Attractions of Ternopil region

The "Optymistychna" cave is the largest gypsum cave in the world (the length of the investigated part is more than 240 kilometers) and the third largest karst cave (after "Mamontova" in the USA and Sac-Actun in Mexico).

It is located southwest of the village of Korolivka. It was opened in 1965 by Lviv speleologists from the "Cyclops" club.

"Optymistychna" was called as a joke, because at first the colleagues evaluated the pioneers' chances of success very low and called them "optimists".

The cave is horizontal, the labyrinth of passages runs at a depth of 60-80 meters, the passageways are sometimes narrow and covered with clay. 10 relatively isolated cave areas were studied, which differ in the morphology of the passages, the color and structure of gypsum, the number and shape of crystals. There are stalactites and helictites.

Tourists can visit the "Optimistichna" cave only with special equipment accompanied by an experienced speleologist instructor.

In 2012, an art museum and a museum of secondary formations were opened in the cave.

The monastery is located on the southern outskirts of Terebovlia, on a high hill in the suburb of Pidhora. Known since the 17th century.

The defensive monastery of the Basilian order was surrounded by a stone wall with four corner towers, three of which have been preserved. There was also a three-tiered tower over the gate. Adjacent to the entrance gate is a one-story monastery building with a church attached to it.

The Pidhora monastery ceased to exist in 1789. The monastery church was used as a parish church for some time. During the First World War, the church was destroyed, and the monastery complex has been deteriorating ever since.

However, in 1993, the parishioners of the villages of Zelenche and Pidhora under the guidance of priest Yaroslav Strilka started the first Greek Catholic services in the former church of the Basilian Fathers, and in 1999 they restored the Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist (16th century).

The Plebanivka Railway  bridge-viaduct, also known as the Terebovlian bridge, attracts attention with its high arches at the entrance to Terebovlia from the Chernivtsi side.

The nine-arch stone railway bridge was built in 1896 during the construction of the Ternopil - Kopychyntsi railway.

The bridge, constructed by Austrian engineers, has been well preserved to this day and continues to be used for its intended purpose.

The small country palace of the Potocki magnates, who in the 19th century owned the neighboring Berezhany, was built on the site of the Synyavskys' old hunting lodge.

At different times, guests of the estate were Prince Ferents Rakotsi, Hetman Ivan Mazepa, Tsar Peter I.

The current palace building in Rai, rebuilt at the beginning of the 19th century, is located on the territory of an abandoned landscape park.

For a long time, the premises were occupied by a children's sanatorium.

In 2022, the Potocki Palace became a shelter for people affected by Russian military aggression in Ukraine.

The palace and park complex in Mykulyntsi is one of the few examples of Empire style palace architecture preserved in Ukraine.

The palace was founded next to the Mykulyntsi Castle by Lyudvika Potocka in the 1760s. From the original building in the Palladian style (early classicism), the original wings have been preserved, connected to the palace by semicircular galleries.

In the middle of the 19th century, Baron Yan Konopka decided to create a balneological resort at the springs of hydrogen sulphide waters in Mykulyntsi. He thoroughly rebuilt the palace, giving it stricter features of late classicism (empire). The park facade of the building is decorated with an eight-pillar portico of the Corinthian order. From here, the landscape park descends steeply to the river, and the ruins of the castle adjoin it to the left. The front part of the palace is highlighted by a risalite with four wooden sculptures of Atlanteans and opens onto a regular parterre.

The last owner of the Mykulyntsi Palace was Countess Yuzefa Rey.

Currently, the Mykulyntsi Regional Physiotherapy Hospital is located here.

The cult complex in the village of Rukomysh arose around the cave temple of the Holy Sepulchre, founded in the 13th century by Kyiv monks who came here after the destruction of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

The basis for the temple was a natural cave in the travertine rock, which was further expanded. Next to the temple there are several smaller grottoes-cells, cut out of the rock by hand.

Later, the monks moved to Buchach, where they founded a new monastery, and only a few elders remained in Rukomysh.

In 1768, the Saint Onuphrius Church was built at the foot of the rock. It houses a unique wooden sculpture of Saint Onuphrius by the outstanding sculptor Ivan Heorhiy Pinzel, discovered here by chance.

The complex also includes a pool for sanctifying water and a Stations of the Cross with several chapels.

Borshchiv's most prominent building is located in the center, in the pedestrian zone.

The Ukrainian society "Rusky People's House" was founded in 1908 on the initiative of lawyer Mykhaylo Dorundyak and professor Mykhaylo Hrushevsky. At the same time, a building with two towers in the form of domes, typical of Rus Orthodox architecture, was built at the expense of the public according to the project of Galician architect Vasyl Nahirny.

The "Rusky People's House" was the center of development of ancient Ukrainian (Rusyn, not Russian) culture, which is reflected in the name. An honorary member of the "People's House" was Mykhaylo Hrushevsky, who often visited Borshchiv and monitored the construction.

Currently, it is also the cultural center of the city - there is a museum of local history, as well as a museum of Taras Shevchenko with an art gallery - the first in the western part of Ukraine. In particular, the exhibition presents the famous borscht embroidery in black and white.

A cascade of waterfalls on the small river Rusylivska, which flows into Strypa near the village of Rusyliv.

In total, there are 20 waterfalls with a height of 1.5 to 12 meters in a three-kilometer canyon hidden in a forest grove. The total height of the cascade is 150 meters.

The beauty and variety of forms of the cascade are complemented by the bright colors of the local nature: dark red soil, green leaves, a huge number of colorful butterflies and dragonflies.

The romantic Rusyliv Falls compete for beauty with the similar scenery of the Plitvice Lakes in Croatia.

The Roman Catholic Church of Saint Anna was built in Tovste in 1912 according to the project of the architect Teodor Maryan Talovsky on the site of the Roman Catholic monastery founded in 1717.

During Soviet times, the Church of Saint Anna was closed, the premises were used for economic purposes.

During the years of Ukraine's independence, Church of Saint Anna was returned to the Catholic community, and restoration is underway.

The beautiful neo-Gothic church of Saint Anna in Ozeriany was built in 1875 by Prince Leon Sapieha.

The project was developed by the Viennese architect Adolf Kuhn, the author of the Sapiehas Palace in Lviv. The exquisite portal is decorated with rich decor. The coats of arms of the Sapiehas have been preserved on the facade.

After the Second World War, the premises of the temple were used as a warehouse.

Currently, the church of Saint Anna has been returned to the Catholic community of Ozeriany. Its high silhouette is clearly visible above the surrounding buildings, from which side you would approach the village.

The huge church of Saint Anthony, which is the central building of the Bernardine monastery, is clearly visible from the castle hill.

The monastery was founded by Prince Yuriy Zbarazky in 1627, the construction of the original complex was completed in the 1650s by the efforts of Yanush Korybut-Vyshnivetskyi and his wife Yevheniya. In its current Renaissance-baroque form, the church was rebuilt in 1723-1755 at the expense of the Kyiv voivode Yuzef Potoski (architect Yan Hants). A philosophical school, then a gymnasium, and a hospital worked at the monastery.

During Soviet times, the complex was abandoned, but in 1990 it was returned to the Bernardine family. Restoration is underway, services are held.

The interior contains altars with sculptures by Anton Osinsky (18th century), fragments of frescoes from the 18th-19th centuries.

The Catholic Church of Saint Anthony' and Our Lady of the Holy Rosary in Strusiv was built in 1894 at the expense of Yuzef Holukhovsky, the owner of Strusiv at that time.

In 1902, this temple was consecrated under the title of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary. Construction was conducted under the leadership of Jan Lesyk and was completed in 1903. From 1945 to 1990, the Soviet authorities used the sanctuary as a granary.

A beautiful neo-Gothic building stretches to the sky with a high tower, which is crowned with a cross. There are two smaller towers on its sides. On both sides of the main entrance to the church there is a beautiful window in the shape of a rose. Gothic windows, tall and beautiful, decorate the building. In the highest tower of the temple there are a large and a small bell.

The ornate facade of the Saint Anthony's Church is decorated with pointed conical tops rising with thin crosses, as well as a three-tiered tower in which the central entrance to the church is located in the form of an arch. Today, the Saint Anthony's Church is in good condition and is an active temple.

The Church of Saint Anthony was built in the village of Losiachin the late 19th and early 20th centuries (according to other sources - in 1889) at the expense of the Holukhovsky family.

The Neo-Gothic style temple has a high pointed bell tower that dominates the surrounding landscape.

During Soviet times, the building of the Church of Saint Anthony was used as a warehouse. In 1990, the church was returned to the Losiach Catholic community.

The Roman Catholic Church of Saint Charbel was built in Baikivtsi in 1936 at the expense of the wealthy Fredberg and Nesolovsky families.

The temple in the Art Nouveau style is built of stone in the shape of a cross. An elegant belfry with a tented roof rises above the bevel. The entrance to the church is decorated with a portico with columns.

The Church of Saint Charbel is an architectural monument of local importance.

The Roman Catholic Church of Saint John Nepomuk in Turylche was built in 1871 at the expense of Count Yan Starzhensky, although the village at that time belonged to the landowners Ivanovsky.

The slender building of the church is made in the Neo-Gothic style. Statues of the apostles Peter and Paul are installed in niches on the facade on the sides of the main entrance, which is why the church is sometimes called Peter and Paul Church.

During the times of Soviet power, an agricultural warehouse was located in the premises of the Saint John Nepomuk Church.

A carved altar with a crucifix and apostles on the sides has been preserved inside. Currently, the church does not function.