Like Black Sea resorts of Guria – Ureki and Shekvetili, health seaside resort of Grigoleti in Lanchkhuti municipality also enjoys magnetic sand beach containing magnetite, titan-magnetite or ilmenite small particles and other rock splinters. Baths of hot sand provide thermal and mechanic influence to the human body activating immune process and improving metabolism, soothe nervous system, are useful for rheumatic and joint diseases. From ancient times maritime beach sand scorched by sun was used for treatment. It was known that in ancient times Indians from Maya tribe cured lots of diseases with sand red-hot under the sun or bonfire; this method was used also by old Romans… Hot sand bath cure – psammotherapy – is very popular in the whole

world today as well proved by plenty of visitors from various countries to seaside resorts of Guria. Sand beach switches here to the even sea bottom of several meters of the similar depth. The biggest part of the seaside is accompanied by multi-year pine-tree grove creating a special microclimate and multiplying importance of Grigoleti as a resort area. As in other seaside regions, recently construction of health resort infrastructure here is under way. In rest-houses and family hotels of Grigoleti there are full-scale conditions for spending comfortable holidays.

 

1. Grigoleti seaside strip. History of Grigoleti as a settlement starts in 1912 when aiming at development of fishing, Russian

refugees, old-style believers (followers of old beliefs) were settled there.

2. On Easter holiday, for more than a century, every year, in the hamlet of Shukhuti of Lanchkhuti municipality, Lelo burti (meaning literally in Georgian ‘Field Ball’) match is held; the participants are Upper and Lower Shukhuti teams. The winner is

proclaimed a team which manages to carry a ball sewn from the hide of a livestock and weighing 16 kg in the direction of its

neighborhood. The Shukhuti Lelo burti has only one rule – if somebody tumbles, game will stop. The winner team takes a ball to

the cemetery and leaves it on the gravesite of a newly deceased fellow villager. Along with the winners, the losers also go to the

cemetery.

 

Location: Western part of Kolkheti lowland

Distance: 315 km away from Tbilisi

Sea level: 4 m

Climate: maritime, humid, subtropical climate, winter mild, without snow, mean temperature in January 5,2 degrees; summer very warm, mean temperature in August 23,2 degrees centigrade

Average annual precipitation: 1700-1800 mm

Average comparative annual humidity: 79%

Duration of annual sunny light: 1980-2100 h.

Natural treatment factors: maritime, humid, subtropical climate and sea water, beach sand, containing big amount of magnetic iron particles

Types of therapy: climate, thalasso- and psammotherapy, magnetic sand baths

Diseases for treatment: respiratory tracts, TB, nervous and musculoskeletal system (rheumatic and joints) diseases;

sand baths activate immune process in the human body and improve metabolism