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Lviv: the old town of the west, by train

In depth·Lviv

The UNESCO old town of western Ukraine, its coffee houses and its opera, by train from Kyiv.

The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet
The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet
Photo CreditImage courtesy of © Jorge Láscar from Australia · CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Lviv, in the west, has an old town on UNESCO’s World Heritage List and an official tourism office of its own (lviv.travel). Ukrzaliznytsia runs trains between Kyiv and Lviv. GOV.UK advises against all but essential travel to the Lviv region.

The old town

Lviv’s historic centre is on UNESCO’s World Heritage List; its Market Square and the streets around it are the heart of the city.

The coffee houses

Lviv is the country’s coffee city, and the home of Lviv Croissants and Lviv Handmade Chocolate, both now in Kyiv too.

Getting there

Ukrzaliznytsia sells tickets between Kyiv and Lviv on its site and app (uz-vezemo.uz.gov.ua); the official tourism site is lviv.travel.

Take the train west for Lviv’s old town.

Our advice: check GOV.UK’s advice for the Lviv region before you go.

Why it's on our list

  • The old town
  • The coffee houses
  • Getting there

Location

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