Tbilisi is an architecturally striking city in either
Europe or Asia, depending on who you ask.
Persian domes, Byzantine arches, Soviet towers
and futuristic bridges rub shoulders with
cliff-clinging 19th-century wooden townhouses.
Recently this urban hodgepodge has seen a
blossoming of design-led bars, boutiques and
accommodation, the most notable of which is
Stamba (from £200; stambahotel.com). Fashioned
in Brutalist style from a former publishing
house, this 150-room hotel arguably has the
world’s most impressive lobby: above the
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rooftop pool. An onsite gallery and chocolatier
add to its appeal. For the best views of the city’s
eclectic buildings, Stamba can arrange a
helicopter tour or cable car up to the hilltop 4th-
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-020#11Ɵ&#̭4#Ƥ&-30̮'%&2
to Tbilisi is longer than those to most European
cities, but with the favourable Georgian lari
exchange rate, your money will go further too.
ARRIVE Georgian Airways flies direct from London
to Tbilisi (from £405; georgian-airways.com).45
Ogle
architecture in
Tbilisi, Georgia
LA has Hollywood, New York
has Broadway, but Chicago
is America’s comedy capital.
At sketch-focused Second City
the likes of Joan Rivers, Tina Fey
and Bill Murraylaunched their
careers. Buy tickets for the nightly shows or,
from June to October, book onto Second City’s
Neighbourhood Tour for a not-so-serious
guided weekend walk around the Old Town,
taking in historic architecture and old haunts
of famous comics(from £15; secondcity.com).
Head to the Laugh Factory for stand-up(from
£13; laughfactory.com)-0 ̭," 7-30 -5, $3,,7
side at one of the regular workshops at the
iO Theater, whose alumni include Mike Myers
(£38; ioimprov.com). The latter is also home
to the Improvised Shakespeare Company,
an improv troupe that riff off the Bard – in
rhyming couplets.
ARRIVEUnited flies direct
from London Heathrow
to Chicago(from
£350; united.com).
STAYBlending
Art Deco vintage
with retro kitsch,
the Hotel Lincoln
has views of Lake
Michigan(from £83;
jdvhotels.com).46
Have a laugh in
Chicago
(^52) BEST
WEEKENDS
AWAY
FLYING TIME
Want to see how far you
can travel in a weekend?
Use the ‘flight time’ slider
on Kayak’s online map to
see which destinations fit
your maximum flying
hours – and budget
(kayak.co.uk/explore).