UltimateCity Guide Kyiv
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Stories from Kyiv, Ukraine

Every story, long read and guide in the ULTIMATE Kyiv City Guide, in one place.

Areas

Kyiv, neighbourhood by neighbourhood

Six neighbourhoods, each with its own guide: the Upper Town and its cathedrals, Podil by the river, the Lavra at Pechersk, Khreshchatyk and the parks on the hills, the Opera and the boulevards, and the Dnipro itself.

The Golden Gate, its brick gate tower and timber rampartsNeighbourhood guideThe Upper TownSt Sophia’s and the Golden GateThe cobbled Andriivskyi Descent in the evening lightNeighbourhood guidePodilThe town by the riverThe bell tower and golden domes of the Lavra on the wooded hills above the DniproNeighbourhood guidePecherskThe Lavra and the hillsKhreshchatyk, the main street of Kyiv, lined with treesNeighbourhood guideKhreshchatyk & the hillsThe main street and the parksThe yellow façade of St Volodymyr’s CathedralNeighbourhood guideThe Opera & the boulevardsOpera, museums, cathedral
  1. Neighbourhood guideThe Dnipro & the islandsThe river

Practical

Before you go

The official advice, the train in from Poland, air alerts and shelters, the curfew, and itineraries that fit a wartime day.

The main hall of Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi railway stationBefore you goKyiv essentialsAdvice, entry, alerts and the curfewThe vaulted hall of Zoloti Vorota metro station, with its chandeliersGetting aroundGetting to and around KyivThe train from Poland and the metroSt Sophia’s Cathedral with its green and golden domes, seen from the bell towerItineraryKyiv in two daysSt Sophia’s, Podil, the Lavra and the OperaAn avenue of trees on Volodymyrska HillItineraryThe old town in a dayFrom the Golden Gate to PodilSt Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery and its bell tower above Mykhailivska SquareLuxury guideLUX LivingThe finest addresses

Plan the mornings

Museums close during air alerts and performances pause: put the great sights in the morning and keep the afternoon loose.

  1. ItineraryThe Gold weekendThe Fairmont and the Opera
  2. ItineraryThe Platinum weekendThe InterContinental and the Khanenko

Our advice

Know your shelter before you need it

Choose a hotel that names its shelter, keep the Air Alert app on your phone, and carry your passport, some hryvnia and a power bank. Kyiv essentials

Day trips

Beyond Kyiv, by train

West by train to Lviv’s old town, and the rail gateways of Warsaw and Budapest, each with its own ULTIMATE guide.

The Lviv Theatre of Opera and BalletBeyond KyivLvivThe old town of the westThe old town of Przemyśl, the border station for trains to KyivBeyond KyivWarsaw by railThe gatewayThe Podil embankment at dawn, with the Fairmont Grand Hotel and St Andrew’s Church above the riverBeyond KyivBudapest by railTo the Danube

In depth

In depth: Kyiv’s back stories

The city of golden domes, the table from borshch to the Crimean Tatar kitchen, the theatres that never closed, the grand hotels, the train in and what a buyer should know: the stories behind Kyiv.

Borshch with sour cream and dill, served in a bread bowlThe back storyKyiv at the tableBorshch and the Crimean Tatar kitchenThe National Opera of Ukraine on Volodymyrska StreetThe back storyKyiv’s artsThe theatres that never closedThe façade of InterContinental KyivThe back storyWhere Kyiv sleepsThe river, the old town, the boulevards

At the table

Eat early: restaurants close before the night curfew, and lunch is when Kyiv’s kitchens are calmest.

  1. The back storyGetting to KyivThe train from Poland

Our advice

Give the Lavra a whole morning

Come early, dress for the churches, with shoulders and knees covered and a headscarf for women, and climb the Great Bell Tower for the river. The Lavra

The ULTIMATE letter

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