bus — a shuttle service that times its departures to match arriving flights.
When you book on their website, you select your flight number from a list, and the system automatically assigns you to the correct bus. No guesswork, no waiting around, no risk of missing a connection because your flight was delayed. The driver knows which flights are coming in, and waits for them.
Cost is around 25 lari per person, per way — a little under 100 kroner. The journey takes two to three hours depending on stops, and the buses are modern and comfortable. It's a genuinely easy way to arrive — and the drive itself, through the green hills of western Georgia, is beautiful.
The best option for getting from Kutaisi to Batumi. Departures are timed to arriving flights, and you select your flight number when booking so the driver knows when to expect you.
- Route: Kutaisi Airport (KUT) → Batumi city centre
- Price: Around 25 lari per person, per way
- Journey time: 2 to 3 hours
- How to book: Online at georgianbus.com
- Why it works: The bus waits for your flight, even if it's delayed
Getting from Batumi Airport to the city centre
If you fly into Batumi instead of Kutaisi, getting to the city is even simpler. Batumi International Airport is small — you're out of arrivals in a couple of minutes — and the city centre is only a short bus ride away.
Take the number 10 bus. It stops right outside the small airport entrance, runs frequently, and takes you directly into the centre. Along the way it stops at Metro City Mall, near the new boulevard — a convenient drop-off if you're staying in the newer part of town.
The fare is under 1 lari — roughly 4 kroner or 0.4 USD.
The easiest and cheapest way to reach the city centre from Batumi International Airport.
- Bus: Number 10
- Stop: Just outside the airport entrance
- Stops along the way: Metro City Mall (near the new boulevard) and other central locations and the continues towards the old boulevard and the old city centre
- Fare: Under 1 lari (roughly 4 kroner or 0.4 USD)
- Payment: The quickest method is to board the bus and tap your own physical contactless credit/debit card (Visa or Mastercard) or smartphone wallet (Apple Pay/Google Pay) directly against the validator machine inside the bus
- Best for: Travellers staying in central Batumi or near Metro City Mall
If you're arriving late at night, or you have a lot of luggage, taxis are available outside arrivals. Agree on a price before you get in — expect around 15–20 lari to the centre. We recommend to download the Bolt taxi app for the best prices and no misunderstanding. But for a daytime arrival with a manageable bag, the bus is hard to beat.
How to choose
If you want the shortest flight: Budapest on a Monday. Around 5h 45m in the air — the least of any option.
If you want a proper city break on the way: Rome on a weekend. A day and evening in Italy before you fly on to Georgia.
If you want the cheapest and most Spanish trip: Oslo → Barcelona or Madrid → Kutaisi. With the Wizz Discount Club, two Wizz legs can cost less than a single night in an Oslo hotel.
If you want the fastest and most comfortable: Oslo → Batumi with Turkish Airlines via Istanbul. Around 9 hours. More expensive, but you'll land rested.
If you want the cheapest overall: mix airlines. Wizz Air outbound via Warsaw, Pegasus returning via Istanbul. Round-trip from around 1,700–2,100 kr (roughly €160–195). You get the cheap Wizz fare on the way out and Pegasus's 20 kg luggage allowance on the way back — the best of both.
If you want the cheapest single-airline option: Wizz Air both ways. Round-trip from around 1,799 kr. But expect a longer outbound connection and no checked luggage.
If you're departing from Stockholm or Copenhagen: Wizz Air has one-stop options to Kutaisi that are just as cheap.
If you have flexible dates: check Wizz Air's sales. Fares swing wildly week to week, and a well-timed sale can cut the ticket price in half. The cheapest months for Spain → Kutaisi tend to be November and January. For the Oslo → Kutaisi route, the cheapest fares often appear in late autumn and early winter.
The cheapest flight isn't always the cheapest trip. But the most expensive one isn't always the best holiday either. A stopover in Budapest, Rome, or Spain turns a long journey into two trips — and that changes everything.
The bottom line
Georgia is closer to Scandinavia than most people realise, and cheaper to reach than almost anywhere else in Europe. Wizz Air has made Kutaisi genuinely accessible from half a dozen European cities, and each of those cities is worth a night or two on the way. Turkish and Pegasus have made Batumi reachable in a single comfortable day via Istanbul.
Fly to Budapest on a Monday night, sleep at the airport hotel, and land in Kutaisi before lunch on Tuesday. Or fly to Rome on Saturday, walk the city, and arrive in Georgia on Sunday afternoon. Or fly to Barcelona on Friday, spend the weekend eating tapas, and be on the Black Sea by Monday evening.
However you do it, the stopover isn't a delay. It's the first chapter of the trip.
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