Must see attractions in Kyiv

  • Top Choice

    St Sophia's Cathedral

    The interior is the most astounding aspect of Kyiv's oldest standing church. Many of the mosaics and frescoes are original, dating back to 1017–31, when…

  • Top Choice

    Kyevo-Pecherska Lavra

    Tourists and Orthodox pilgrims alike flock to the Lavra, set on 28 hectares of grassy hills above the Dnipro River in Pechersk. It's easy to see why…

  • Top Choice

    Maidan Nezalezhnosti

    Be it celebration or revolution, whenever Ukrainians want to get together – and they often do – 'Maidan' is the nation's meeting point. The square saw pro…

  • Top Choice

    St Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery

    Looking from St Sophia's past the Bohdan Khmelnytsky statue, it's impossible to ignore the gold-domed blue church at the other end of proyizd Volodymyrsky…

  • Top Choice

    Skvorechnik

    It's hard to characterise this beachfront hippie haven on Trukhaniv Island. It derives its name from the smattering of raised wooden chill-out huts that…

  • Top Choice

    PinchukArtCentre

    The rotating exhibits at this world-class gallery feature elite names in the world of European contemporary art and design, all financed by billionaire…

  • Rodina Mat

    As you journey into Kyiv from the airport, at some point this giant statue of a female warrior will loom up on the horizon and make you wonder, 'What the…

  • Mezhyhirya

    Kyiv's newest tourist attraction is Mezhyhirya, the estate that once 'belonged' to ex-president and wannabe Ukrainian dictator, Viktor Yanukovych,…

  • Izolyatsia

    Izolyatsia is a self-described platform for cultural initiatives and contemporary culture occupying an old shipyard in north Podil. Originally from…

  • Khanenko Museum of Arts

    This museum's 'Western Art' wing houses Kyiv's most impressive collection of European paintings, with Bosch, Velázquez and Rubens among the many masters…

  • Khreshchatyk

    Kyiv's main drag is named after a river, which these days runs underneath, enclosed in an underground pipe. Getting gussied up and strolling Khreshchatyk…

  • Andriyivsky Uzviz

    According to legend, a man walked up the hill here, erected a cross and prophesied, 'A great city will stand on this spot.' That man was the Apostle…

  • St Andrew's Church

    The gold-and-blue baroque masterpiece that dominates the view as you walk up Andriyivsky uzviz was built in 1754 by Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli…

  • Babyn Yar

    On 29 September 1941, Nazi troops rounded up Kyiv's 34,000-strong Jewish population, marched them to the Babyn Yar ravine and massacred them. Victims were…

  • Pyrohiv Museum of Folk Architecture

    Some 300 traditional structures, some dating back to the 16th century, have been transplanted form various parts of Ukraine to this open-air folk museum…

  • Chornobyl Museum

    It's hard to convey the full horror of the world's worst nuclear accident, but the Chornobyl Museum makes a valiant attempt. It is not so much a museum as…

  • House of Chimeras

    Many of the 'chimeras' that adorn the awning of Kyiv's weirdest building are depictions of architect Władysław Horodecki's hunting trophies – antelope,…

  • Great Patriotic War Museum

    Located at the base of the towering Rodina Mat, this museum was built belatedly in 1981 to honour Kyiv's defenders during the Great Patriotic War (as WWII…

  • National Museum of Ukrainian History

    Located more or less at the spot where history began for Kyiv, this huge museum has been fully modernised in recent years and represents a fantastic…

  • Bulgakov Museum

    The much-loved author of The Master and Margarita lived in this house between 1906 and 1919 – long before writing his most famous book. The house became…