Attractions of Kyiv region

The National Cultural, Art and Museum Complex "Art Arsenal" (Mystetskyi Arsenal) in Kyiv is a leading Ukrainian cultural institution that integrates various types of art - from contemporary art, new music and theater to literature and museum work. Founded in 2005 on the initiative of President Victor Yushchenko.

The museum is located in the complex of historic buildings of the Old Arsenal opposite the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. This is the best preserved building of the Old Pechersk Fortress of the XVIII century, which later became the citadel of the New Pechersk Fortress. The large two-storey rectangular building was erected in 1784-1801 by the military engineer Carl de Chardon from yellow Kyiv bricks without external plastering, which is why contemporaries called the Arsenal porcelain. Also preserved is part of the main fortress wall with bastions, Vasylkiv and Moscow gates, two powder cellars. From the beginning of the XIX century the Arsenal was at the disposal of the Kiev military garrison, during the XX century the military unit was located here, the defensive Kiev repair plant worked.

Since 2005, the restoration and transformation of the monument of architecture and military engineering into a modern cultural and artistic space has been carried out. So far, less than half of the total exhibition area, reaching 60,000 square meters, is used for exhibitions of contemporary art and various art events.

In the future, the Art Arsenal will become a progressive museum complex that will present the history of Ukrainian art from ancient times to the present and will host collections of masterpieces from the world's leading museums. Now there is a Small Gallery, which presents young Ukrainian art, as well as chamber projects of leading domestic artists. The largest annual event is the Book Arsenal International Festival.

According to the project "Inclusive Travels in Ukraine: accessibility of museums of Ukraine", this largest cultural, artistic and museum complex in Ukraine is successfully implementing a program to increase inclusiveness.

The memorial in honor of the heroes of the military offensive operation "Bukryn bridgehead" (1943), built on the site of the ancient Rus Hillfort of Chuchyn, which was first mentioned in chronicles in the 11th century.

In princely times, there was a fortress here that controlled the surroundings, and a port on the Dnipro. Remains of shafts up to 4 meters high have been preserved, partial reconstruction has been carried out. A monument to Boyan - the author of "Words about Ihor's campaign" was erected.

In 1943, during the operation to liberate Kyiv, the Soviet troops, at the cost of terrible losses, forced the Dnipro in this area and captured an 11-kilometer bridgehead, twice tried to launch an attack on Kyiv, but failed both times. The conditions of the terrain, which complicated the offensive actions of the troops, especially the tank army, were not taken into account. Losses in manpower were colossal.

According to the most conservative estimates, 250,000 Soviet soldiers died at the Bukryn Bridgehead. This episode is considered one of the bloodiest in the entire Second World War.

The "Mezhyhirya" national significance park-monument of landscape gardening art was officially created in 2023 on the basis of the Mezhyhirya government residence - a former suburban residential complex in Novi Petrivtsi near Kyiv, which gained scandalous fame during the tenure of the ex-president Viktor Yanukovych and became the most famous symbol of corruption in Ukraine.

The residence was founded in 1935 on the site of the ancient Mezhyhirya Transfiguration Monastery, founded in the 12th century. During Soviet times, all monastic buildings were demolished, and in their place a recreation complex with the country house of the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine, popularly known as "Dacha Shcherbytskoho", was placed.

In 2002, "Mezhyhirya" became the residence of Viktor Yanukovych, who was then the Prime Minister of Ukraine. After becoming president, Yanukovych privatized the residence with an area of 137 hectares and launched large-scale construction here through the use of false structures. The complex includes: the club house "Khonka" (the main palace), the old house of Yanukovych, a guest house ("Putin's House"), the "Galeon" landing stage, a sports complex, a spa center, a golf club, a yacht club, a garage with a collection cars, a zoo, a dog center, a huge park with artificial lakes, and more.

After the overthrow of the Yanukovych regime and the ex-president's flight to Russia in 2014, access to the "Mezhyhirya" residence was open to all. For almost ten years, the object was in an uncertain status. It was cared for by volunteers of the public organization "NPU Mezhyhirya", and they set a fee for visits and excursions. In 2023, the Verkhovna Rada passed a law on the creation of "Mezhyhirya" national significance park-monument of landscape gardening art.

On the territory of the park there are walking tours with a visit to "Khonka" and the health center, sightseeing tours on electric cars. Bicycles can be rented. For an additional fee, you can visit the canine center, where more than 70 dogs are kept, and the retro car museum, where about 40 pieces of machinery (cars, trucks, military equipment, motorcycles) are presented. La petite Ecurie Equestrian Club offers horse riding lessons and carriage rides. There are barbecue and coffee shops on the territory.

The magnificent 19-domed Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv is the oldest architectural monument of Rus, one of the largest Christian churches of its time, a UNESCO world cultural heritage site.

The temple complex of the Sophia Monastery is located in the historical center of Kyiv, on Starokyivska Hill, within the City of Prince Yaroslav.

According to the latest research, Saint Sophia Cathedral was founded by the Kyiv prince Volodymyr the Great in 1011, and it was built no later than 1018. Earlier it was believed that the cathedral was erected in 1037 in honor of the victory of Yaroslav the Wise over the Pechenegs, as indicated in the Tale of Bygone Years. A grandiose building for those times with a very complex structure was built by Byzantine craftsmen on the model of the Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Constantinople.

The temple acquired the current Ukrainian Baroque style during the reign of Hetman Ivan Mazepa as a result of the reconstruction initiated by Metropolitan Petro Mohyla, carried out in the 17th century by the Italian architect Oktaviano Manchini. The interiors have preserved priceless ancient Rus mosaics and frescoes, including the iconic mosaic image of the Mother of God of Oranta.

Saint Sophia Cathedral was the main temple of the Kyiv state, under its arches ceremonial entrances to the grand prince's throne, church cathedrals and receptions took place. Buried in the church are Prince Yaroslav the Wise, his wife Iryna (Ingigerda) and son Vsevolod with his family, Prince Volodymyr Monomakh, and many Kyiv metropolitans. A valuable source of historical information is numerous ancient graffiti, which can be considered an unofficial chronicle of the Saint Sophia Cathedral and the entire Rus-Ukraine of the 11th-18th centuries.

Today the National Reserve "Sophia of Kyiv" unites 77 architectural monuments. Around the cathedral there are monastic buildings of the 17th-18th centuries: the house of the metropolitan, the fraternal building, a bursa, a refectory, a bakery, cells and a hotel. The complex is surrounded by a wall with Zaborovskiy gates and a southern entrance tower. The bell tower, which serves as the main gate, is open to the public.

On the square in front of the bell tower, there is the grave of Volodymyr, Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate, who was buried at the entrance to Sophia on Black Tuesday, July 18, 1995 after a violent clash between believers and police.

There is also a tactile model of the cathedral with relief plaques in front of the entrance. The reserve is made more accessible thanks to an inclusive information center.

Separate objects of the reserve are the Golden Gate, Saint Andrew's Church and Saint Cyril's Church in Kyiv, the Genoese Fortress in Crimea.

The building of the Karaite Kenasa was built in Kyiv in 1900 by the architect Vladyslav Horodetskyi at the expense of the "tobacco kings" Kohens.

The construction of the kenasa was ordered by the Kyiv community of Karaites, who are considered to be descendants of the ancient Khazars (Turks by origin, Jews by religion). The Kohens were the most influential representatives of the city's Karaite community.

The kenasa building is made in an unusual Moorish style. It was considered one of the most beautiful in the city, impressive with the luxury of decoration and the skill of execution. The exterior finish is made of the most progressive material at that time - cement. The walls are 1.5 meters thick at the base. The building was crowned by a dome with a spire.

In Soviet times, the kenasa building housed a puppet theater, a cinema, and since 1981 - the Actor's House.

The Actor's House hosts performances and concerts, presentations of magazines and books, creative evenings, anniversary celebrations and benefits, scientific conferences, and art exhibitions.

Fragments of the ancient Rus settlement Vasyliv earthworks have been preserved on the hill to the west of the Cathedral of Anthony and Theodosius.

The current city of Vasylkiv was founded in 988 by Prince Volodymyr the Great, who received the name Vasyl at baptism. The old name of the city Vasyliv (Vasylyev) comes from the Christian name of the prince. It was a well-fortified fortress with earthen ramparts and ditches, often used as a stronghold in times of strife. The city was destroyed by the Mongols in 1240. Remains of an ancient wooden temple and princely palace were found on the territory of the cub.

Later, the settlement of Vasyliv was included in the system of Cossack fortifications of the 16th and 17th centuries. The remains of ramparts can be traced throughout the city center. The best preserved is the rampart behind the cathedral, the crest of which can be climbed by stairs from the temple courtyard.

The historic Andriyivsky Uzviz Street has long been connecting the Upper Town with Podil.

The rough stone-paved road winds steeply between old one- and two-story houses. This is a colorful place that preserves the spirit of old Kyiv, favored by artists and souvenir sellers, and there are always many tourists here.

In the upper part of Andriyivsky Uzviz there is Saint Andrew's Church, below are museums, theaters, art galleries, antique shops, restaurants and cafes.

The Bulhakov Museum is open in the Turbiny House (Andriyivsky descent, 13), where the writer created the White Guard. A monument to Bulhakov has been erected near the museum.

"Castle of Richard the Lionheart" (Andriyivsky descent, 15) is a profitable house of the merchant Orlov in the English Neo-Gothic style. Opposite - the stairs to the top of the Castle Hill (the wooden castle stood during the Polish-Lithuanian rule in the XV-XVII centuries).

The Museum of One Street is located in building No. 2B on Andriyivsky Uzviz.

The building of the synagogue in Pereyaslav was built at the beginning of the 20th century. This is the only surviving Jewish religious building in the city, although at the end of the 19th century, half of the population of Pereyaslav consisted of Jews.

Since Soviet times, the building housed the Bohdan Khmelnytskyi Art Products Factory, which produced handmade woven and embroidered products (towels, embroidered shirts, etc.). Tours were held. Finished products could be purchased directly at the factory.

On November 1, 2024, the Bohdan Khmelnytskyi Art Products Factory ceased operations.

A small one-story house on Oleksandrivska Street (now Petra Sahaydachnoho Street) belonged to the Balabukh merchant family from a long time ago.

Balabukh became famous thanks to the production of candies from the signature "Kyiv dry jam" (candy), which were called "balabukhs" or "balabushkas". These delicacies were supplied even to the imperial court.

Judging by the location in relation to the streets, the Balabukh house was built before the fire of 1811. In 1839, a new two-story building in the style of late classicism with features of the Ukrainian Baroque, built according to the project of the architect Lyudvik Stanzani, appeared nearby, in which a pastry shop worked.

During Soviet times, the restaurant "Zaporizhzhia" (now the restaurant "Khachapuri and Wine") opened in the Balabukh estate. In the beautiful square between the houses, sculptures of a Cossack and a kobzar are installed.

The monument to the Baptism of Rus (Column Magdeburg Law) on the Dnipro embankment is the first monument in Kyiv.

It was installed in 1802 over a spring that once existed in Khreshchaty Yar at the foot of Volodymyr Hill, where, according to legend, Prince Volodymyr baptized his children. Since the reason for its construction was the confirmation by Tsar Oleksandr I of the Magdeburg Law of Kyiv-Podil, the monument is also called the "Column of the Magdeburg Law".

According to the plan of the architect Andrit Melenskyi, the monument was originally a two-story chapel with a golden dome. An octagonal pool with a fountain was located in the arched pedestal. During Soviet times, the dome was demolished, leaving only arched passages, but by the millennium of the Baptism of Rus, which was celebrated in 1988, the column with the dome and the cross was restored.

The monument is connected to the upper part of the Volodymyrsky Descent by steep stairs.

The beautiful building with many spiers belonged to the Baltic baron Volodymyr Ikskull-Hildenband (his coat of arms is preserved above the double arch of the front entrance and entrance).

It was built in 1901 according to the project of civil engineer Mykola Vyshnevsky as a profit house, designed in the Gothic style. During the Second World War, the wooden parts burned down, and the Gothic spiers were lost. After the war, the building was renovated, changing the layout. The main details of the facade and a beautiful stylish lobby (it can be seen in one of the episodes of the film "His Excellency's Adjutant") have survived.

In recent years, the Baron Ikskull-Hildenband House was reconstructed again, according to the author's drawings that have survived, the spiers were restored, and an extension was added to the yard.

The monument to Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytskyi is one of the oldest and most outstanding city monuments, a business card of Kyiv.

The idea of its installation belongs to professor Mykhaylo Maksymovych, historian Mykola Kostomarov, poet Mykhaylo Yuzefovych and artist Mykhaylo Mykeshin, who convinced Tsar Oleksandr II to start collecting donations for the monument "to the one who returned the Kiev shrine to the Rus people, who saved, perhaps, Orthodoxy on the banks of the Dnipro".

The multi-figure composition of the monument conceived by Mykeshin had to be greatly simplified for financial and political reasons, excluding anti-Polish and anti-Semitic elements. The idea was embodied in bronze by sculptors Pius Velionskyi and Artemiy Ober.

The city authorities decided to place the monument on Sofiyivska Square, where in 1648 the people of Kyiv met the Cossack regiments led by Khmelnitsky, who entered the city after the victory over the Polish nobility. Eight years were spent on disputes about the place of installation and placement of the monument, as a result of which the hetman began to "threaten" with his mace not Warsaw, but somewhere in the direction of Moscow. Only in 1886, the architect Volodymyr Mykolayiv began the construction of a pedestal from granite blocks that remained after the construction of the pillars of the Lantsyuhovy Bridge.

The opening of the monument took place on the day of the 900th anniversary of the baptism of Rus.

After the Bolshevik coup of 1917, the inscription on the pedestal "We want an Eastern, Orthodox tsar" and "Bohdan Khmelnytskyi, one indivisible Russia" were replaced by one laconic one: "Bohdan Khmelnytskyi. 1888."

Since that time, the square around the monument has repeatedly become the scene of important social and political events, both in the revolutionary times of the beginning of the 20th century and now - usually, rallies and demonstrations of national patriots are held here.

The city park was created in Bucha in 2011. This is one of the youngest and most picturesque landscape parks of the Kyiv region.

Bucha city park in the English style is spread over an area of ​​42 hectares. At the entrance, visitors are greeted by an elegant rotunda and a huge oak tree. There are many sculptures and installations in the area with lakes and fountains, neat paths and luxurious flower beds.

Here you can visit a mini-zoo, a skate park, a rope park, a children's town, and a cafe-hut.

Castle Hill (Khoryvytsya) is a historical area of ​​Kyiv associated with the legend of the founders of the city. Along with Shchekavytsya Hill, Starokyivska Hill and Lybid River, Khoryvytsya is one of the main symbols of Kyiv.

According to legend, when the first Kyiv prince Kyi founded Kyiv Castle on Starokyivska Hill, his brother Khoryv built his city on the nearby Khoryvytsya Hill. Traditionally, Khoryvytsya is identified with the mountain that is now known as Castle Hill (Kyselivka), although according to another version, Khoryvytsya should be called the current mountain Yurkovytsya.

At the end of the 14th century, when Podil became the center of Kyiv, a wooden castle of the Lithuanian voivode was built on Castle Hill. In 1482, it was burned by the Tatars, but it was soon restored, and at the end of the 16th century it became the residence of the Polish voivode. The mountain began to be called Kyselivka in the middle of the 17th century after the Kyiv voivode Adam Kysil. The castle had 15 towers, its area was 16 thousand square meters. In 1651, the Ukrainian Cossacks burned down the castle, and since then it has not been restored.

In the 19th century, Castle Hill was transferred to the Florivsky Monastery, and a cemetery appeared on it. Now this place is popular with representatives of informal youth movements and followers of pagan cults. Reconstruction of the castle and the creation of a museum complex are planned.

The Central Kyiv Synagogue was built in 1897-1898 at the expense of a large sugar factory, Lazar Brodsky, and informally bears his name.

The design of the synagogue in the Moorish style was developed by architect George Shleifer. The building functioned as a Jewish religious center for three decades. In Soviet times, a puppet theater was located here. Since 1992, the service has been resumed.

A small museum has been created in the hall of the Brodsky synagogue - here you can see a Hanukkah by the famous Israeli sculptor Frank Meisler, a fragment of a Torah scroll of the II-V centuries, a copy of the key from the opening of the synagogue in 1898, old books, stacks, tefillin, mezuzahs, candlesticks.