Reviews

Thank you very much for an excellent time last week. I thoroughly enjoyed the trip: the skiing was excellent, great company and fine food. Thank for sorting out the ski, bag and transceiver rental etc. The guys in our group were great fun and Roman was an excellent guide. I really enjoyed and appreciated Ilia’s help and Giorgi was a very good and helpful driver.

All in all a great week.

Hope to see you again.

One of the best ski experiences I’ve ever had - hats off to Ingo and his team! Just about everything was well executed and skiing itself was just out of this world. There’s just too much to include in a brief review so here are a couple of highlights:

- We were hitting a solid 8+ runs a day and averaging between 4500-5000m vertical

- The terrain was super varied, from poplar forest runs to open alpine slopes, and we went to a new location every day

- Even with 4-5 groups out there, we hardly crossed anyone’s tracks, scoring several epic first tracks during the week.

- Not that this was entirely planned but, the groups and mix of skiers/boarders was great with everyone at a similar ability level and no laggers. Also, just a fantastic group of people #internationalcat

- Every meal was outrageously good, with at least 8 homemade dishes and a different variation of kachapuri every night. Be ready for some cheese!

- Our guide, Giorgi, got some fantastic footage of us including some seriously good-looking drone shots which I’ll definitely be sharing with everyone I know! Props to Giorgi, the other guides, and our Cat driver- real stand-up folks who found fresh spots for us every day!

So there we go! I’m *almost* tempted not to post this review since I’d like the experience not to change one bit, but Ingo and all the people at Powerproject deserve the recognition. Thanks for everything!

Kaum möglich unser Skiurlaub in ein paar Bilder zu fassen; Dieses freundliche Gesicht von Georgien, ein Land welches für viele von uns unbekannt und fremd ist. Die Abgeschieden- und Unberührtheit von Bakhmaro hat uns in den Bann gezogen. Jede Line, welche wir gesehen haben, war unsere eigene. Die vielen Möglichkeiten im verspielten Gelände in den Tannen- oder Buchenwälder lassen jedes Skifahrerherz höher schlagen. Aber auch das alpinere Gelände oberhalb der Waldgrenze bot die Möglichkeit, steilere und felsdurchsetztere Abfahrten zu wählen. Irakli, unser Guide, war äusserst flexibel und fand genauso viel Spass an den steileren Rinnen wie wir.

Wir waren 10 Tage im kleinen Kaukasus bei Ingo und seinem Team. Ihre Herzlichkeit machte unser Aufenthalt einzigartig. Sie erfüllten uns nahezu jeden Wunsch. Auch die Kulinarik kam nicht zu kurz. Das georgische Küchenteam im Pioneers zauberte uns jeden Tag wundervolle Gerichte. All the good stuff: Selbstgemachte Blaubeerenkonfi, Adjika, Chinkali (georgische Teigtaschen), gefülltes Gemüse, Häncheneintropf, natürlich Chatschapuri und noch vieles mehr.

Wir möchten dir Ingo und dem ganzen Powderproject-Team für dieses unvergessliche Abenteuer danken. Deine offene und kommunikative Art haben wir sehr geschätzt. Wir bewundern deine Professionalität, deinen Innovationsgeist und deinen herzlichen und respektvollen Umgang mit den georgischen Angestellten.

I recently enjoyed an epic New Year's Eve catskiing week with powderproject.ch in Bakhmaro, and it was an unforgettable adventure. The trip was a perfect mix of weather conditions: the first four days graced us with sunny skies and amazing weather, creating ideal conditions for skiing. The last four days were a powder paradise, thanks to a fresh snowfall that blanketed the slopes with an abundance of powdery snow.

One of the most impressive aspects of this trip was how powderproject.ch handled our group. They were incredibly flexible, accommodating guest requests with ease and always eager to ensure everyone's satisfaction. Their support was superlative, adding a layer of comfort and confidence to our adventure.

We were the only group freeride-skiing in the area, which meant access to an abundance of untouched slopes. This exclusivity made our experience even more special. The expertise of the snowcat drivers and mountain guides was super good, as well as their knowledge of the local area: they always navigated us to the best spots seamlessly. The small group sizes enhanced even more the experience, making it more intimate and enjoyable.

Georgian hospitality added to the charm of our trip. The cuisine was nothing short of amazing, complemented by a really nice selection of local wines and drinks. Our little cozy hotel was the perfect place to unwind, complete with a warm fireplace and a nice sauna/hot tub.

In conclusion, PowderProject.ch delivered a phenomenal skiing adventure, absolutely maintaining true the promise of great lines, great food and great sleep. This place is definitely a must-do for anyone looking for an extraordinary skiing experience.

In few words...one of the best powder trips ever.
The overall organisation of powderproject team and their soul - Ingo is amazing!
We had an amazing week of skiing Japanese like snow and terrain of your dreams here....the feeling is as you would get yourself into "all you can eat" powder restaurant with Michelin quality dishes. We skied our guts out each day from dawn till dusk on uncrowded remote Bakhmaro terrains that are accessible only to guests of Ingo and his team. The vision that they have is something am sure will develop this location much further and to an exclusive level not matched in many places on the globe.
The Pioneers lodge offers amazing housing experience, the food there is amazing and the team heartily breaths with the place. We'll come back for more with 100% certainty!

«I skied in Georgia», wer dies in Nordamerika sagt wird wohl komisch angesehen. Der Bundesstaat ist nicht für Schnee bekannt. Auch im deutschsprachigen Raum, wo Georgien und der US-Bundesstaat voneinander unterschieden werden können, zählt das Land nicht gerade zu den Top Skidestinationen. Dank Organisationen wie dem Powderproject.ch sollte das Land bei Freeridern fett auf der Landkarte markiert werden. Die Region um Bakhmaro ist ein wahres Paradies. Von verschneiten Faces bis hin zu wunderbarem Tree Skiing findet man alles was das Herz begehrt. Oben drauf gibt es bei gutem Wetter eine super Aussicht vom Schwarzen Meer über den Kaukasus bis zum alles überragenden Elbrus. Wenn Ingo noch ankündet: That’s what we call 20cm of  fresh snow in Bakhmaro, kann man sich auf eine geballte Portion an Adrenalin und Dopamin in leichtestem Pulver gefasst machen.

Auch in Bakhmaro schneit es nicht jeden Tag. Gerade an diesen Tagen gibt das Team alles und spurt mit den Cats neue, weiter entfernt liegende Gebiete. Sind die neuen Täler einmal erschlossen, greifen die Guides in den Sack aus jahrelanger Erfahrung und Gebietskenntnisse um die besten Hänge zu finden. Dieses tolle Zusammenspiel führt dazu, dass es meines Wissens keine Downdays im Pioneers gibt. Wer sich nun fragt was das Pioneers ist - hierbei handelt es sich um die neue, schön eingerichtete Unterkunft. Auch wenn sie nicht Luxuriös ist, findet man bis zur Sauna und zum Hottub alles was man braucht. Hatten die Männer tagsüber das Sagen, so schmeissen am Abend die Frauen den Laden. Für mich als Westeuropäer war gerade das Essen zu Beginn speziell. So sucht man den in der Schweiz gängigen italienischen Einfluss wie Pasta in der georgischen Küche vergebens. Wer sich jedoch auf die lokale Küche einlässt wird von leckeren Spezialitäten verzaubert und geniesst tollen georgischen Wein. Möchte man sich zum Essen oder sonst zu irgendetwas erkunden fragt man am besten bei Kristi nach. Sie spricht fließend englisch und ist das liebenswerte Bindeglied zwischen den nicht georgisch sprechenden Gästen und den einheimischen Mitarbeitern. Betreibt man trotzdem den Aufwand einige Brocken der ziemlich fremden Sprache zu lernen, wird man von den sonst schon liebevollen Einheimischen noch mehr eingebunden als sonst.

Zusammenfassend ist zu sagen, Bakhmaro ist ein Geheimtipp bei dem man vollumfänglich auf seine Kosten kommt, sofern man gewillt ist eine komplett neue (Berg-) Kultur auf sich wirken zu lassen.

Visited mid Feb 2019. Felt like an adventure. Picked up from Kutaisi airport- transport by minibus until couldn't drive any further. Quick shimmy into skiwear and transfer to a waiting snowmobile. Another hour or so uphill via abandoned villages - not so many local people own tracked vehicles. Distant yellow light came into view, got larger, only occupied house in an otherwise empty village. Open the door, into the warmth with laughter, eating and drinking, accordion and singing. Mainly German and Austrian customers, some Brits - maybe around 30 guests in total. All male. friendly Georgian crew looking after us and operating the equipment. New Zealand and German guides.

We were virtually the only people in the mountain range and there was a LOT of powder, refilled daily. Lots of trees, pillows and jumps everywhere (some massive). Sometimes skiied along roads and through back gardens. Mixture of boarders and skiers. Most would be advanced or expert. Nice views out to the black sea and to mount Elbrus.

Powerful Cats with good drivers properly trained in Austria. Ingo and his guys scouted the area, widened the forest tracks and basically created an enormous private playground.

Rode hard every day, on the last day we did over 5700 metres of vertical. Downsides - accommodation basic and walls thin so bring earplugs/noise cancelling headphones. Traditional food hearty rather than gourmet. Quid pro pro of having the mountain to yourself is there are no bars or restaurants in the evenings - so you make your own entertainment. Kutaisi is definitely worth a couple of days - plenty to see, good restaurants and SO cheap.

Contender for my best winter trip so far and I'm looking to return in 2020.

We were at Bakhmaro the last week of December 2018. We were looking for a place where there is already snow at this time. We were very happy with our snowboarding trip, the forecast was good, deep snow.

The guide is very professional and super nice. The lodge team (Georgian staff) is really cool, the lodge is comfortable and we eat really well.

My boyfriend broke his bindings the second day. The staff repair temporarily his bindings and order a new bindings in a shop in town and deliver it the next day morning. When we know the place (Bakhmaro is lost in the mountain), we can say that Georgians are incredible!

Everything was perfect, this experience is unforgettable!
We hope to come back soon