The famous Kukushka train on Borjomi-Kharagauli railway has been given intangible cultural heritage status. The news was announced by Nikoloz Antadze, the head of National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation of Georgia.

The well-known train was renovated last year, yet it has still preserved its original appearance .The train consists of four carriages; each of them can carry up to 23 passengers.


Borjomi-Kharagauli railway is the sole narrow railway of Georgia that connects Borjomi and Bakuriani. The railway was opened in 1902. Before 1967 steam-engine used to move through the railway but then it was substituted by an electric train, known under its nickname Kukushka (Cuckoo in Russian).


It is noteworthy that the famous Kukushka passes through an old bridge constructed by a well-known French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. The bridge was set up by the order of the Romanovs, the Russian royal family, when Georgia was part of the Russian Empire. The construction was brought to Georgia in pieces and later installed on the river Tsemistskali in 1902.

The popular “Kukushka” is still a favorite of tourists and locals alike.



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Eiffel’s bridge in Georgia and an unforgettable trip by a tiny “Kukushka” train