If you are looking for accommodation in Batumi, then one name that will pop up quite frequently is Orbi City. Mostly because Orbi City consists of 4 massive apartment blocks that are hard to miss and are a popular destination for travellers visiting Batumi.
With almost 50 floors and views of the Black Sea, it does seem very appealing. I visited Batumi last year as part of a one-week trip to Georgia, and I also stayed 4 nights at Orbi City in Batumi. I have mixed feelings about this place, so in this blog post you can read all about my experience staying at Orbi City in Batumi, Georgia, and why it wasn’t the best.
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Location of Orbi City
Orbi City in Batumi is located just a few minutes’ walk away from the beach, and there is also a shopping centre nearby. But other than that, you are surrounded by dozens of high-rise hotels. The old town is still a bit of a walk away as well, so if I were to stay in Batumi again, I would rather stay in the old town. So, the location isn’t bad, but there is not a lot to do nearby.
Advantages of staying at Orbi City
I do have mixed feelings about this place, but let’s start with some of the things I found very positive about Orbi City.
The views from the building are amazing!
If you are staying in one of the upper floors, you can expect incredible views, especially at nighttime! Based on the view alone, it was definitely worth it for me to stay at Orbi City in Batumi! And I did spend a lot of time just hanging out on the balcony and enjoying the view of all of Batumi.
The rooms are spacious and well equipped
The rooms are very pretty and come equipped with anything you might need. I had a washing machine, fridge, balcony, kettle, and a table. I did really like the room!
Disadvantages of staying at Orbi City
Now moving on to the reasons why I would probably not return to Orbi City.
The elevator is an absolute nightmare!
This is the most annoying part about staying at Orbi City! There are just not enough elevators and way too many floors and people staying here. Don’t even think about just quickly hopping to the store next door. It will most likely take you AT LEAST 10 minutes to get down and 10 minutes to get back up.
My room wasn’t super clean
I can only speak for my own room, of course! And there are so many rooms and different people take care of these rooms so it’s difficult to compare. But my room was not super clean. There was some mould in the shower,I also found quite some hairs that weren’t mine, and there was also no toilet paper. So you can imagine I was a little annoyed to have to take the elevator all the way down and up again just to get toilet paper.
I had a bad experience booking Orbi City in Batumi through Booking.com.
Here, this is the part that made me feel a bit uncomfortable. I booked my Stay at Orbi City through Booking.com, so I didn’t get to check in at the normal reception. Instead, I had to go to another Orbi City block and take the elevator up, where they had an office in one of the rooms.
On Booking.com it said that I could pay by card, but then once I was trying to pay, they told me I couldn’t. And only after I told them I didn’t have enough cash on me, and that I would need to go to an ATM, they said it was fine, and I could pay by card. Pretty sure they just wanted to avoid the card payment fees.
Then, once I finally made it to my room and checked in, they messaged me 5 minutes later to ask if I can cancel my booking. I got a bit scared because to me, it sounded like I had to leave. Mainly due to how they phrased it since it wasn’t the best English. I told them I had already paid and that I don’t understand what they want from me. So they told me I can stay, but that I should cancel my booking so they don’t need to pay the fee to Booking.com. I’m also not the biggest fan of booking.com and I’ll totally support booking hotels directly. But this was just sketchy!
I decided to just ignore them, not reply, and hoped they wouldn’t text me again for the next few days until I checked out. Which luckily was the case.
I also can’t find the exact apartment I booked any more, and a lot of them are managed by different people, so you might have a much better experience.
How much did it cost to say at Orbi City?
In July 2024 I paid €140 for 4 nights (€35 euros a night).
Would I stay at Orbi City again?
Probably not. I would potentially stay at Orbi City in Batumi again because now I know would to expect, but I would not book int through Booking.com. But to be quite frank, I wouldn’t visit Batumi again.
And don’t get me wrong, I loved Georgia; it was one of the most surprising and beautiful countries I have ever visited, and I would love to go back one day! I really enjoyed my time in Tbilisi before heading to Batumi.
But Batumi just was not my type of city. There were so many high-rise hotels and apartment blocks, and they kept building more, and there is just not a lot to do here. So it felt really out of place.
But something I would always do again in Georgia is this day trip to Kazbegi mountain, one of the best tours I have ever been on!
Let me know if you have any questions
