Tskaltubo Train Station, Georgia

Tskaltubo Train Station is one of many ruins in the old spa town of Tskaltubo in western Georgia. Once a small but important arrival point for Soviet holidaymakers, it now stands abandoned beside the disused railway line. The decorative plasterwork, faded paint and abandoned waiting rooms feel frozen in time. This small but photogenic building remains a relic of the town’s spa-tourism past.

I visited the station while exploring the many ruins of Tskaltubo during my 2022 Georgia Armenia Tour.

The town of Tskaltubo in the Soviet Era

During the Soviet period, Tskaltubo was one of the USSR’s major spa towns. Its radon–carbonate springs were believed to help circulatory, nervous and skin conditions. From the 1930s on, the state invested heavily in sanatoriums, bathhouses, and public infrastructure.

Workers from across the Soviet Union came here on subsidised healthcare trips. Train travel formed a key part of this system. Most visitors arrived by rail, travelling from Moscow and other cities through Kutaisi and then to Tskaltubo’s small station. At its peak, the town welcomed over 100,000 visitors each year, many of whom disembarked at this very station.

After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Tskaltubo’s spa industry declined and largely disappeared.

History of Tskaltubo Train Station

Tskaltubo Train Station was built during the mid-Soviet period, likely between the 1950s and 1960s. It formed part of the Kutaisi–Tskaltubo branch line, designed to bring spa guests directly into the heart of the resort town.

The station handled regular passenger trains during the spa town’s busiest decades. Sanatorium staff would often meet visitors as they disembarked their train and transport them to large hotels and resorts. The line also supported goods transport, supplying the sanatoria and town with food, fuel, and materials.

The Kutaisi-Tskaltubo branch line fell into disuse in the years after the USSR collapsed. With no state funding and reduced demand, the line closed in stages. Infrequent trains still arrived at the station from Kutaisi until the early 2000s. Even those infrequent services have now stopped. Since then, the tracks and platform have sat unused.