Attractions of Ternopil

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Ternopil is an architectural monument of the late European Baroque.

A large Roman Catholic church with two elegant towers was built in 1749-1779 in the historic center of the city according to the project of the architect Avhusta Moschynskyi (according to other sources - Yan de Vitte) on the site of an ancient Rus Orthodox church. At the same time, a two-story cell block of the Dominican monastery was built. Between them is the so-called "Italian courtyard", currently not accessible to tourists.

The Dominican church was badly damaged during the Second World War and was restored in 1953. It was used as a picture gallery of the Ternopil Regional History Museum, and the archive is still located in the monastery building.

In 1992, the building was restored and handed over to the Greek Catholic community. The interiors were not preserved.

A monument to Metropolitan Yosyp Slipiy was erected next to the cathedral, and a monument to Prince Danylo Halytsky in the square opposite the church.

The historical and memorial museum of political prisoners is located in Ternopil in the basement cells of the temporary detention center of the former Ternopil detention center of the NKVD-KGB department.

The exposition tells about the struggle of Ukrainian nationalists against the communist regime, the repressive methods of the Soviet secret services and the lives of convicts in the Gulag camps.

Prison conditions were reproduced in 28 pre-trial detention cells. Visitors can see the dungeon, instruments of torture, clothing and household items of prisoners. Models of the Siberian concentration camp and a "calf" car were also exhibited.

Ternopil Castle was founded in 1540 by the Grand Crown Hetman Yan Tarnovskyi on the site of the ancient Rus settlement of Sopilche (Topilche) to defend the Polish borders from the Tatars.

In the 17th century, the Grand Crown Chancellor Tomash Zamoyskyi significantly expanded the fortifications, but in the following years they were repeatedly destroyed. In particular, the castle was almost completely dismantled by the Turks after the capture of the city in 1672.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Count Frantsishek Korytovskyi built a palace in its place, for which the surviving fortifications, towers and gates were demolished, and the building was surrounded by an ordinary fence. Some castle elements have been preserved.

During the First World War, the palace was burned and was in ruins for a long time. Renovated in 1951, it houses exhibition halls and a training and sports center.

From the street the building looks inconspicuous, but from the side of the lake its fortification character is well visible.

The "Museum of the City of Ternopil" was opened in the dungeons of the castle.

The first museum of retro cars "Retro-Cortege" in Western Ukraine was opened in Ternopil in 2016 on the initiative of entrepreneur Taras Demkur.

More than 20 vintage cars are presented, some of which have an interesting history. In particular, the collection includes a Jaguar car that belonged to US President Richard Nixon, as well as a Maybach from Hitler's Werewolf stake. The oldest car dates back to 1933.

Also presented are restored motorcycles, old radio equipment, a collection of mini cars from different parts of the world, military equipment.

The area of the Aquapark "Alligator" at the hotel entertainment and health complex in Ternopil is 4.2 thousand square meters. It can accommodate 400 visitors at the same time.

The Aquapark has three pools with a depth of 150, 90 and 30 centimeters, 8 water slides for adults and children of different ages with a length of 3 to 33 meters and a height of 1.5 to 10.5 meters. In addition to the water slides, there is a hydromassage area, waterfalls and 2 exciting attractions: "Body Slay" (an intriguing journey through a closed water pipe 86 meters long from a height of 6.5 meters) and "Black Hole" (adrenaline descent through a closed water pipe from a height of 12.5 meters 160 meters long, accompanied by spectacular illuminations and exciting sounds). Other attractions: the "Kamikaze" slide (height 10.5 meters, length 33 meters), the slide "Truba" (height 6.5 meters), the slope "Family hill" (height 4.5 meters and length 20 meters).

The water park complex includes a SPA zone (infra-red sauna, professional massage therapists, Turkish bath hamam).

The hotel complex has a bowling alley, a disco club, a restaurant, billiards, and a fitness club.

The Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ in Ternopil is a surprisingly beautiful temple, one of the best examples of the Podillya architectural school of the 17th century.

The church was built in 1602-1608 by a craftsman named Leontii near the eastern city gate. It acquired a modern appearance as a result of further reconstruction and restoration in 1937.

Now it belongs to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The main shrine is the icon of the Mother of God of Ternopil.

The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (Nadstavna) is the oldest church in Ternopil.

It was built by the founder of the city, crown hetman Jan Tarnovsky, on the site of the ancient Rus temple of the times of King Danylo Halytskyi. The church was located next to the western (Lvivsky) gate of Ternopil above the pond, which is why it received the second name "Nadstavna" or "Church above the pond".

In 1627, the bell tower was completed. Old Rus defensive architectural traditions are used. In 1959, the Exaltation Church was restored.

Belongs to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

The monument to the ancient Rus prince Danylo Halytskyi, the unifier of Western Ukrainian lands, was erected in the center of Ternopil in 2002.

In the middle of the 13th century, Danylo Halytskyi managed to unite in his hands the Galicia-Volyn state, which he inherited from his father Roman Mstyslavych, and in 1254 he became the first king of Rus. He was also the first Rus ruler who was able to defeat the troops of the Golden Horde. Under him, the spread of Western culture and the European type of state and administrative management began in Rus lands.

The author of the equestrian monument to Danylo Halytskyi is the sculptor Bohdan Rudy.

"Heritage" ethno-gallery was founded in Ternopil in 2016 by the family of entrepreneurs Taras and Iryna Demkur on the basis of their private collection of authentic Ukrainian national clothing, embroidered towels, adornment and household items.

The gallery space is located in the "Atrium" business center in the city center. About 5,000 rare examples of applied folk art from all over Ukraine are presented here. These are ethnic Ukrainian costumes, ancient women's adornment, collectible towels, Cossack and painted household icons, clay products, rare documents and much more. There are also artifacts of Trypillya culture, the Cossack era and the liberation movement of Ukraine.

The special pride of the "Heritage" ethno-gallery is the collection of Borshchiv embroidery, embroidered with black threads on white canvas. In 2020, Borshchiv folk embroidery was included in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

It is possible to visit the gallery with a tour.

The Museum of the History of Ternopil Art Vocational College named after Solomiya Krushelnytska has a museum room, which introduces the history of the school since its founding in 1958.

The exposition tells about each department that operates in the school: "Piano", "Orchestral string instruments", "Orchestral wind and percussion instruments", "Folk instruments", "Choral conducting", "Singing", "Music Theory", "Music Theory", Art".

The exposition presents concert costumes of orchestras, choirs and ensembles, ancient musical instruments. Separate stands reveal the achievements of some graduates.

A monument to the Ukrainian writer and public figure Ivan Franko was erected in Ternopil in 1995.

It is located in the square behind the Dominican Church, on the site of the former gymnasium No. 1, where in 1902 the writer met with Ternopil gymnasium students.

Franko visited Ternopil several times, in particular. as a correspondent of the newspaper "Lviv Courier" at the regional ethnographic exhibition. He read "Moses" in the premises of the Municipal Brotherhood (now the Philharmonic), often stopped at the "Podilskyi" hotel on the way to the village of Vikno.

The author of the monument to Ivan Franko in Ternopil is the sculptor Ivan Sonsiadlo.

A complex of three humorous monuments was opened in the center of Ternopil near the Atrium shopping center in 2010 on the Independence Day of Ukraine.

Two of them are devoted to literary works, and the third to employees of communal services. The monument to the 12th chair is inspired by the satirical book "12 Chairs" by Ilf and Petrov. The monument to the invisible man refers to the novel of the same name by Herbert Wells. The plumber's monument is dedicated to the employees of the Ternopil water supply company.

Conceptually, the monuments are united only by the humor of the author of the idea - a Ternopil philanthropist, owner of a shopping center. The author of the works is Ternopil sculptor Dmytro Mulyarchuk.

The Museum of the National Liberation Struggle of Ternopil Region was established in 2019 and unites other museums of the region related to the history of liberation struggles in the region.

The exposition reveals the history of Ukraine's struggle for independence, in particular during the Revolution of Dignity and the Russian-Ukrainian war.

The exhibition "People of Freedom", developed by the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, tells about 26 public figures of the last century, thanks to whose struggle it was possible to restore Ukraine's independence.

The department of the Ternopil Region National Liberation Struggle Museum is the National Liberation OUP-UPA Struggle Museum named after Yakiv Busel in the village of Byshky.

"Science Center Ternopil" was established in 2017 as a public space of science, education and youth initiatives.

Its main goal is to interest schoolchildren and students in self-education and non-formal education through interactive classes and excursions. The center serves as a museum of science with interactive exhibits, a youth space with quality projects and an improvised laboratory.

30 exhibits clearly demonstrate various phenomena of physics, geography and biology. They allow students to observe natural phenomena, see in practice the physical properties of substances, experiment and explore the world.

There is a room for meetings, round tables, workshops, meetings, thematic projects.

The world's first monument to the outstanding opera singer Solomiya Krushelnytska was erected in Ternopil in 2010.

A full-length bronze cast figure of the prim. The monument is 3.8 meters high and weighs 3.5 tons.

The authors of the composition are sculptor Volodymyr Stasyuk (Rivne) and architect Isabella Tkachuk, who worked together with Ternopil artists Danylo Chepil and Anatoliy Vodopyan.

Until now, the memory of the Ukrainian singer, who was born in Ternopil, was immortalized only by busts in Lviv and Milan, where she performed at the La Scala theater.