Meals (—-)
Arrive in Kyiv
Upon arrival, you will be met by your guide at the airport and chauffeured to your centrally located hotel. Check-in.
After some time to rest and unpack your suitcases, your guide we’ll show you around and give you a bunch of local insider information on the best souvenir stores, local restaurants with the most delicious food, and show you places to exchange money as well as ATMs!
Free evening at leisure.
Meals (Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast at the hotel, we’ll embark on a guided City Tour (bus + walking).
We will start from some of Kyiv’s most iconic sites, such as Taras Shevchenko Park and National University of Kyiv. Visit the National Museum of Taras Shevchenko, which collection consists of unique masterpieces: the original drawings made by Shevchenko, the documents about his life and art work, manuscripts of his poems, rare photos of the poet and some of his friends, first printed pieces of his work with his signatures.
Continuing our tour, we will admire the beauty of St. Volodymyr’s Cathedral, the National Opera of Ukraine, the Golden Gates of Kyiv, and St. Sophia’s Cathedral – places which date back to the 10th century! Travellers from Ukraine and abroad come to this pilgrimage place to see 1000-year-old frescoes and mosaics and feel the spirit of tradition. And, finally, St. Michael’s Cathedral, located opposite St. Sophia’s Cathedral, will surely impress you with its sky-blue exterior and glittering golden domes, which add a stunning layer to a cityscape.
After stop for a lunch in traditional Ukrainian restaurant, we will continue our tour to Andriivsky Uzviz (Descent). This meandering, cobblestoned street snakes down a hill from the city center to the historic Podil neighborhood, and is littered with many historic sites – the 18th-century St. Andrew’s Church, and many other museum and art galleries – even a museum about the history of the street! Today it is home to the city’s artisans, craftsmen and vendors – discover all kinds of items on their stalls, from unique pieces, souvenir trinkets to authentic Ukrainian clothing.
The rest of the day is yours to enjoy. We suggest:
Option 1 – Visit the National Art Museum of Ukraine, which represents the most extensive and complete collection of the native Ukrainian art in the world. Museum exhibits masterpieces of Ukrainian painting, sculpture and graphics created in the period of fifteen centuries – from the times of Kyivan Rus until the nowadays. (Last admission: 5pm)
Option 2 – Enjoy the sunset while strolling to the new pedestrian glass bridge that offers impressive views of the center of the Ukrainian capital and the Dnieper River and see a monument to the baptizer of Kyivan Rus – St. Volodymyr, legendary sight and one of the symbols of Kyiv, often depicted in paintings and photographic works of the city.
Meals (Breakfast, Lunch)
Today we’ll visit and have a guided tour around one of the largest Christian holy places in the country – the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra – a world-famous historical and architectural landmark. The monastery’s gold-domed churches are a real feast for the eyes: the Scythian gold could rival that of the Hermitage! Enjoy the guided tour, taking you down into the candlelit, underground labyrinths filled with the relics and ancient mummified monks – intriguing to say the least!
Being in Lavra, we will also visit the Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine, that has the major Ukrainian collection (approximately 56,000 objects) of artifacts made from precious metals and stones by the Scythians, ancient Slavs, Kyivan Rus’ artisans and goldsmiths.
After lunch at ‘Tsarske Selo’ restaurant, we will visit the ethnographic “treasure” – the open-air Museum of Folk Architecture and Rural Life Pyrohovo, where you can see traditional Ukrainian architecture brought from various parts of Ukraine. Pyrohovo is a kind of fairy tale where you find Ukrainian huts, wide fields, shady trails, windmills, pagan stone idols and blackened with time Orthodox churches. It is a nice place to relax in the picturesque outskirts of Kyiv.
Upon returning to the city center, enjoy free evening at your leisure, and take advantage to explore Kyiv nightlife! We suggest:
Option 1 – Visit the famous Kyiv Opera House for a performance (show schedules will be available closer to departure dates).
Option 2 – Enjoy dinner in Ukrainian-style restaurant ‘Shynok’ with traditional Ukrainian singing and entertainment.
Meals (Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast at the hotel, you’ll have a free morning to stock up on souvenirs and snacks for your afternoon train ride.
Then we’ll get you checked out from the hotel (by 12 PM), take you for lunch to one of the restaurants in the city center, and then transfer you to the train station. Travel to Lviv like a local by train #749K.
Upon arrival in Lviv, we will transfer you to your hotel, help you with check-in and provide you a city orientation where we will show you around the local neighborhood and familiarize yourself with the area.
Remainder of the evening at leisure.
Meals (Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast at the hotel, enjoy a retro train tour around the city center. We’ll see this picturesque city that’s been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and get a glimpse of some of Lviv’s most famous attractions!
Then, you’ll get to know why Lviv is called the ‘The City of Coffee’ by drinking fragrant coffee in one of the most unique coffee shops in the city – Lviv Coffee Mine. Learn about the history, listen to the legends and enjoy the aromas of fresh ground coffee.
Later on, we will show you around picturesque Lviv on a guided walking tour of Lviv city center, which will give you a better understanding of the city history and vibe. The city tour will show you around authentic sights and making you completely fall in love with Lviv’s enigmatic atmosphere!
During the tour, we will pay a visit to Lviv Opera House to see the stunning interiors and to learn the history of this fabulous place.
PLEASE NOTE: If interested to see one of the performances there, please let your Tour Leader know about your desire and we will help you get the tickets for a performance).
Afterwards, we will head for lunch in one of the most famous and most visited restaurants in the city – Kryivka, buried in the subterranean vaults of Ploshcha Rynok and designed to look like an underground bunker.
Then, you will have plenty of time to explore this charming city on your own, wandering around centuries-old streets or just enjoying a delicious meal in one of many restaurants in the downtown. If necessary, your guide will gladly help you with optional suggestions according to your interests.
Meals (Breakfast, Lunch)
Breakfast at the hotel. We will take you to another tour of Lviv, on a bus, where you’ll be able to see authentic attractions outside the city center. On this tour, you will be able to see the High Castle Hill, St. George’s Cathedral, Stryiskyi Park, St. Olha and Elizabeth’s Church, Lviv Brewery Museum and many more! We’ll make stops to visit each of these places.
Once the tour is over, we will transfer you downtown where we will take you for lunch in Lviv Pravda Beer Theater that produces its own craft beer, with unique style, properly recognized all over the world. During the lunch, we’ll also taste the beer they produce (2 glasses of beer per person).
Spend the rest of this day at your discretion. You may take advantage of shopping in the city – numerous souvenir stores, and an open-air craft markets offer a variety of artwork, embroidery, woodcarving and more! You are sure to bring back more than fond memories from Lviv!
Meals (Breakfast, Dinner)
After breakfast at the hotel, we will have a guided tour of the famous Lychakiv Cemetery – a place where famous Ukrainian writers, artists and other public figures have been buried, and their gravestones are a sight to behold!
The next significant stop in our itinerary will be Shevchenkivskyi Hai, the ethnographic Open-Air museum of folk architecture and rural life that recreates traditional atmosphere and household of villages from different regions around Western Ukraine. Stroll through the paths of this village museum, contemplating life in these old Ukrainian houses, cozy yards and wooden churches.
Moving forward, we’ll get back to the city center and you continue exploring the city on your own.
You’ll have the option to check out a theme restaurant (Lviv is full of them and they’re fabulous), go on a craft beer crawl (you’ll be spoilt for choice) or kick back on an outdoor patio and soak up the sights and sounds of the largest Ukrainian-speaking city on Earth.
In the evening, to wrap up your tour of Ukraine, we’ll get together in one of our favorite restaurants for a farewell dinner accompanied by live music folk band performance.
Meals (Breakfast)
After a free morning to stock up on souvenirs we will transfer you to the airport where, sadly, we will have to say our goodbyes! Thank you for travelling with SILK ROAD DREAM TOURS!
