The Friendship of Nations Monument is a giant metal parabola celebrating the 1654 'unification' of Russia and Ukraine. It's on an elevated plaza with great views of the Dnipro and Kyiv's left (east) bank. Under the arch is a social-realist statue of a Ukrainian (on the left) and a burlier Russian, arms raised in solidarity. Miraculously it has not been defaced, given tensions in the east, but in November 2018 activists added a sticker looking like a crack in the middle of the arch.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
0.7 MILES
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…
1.78 MILES
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…
0.43 MILES
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…
St Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery
0.34 MILES
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…
0.45 MILES
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…
0.98 MILES
The rotating exhibits at this world-class gallery feature elite names in the world of European contemporary art and design, all financed by billionaire…
2.45 MILES
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…
11.14 MILES
Kyiv's newest tourist attraction is Mezhyhirya, the estate that once 'belonged' to ex-president and wannabe Ukrainian dictator, Viktor Yanukovych,…
Nearby Kyiv attractions
0.17 MILES
The Dutch funded the launch of this museum inside a 1980s water pump, but it now operates independently. On the obligatory 45-minute tour (in English by…
2. St Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery
0.34 MILES
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…
3. St Michael's Monastery Museum
0.37 MILES
The fascinating history of the St Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery is explained in great detail (in Ukrainian and English placards) in a museum located in…
0.39 MILES
In a historic neoclassical building designed by Władysław Horodecki, this long-running museum has a wide-ranging collection of Ukrainian paintings…
5. Ministry of Foreign Affairs
0.4 MILES
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was built by the Soviets on the site of the Tryokhsvyatytelska Church, one of Kyiv's holiest edifices, destroyed by Stalin…
0.43 MILES
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…
0.45 MILES
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…
8. Taras Shevchenko Memorial House Museum
0.52 MILES
A beautifully restored, 19th-century wooden house where the man who dominates the Ukrainian literary pantheon once lived. You can see drawings he made on…