Attractions of Lviv region

The wooden church of the Holy Great Martyr Panteleymon in Skole is said to have been founded in 1597 as the church of Saint Paraskeva.

Built by masters of the Boykyv school, three square log cabins are covered with four-sided tents. A special feature of the church's architecture is the two-tier solution of the babinets, which has a frame structure at the top of the walls, which brings it closer to some landmarks of the Boykyv type in Transcarpathia.

The square two-story bell tower was added in 1760.

During the Soviet rule, a museum of folk architecture was opened in the premises of the temple.

Today it is an active church of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Lviv Aquapark "Plyazh" is one of the largest indoor water recreation complexes in Ukraine, capable of receiving 1,000 visitors at the same time.

On an area of 14,000 square meters, there is a 50-meter sports pool, an entertainment area with 9 water slides of different lengths and levels of difficulty, a children's area with a small pool and small slides.

Recreational and game lessons on the water, children's fitness and therapeutic gymnastics classes are held for children.

In the recreation area there is a Turkish bath and a jacuzzi, and two bars. Aerobics, fitness, dance and other classes are held. The complex also includes a solarium, a fitness center, a bistro, and an Internet cafe.

There is convenient parking.

The historical and memorial complex "Prison on Stryiska" was opened in 2013 in the former torture chamber of the NKVD, which was located in the inner courtyard of the District Court building in Drohobych.

During the Second World War and in the first years of the Soviet occupation, at least 1,200 residents of Drohobychchyna were tortured and shot here.

The former building of the Imperial District Court in Drohobych is one of the most beautiful in Drohobych, but at the same time it is a symbol of totalitarianism and repression of the four occupation regimes. The three-story building in the historicist style was erected at the beginning of the 20th century, becoming one of the largest courts in Galicia. In addition to 20 judges, there was a court office and a temporary prison. In the interwar period, the Polish authorities placed a city court here.

The same premises were also used as a court during the German occupation of 1941-1944. But the most terrible glory of the "Drohobych torture house" was acquired in the years 1939-1941 and 1944-1959, when the Drohobych Directorate of the NKVD was located here with an internal prison, where local residents were tortured and shot en masse.

Currently, it is the building of the Institute of Physics, Mathematics, Economics and Innovative Technologies of the Drohobych State Pedagogical University.

In 2013, on the site of the former torture chamber, the memorial "Prison on Stryiska" was created according to the project of Drohobych architect Maksym Chirka, and a museum, which is a subdivision of the Drohobychchyna Museum, was opened.

The exhibition tells about Stalin's terror and repression in the western Ukrainian lands: the occupation and establishment of Soviet power in Drohobych region, the creation of Drohobych region, the repression of the NKVD-NKGB in Drohobych region. A photo-martyrologist of NKVD-NKGB victims is presented. The review of the personal belongings of the tortured, instruments of murder and torture, found during the research of the territory of the former torture chamber, causes special excitement.

The column of Adam Mitskevych is one of two monuments to the outstanding Polish poet created in Ukraine for his centenary (the other is in Ivano-Frankivsk).

The idea of the monument project as a column was proposed by the writer Adam Krekhovetskyi. The ceremonial laying of the first stone in the pedestal on Mariatska Square (now Adam Mitskevych Square) took place on the day of Mitskevych's century in 1898.

The construction of the monument lasted five years, it was opened on October 30, 1904. It is considered one of the best monuments to Mitskevych in the world.

The Church of All Saints in the village of Hodovytsia was built in 1751-1758 by the prominent Lviv architect of Italian origin, Bernard Meretyn.

Lviv Archdeacon Stefan Mikulsky provided the funds for the construction. This is one of the projects on which Meretyn worked together with the famous sculptor Ivan Pinzel. The sculptor made an altar, some sculptures of which are now on display in the Pinzel Museum in Lviv and in the Olesko Castle. Paintings by the artist Oleksandr Rolinsky have been preserved in the interior. The baroque pediment of the church is decorated with characteristic decorative stone vases.

Later, the church in Hodovytsia served as prototypes for several more churches in the "Meretyn" style, which were created according to the architect's typical projects. The crucifix and the miraculous image of Mary with the baby were exported to Poland.

Meanwhile, the Church of All Saints in Hodovytsia has been abandoned since Soviet times and is gradually falling into disrepair.

National Museum in Lviv named after Andrey Sheptytsky presents an outstanding collection of works of Ukrainian national culture and art.

More than 175,000 exhibits reflect the evolution of Ukrainian art culture over nine centuries. Of particular value is the collection of sacred art of the XII-XVIII centuries.

The institution was founded in 1905 by the Greek Catholic Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky as the "Church Museum", in 1913 it was solemnly donated to the Ukrainian people. The work on the organization of the museum was headed by Professor Ilarion Svyentsitsky, Ivan Franko, Mykhaylo Hrushevsky and others took an active part in its development.

In the spacious exhibition halls of the main museum building there is a permanent exhibition of "Ukrainian art of the XII - early XX centuries", presenting the pearls of the national and world art treasury. Among the works of Ukrainian medieval sacred art there are ancient icons: "Yuriy Zmiyeborets" (XIV century), "Archangel Michael with deeds" (XIV century), "Saint Paraskeva Friday" (XIV century), "Virgin Hodegetria" (XV century) and others. The book collections include the Buchach Gospel (13th century), the Pandects of Antiochus (1307), the editions of the first printers Shvaypolt Fiol, Frantsysk Skoryna, Ivan Fedorov, and others. Graphics, sculpture, folk art are also presented.

The departments of the Sheptytsky National Museum are the exposition "Ukrainian Art of the Twentieth Century" in the historical building of the museum, art and memorial museums of Ivan Trush, Oleksa Novakivsky, Olena Kulchytska, Leopold Levytsky, arranged in the former homes and creative workshops of these outstanding Ukrainian artists.

The museum-manor of the family of the Ukrainian poet Bohdan-Ihor Antonych has been operating since 2009 on the territory of the former presbytery in the village of Bortiatyn in the Yavoriv region, where the family of the Greek Catholic priest Vasyl Antonych lived in the first half of the 20th century.

Their son - poet, novelist, translator, literary critic Bohdan-Ihor Antonych, author of the popular carol "God was born on a sleigh" – often came to visit them. By the centenary of his birth, the presbytery was completely restored.

In five spacious rooms there is an exposition created as a branch of the Lviv Museum of the History of Religion. In the center of the exposition is a sculpture of Bohdan-Ihor Antonych, depicted under the dome of a mirror, symbolizing the night sky covered with stars.

The museum's exhibits introduce Antonych's life and creative path, the history of the formation and development of the Greek Catholic Church in Mostyshche region. Among the authentic objects are window frames and doors from the poet's Lviv apartment, personal belongings of the Antonych family, archival photos, books, manuscripts, as well as household items donated to the exhibition by the residents of the village. 

An avenue of sculptures based on Antonych's poems has been created in the yard.

Archaeological Museum of the Institute of Ukrainian Studies named Ivan Krypyakevych of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine has been working in Lviv since 2001.

Located in the historic building of the Shevchenko Scientific Society, that previously led the Ukrainian archaeological research in Galicia.

The museum presents artifacts from the Paleolithic to the late Middle Ages, found in Western Ukraine.

Along with the original artifacts of stone, bone, horn, clay, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, life-size reconstructions of Paleolithic housing methods (more than 50,000 years ago) during the existence of the Trypillya culture (IV-III millennium BC), in the early Slavic period (V-VII centuries AD), the ancient methods of leather processing, drilling of stone axes, making pottery, smelting iron, etc. were reproduced.

In total, more than 2,000 exhibits were presented.

The wooden church of Archangel Michael in the city of Komarno was built in 1754.

One of the best examples of the Galician school of folk architecture. The three-log three-headed temple has undergone several reconstructions, the last of which, carried out in 1965-1967 under the leadership of architect Ivan Mohytych, returned it to its original appearance.

An interesting feature of St. Michael's Church is the east log with archaic tiny niches to the north and south. In the interior there is a monumental painting of the 18th century.

To the west of the church is a three-tier bell tower with a tented finish, the lower tier of which is surrounded by a porch on brackets of the original structure.

Nearby is the new brick church of Saint Michael the Archangel (1910).

The Archcathedral of Saint George (Saint Yura)  in Lviv is one of the most beautiful architectural ensembles of the city, a pearl of the Ukrainian Baroque. The main shrine of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, where the residence of the metropolitans of the UGCC was located for a long time.

The first church on Svyatoyurska Hill in Lviv was founded during the times of the Galicia-Volyn principality. The current temple complex was built in 1744-1770 according to the project of Bernard Meretin, who combined the Rococo style with Ukrainian sacred aesthetics. Sculptures by Ivan Pinzel are installed on the main facade. The bell tower houses the oldest bell in Ukraine (1341). The most valuable relic of the temple is the miraculous icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary (XVII century).

Metropolitans Andriy Sheptytskyi and Volodymyr Sterniuk, Patriarch Yosyp Slipiy are buried in Saint George's Cathedral.

Next to the cathedral is the Metropolitan Palace, where Pope Ivan Paul II stayed in 2001 during his visit to Ukraine.

Since 1998, Saint George's Cathedral, together with the ensemble of the historical center of Lviv, has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The wooden church of Archstrategist Michael was built in 1856 (according to other data - in 1807).

It is located in the center of the village of Volia-Zaderevatska, near the cemetery.

It is characterized by simple forms. Nearby is a small two-story bell tower.

In the Armenian quarter of Lviv, between the streets of Virmenska and Lesi Ukrayinky, there is a cathedral, a bell tower, the palace of the archbishops and a nunnery. The buildings form a colorful "Armenian yard".

The construction was led by the Armenian architect Dorinh (Dorhi) at the expense of Armenian merchants. The image of the cathedral has many common features with the cathedral in the ancient Armenian capital of Ani. Over the centuries, the cathedral was renovated and extended. The oldest part is the eastern part (from the 14th century). Reconstruction in 1723 gave the building a baroque appearance.

In the altar part there are traditional "khachkar" stone crosses. The sculptural groups of the 15th century "The Belief of Khoma" and "Saint Sophia with Daughters" are of significant artistic value.

The building of the City Arsenal of Lviv is one of the preserved parts of the city fortifications of the 16th century.

The first small armory existed in this place at the beginning of the 15th century, but after a fire in 1571 it was demolished and a new two-storey building for the manufacture and storage of weapons was built in 1574-1575. The architects were probably well-known Lviv builders Pavlo Shchaslyvyi and Sebastyan Mochygemba.

On the east side, the Arsenal was adjacent to the High Defensive Wall between the Tokarivska and Shevska towers. There was a bastion in front of the building. Workshops for casting guns and bells and repairing weapons were opened at the arsenal. There was an ammunition depot nearby.

Under Austrian rule in the 18th century, the building was used as an unofficial prison. In particular, it housed the Haidamaks, participants in the Koliivshchyna uprising, as the memorial plaque reminds us.

In 1981, the Arsenal Museum was opened in the premises of the City Arsenal, which represents one of the best weapons collections in the country from 30 countries. The exposition includes ancient Rus and Cossack maces, graceful Arabian sabers, daggers of the peoples of the Caucasus and the Arab East, heavy European two-handed swords, armor of Polish "winged hussars", rifles and pistols with different types of locks, guns with coats of arms and much more. Many monuments are decorated with precious metals, gems, ivory, pearls, coral, mother of pearl. And this is only a small part of the weapons collection of the Lviv Historical Museum, which has about 4.5 thousand units.

The museum has an antique salon.

Visually impaired visitors are offered audio description.

The memorial museum of Les Kurbas in Sambir was opened in 1993 in the house where the future actor and director was born in 1887.

Kurbas was the founder of the national Western Ukrainian theater school and the creator of the famous theater-academy "Berezil".

The museum's collection includes 5,594 items: a bust of Les Kurbas by the sculptor Mykola Posikira, a bas-relief board by the sculptor Emmanuyil Mysko, paintings by Mykhaylo Yaremkiv, Stepan Muryash, Lesya Fryntsko and others.

Selections of theatrical photographs, embroidered napkins, etc. are presented.

The first wooden Catholic church in the village of Navariia near Lviv was built at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries, but it was soon burned down by the Tatars.

The same fate befell the second wooden temple.

Only in 1641-1645 was the stone Ascension Church built at the expense of Elzhbeta Humnytska. The temple was damaged during the Liberation War and in 1739 the shrine was partially dismantled. The money for the reconstruction was allocated by the Venyavskyi family, and in 1740-1748, the prominent Lviv architect with Italian roots, Bernard Meretyn, built a new Ascension Church on the old foundations in the then popular late baroque style. It was probably the first work of the master.

Finishing and decoration with the participation of the artist Antonio Tavelli continued for several more decades. A bell tower was built in 1766.

In 1991, the church, restored after the Soviet period, was re-consecrated as the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and after 2011 it changed its title to Saint Valentine, since the relics of this saint have been kept here since the 17th century.