Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020

Easter celebration in Kiev

Country forums / Eastern Europe & the Caucasus / Ukraine

A friend of mine and I are planning to go to Kiev during the Easter holidays in the beginning of April. We're wondering how Kiev is during the holidays. We don't know anyone in the city and we are intrested in visting museums, go shopping, eating out etc rather than to join some hardcore Easter celebrations. Does anyone know how stores, museums and restaurants are open during Easter and whether the city is worth visting during the holiday?

Thanks!

Streets are usually less clogged with cars during the holidays and weekends, however a lots of people are walking on the streets (if weather is good enough). So public places such as restaurants, cinemas etc will be open, this includes the majority of museums. Don't know what you mean by "hardcore Easter celebrations", though. Taking a look at major churches from outside and inside is definitely worth doing (especially Peverskaya Lavra, Mikhaylovsky and Sofia Cathedrals). This won't take much time and may be interesting.

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Are you talking about Orthodox Easter or Catholic/Protestant Easter as these festivals are normally on different days (although now and then they are in the same weekend).
Orthodox Easter is the most important day in the Orthodox calender and museums will be closed bars and retsaurants will mostly be open though

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Aquatarkus, taking a look at churches and other landmarks of Kiev is on our priority list, we just want to find out whether shops/restaraunts/museums etc in downtown are closed during the holiday and most of the inhabitants of Kiev are celebrating the festivities at home. Since we don't know anybody in Ukraine we want to visit Kiev cause the landmarks, the restaurants, the museums - and the shopping! :)

TheDevil - this year the Orthodox Easter and Catholic/Protestant Easter are on the same weekend.

Thank you for the answers, we will continue the investigation.

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this year the Orthodox Easter and Catholic/Protestant Easter are on the same weekend.

Correct...you have no worries on that score this year...

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