Travel guide Lviv – an insider tip in western Ukraine

“I have an insider tip for you,” said a colleague recently, who spent six months this summer travelling across Eastern Europe in a converted minibus. Of course, I was curious to hear which destination still has insider tip status. Over the next five minutes, she raved about Lviv in western Ukraine: “Like Prague 20 years ago.” Lviv? Never heard of it! Western? How do I get there? And as expected, my travel fever was immediately awakened. This unknown Lviv sounded too exciting not to travel there immediately (Oman triggered similar feelings this spring – fortunately, the real “insider tips” per year can be counted on one hand, otherwise I would have a time problem).

Traveled

Lviv is the largest city in western Ukraine and is located less than 100 kilometers from the Polish border. For a long time, the city was considered a crossroads between East and West and looks back on an eventful history. The various cultural influences characterize the cityscape, which was not destroyed during the last wars. This fusion of different traditions of Eastern Europe and Western Europe brought Lviv the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. In contrast to the comparable Krakow, Lviv is still largely unknown as a city break destination. The name didn’t mean anything to me at first. The curiosity was accordingly aroused and as soon as I got home I googled the city and the flight connections there. There are no direct flights from Zurich. The fastest connections, with a five-hour travel time, are either with Lufthansa via Munich or LOT via Warsaw. We kept an eye on the airfares and the weather forecast, and on the first Sunday of Advent we definitely decided to travel to Lviv from December 2nd to 4th. A good decision!

The 40-minute transfer time at Warsaw Airport made us tremble for a moment due to a departure delay in Zurich. Will it be enough? We were only on the road with hand luggage, so we didn’t have to worry about the checked luggage. Our flight experience with LOT can be summed up as follows: Four flights, four delays. On the Warsaw-Lviv route, both the outbound and return flights are delayed by a full hour with a flight time of 40 minutes. The positive thing about it: We caught all connecting flights (thanks/despite the delays).

Slept

We stayed at the Leopolis Hotel in the middle of the city center. The decisive factor for the choice of hotel was the good location and the great offer to get a free transfer from the airport to the hotel when booking directly via the hotel website. Cost: 118 Euro per night incl. breakfast for a standard double room.

Done

Stroll through the old town |

The old town of Lviv is clear and can be easily explored on foot. The landmark is Rynok Square with the striking yellow townhouse in the middle and the beautiful façade fronts all around. Since Orthodox Christmas is celebrated in Ukraine at the beginning of January, the Christmas market does not start until mid-December. At the beginning of December, wooden houses were diligently set up in the city – the atmosphere during the Christmas market must be great! Even without a Christmas market, Lviv put us in the Christmas mood with its freshly snow-covered, cobbled old town streets. The beautiful facades are striking – some of them in a desolate state, but that’s exactly what makes this city so charming. Nothing is here. Real nostalgia lives here. This is also evident in the parked cars, which would delight many a car freak. In the centre of Lviv there are churches of various faiths and building eras in a very small area. It’s worth taking a look at one or the other.

Climbing Towers |

A city tour through Lviv will keep you fit. The 408 steps up to the 65-metre-high tower of the town hall are a must. The observation deck has been open to the public since 1851. The entrance fee is 15 hryvnia (hryvnia), which is around 0.5 CHF.

Climbing the Castle Hill |

Meters of altitude are also to be mastered for the next sight. The ascent to Castle Hill takes about thirty minutes from Rynok Square. This is the place to go if you want to enjoy the panoramic view of Lviv. I find it exciting how we get to see the two different faces of the city from the castle hill. On the one hand, the historic old town centre and on the other hand, the residential quarters in the periphery with residential buildings from the time of the Soviet Union. Lviv has always resisted the fact that the Old Town fell victim to the large-scale buildings of the USSR. If you tackle the walk in winter like we did, you are well advised to wear good shoes. Sometimes the path resembled an ice rink and my strange triple-trap movement gave me sore muscles.

Peeking Behind Supposedly Closed Doors |

If you walk through Lviv, you will pass many massive wooden doors. “That’s probably closed,” was our thought. Until we tried to push down the door latch and – oh wonder – the door opened. Lviv is known for its hidden courtyards. One of them is the “Italian Courtyard” in the historical museum.

At 10:00 a.m. we were definitely standing in front of closed doors at the House of Scientists, where we wanted to have a look at the magnificent premises. A gentleman saw us standing around undecided and came to the rescue. Unfortunately, he didn’t understand English and my knowledge of Ukrainian/Russian is limited to two or three words. Luckily it had snowed. With his key, he drew a “1” twice on the snow-covered ground and we finally understood: The House of Scientists doesn’t open until 11:00 a.m.

So we came back an hour later and marveled at the stairwell. One of the most amazing photo spots in Lviv. We didn’t find out how much it costs to enter here. For my 100 hryvnia note, the gentleman had too little change and so he only took my 10 and 20 francs, which was too little for two people in my understanding.

Walking through cemeteries |

Also worth seeing is the Lychakivsky Cemetery (located two kilometers southeast of the center), which was established in the late 18th century and is one of the oldest cemeteries in Ukraine. Numerous famous Ukrainian and Polish personalities are buried in the cemetery. The graves in the detachment of the so-called Young Lviv Eagles and the adjacent detachment of Ukrainian fighters bear witness to the riots surrounding the new allocation of territory during the First World War. These graves are located in a slightly elevated position in the center of the extensive cemetery. The entrance fee for visitors is 25 hryvnias.

Admire Lviv at night |

The December days in Lviv are short and cold. Just the way we like it. The old town is beautifully illuminated at the blue hour. While window shopping, we discovered the Lviv Chocolate Factory right in the center. Chocolate, along with beer and coffee, is one of the city’s most important gastronomic traditions. The Chocolate Factory’s shop is teeming with shoppers on weekends. We also can’t resist and leave the store two chocolate bars richer.

Eaten

The Coffee City |

Lviv is considered the Ukrainian coffee capital and the tradition of coffee houses dates back to the time when Lviv was still part of Austria. In addition to the long-established coffee houses, there are also some newer cafés with their own roasters. My favorite is the Svit Kavy right on Rynok Square. For breakfast there is muesli and porridge. The café “Coffee Manufacture” (Valova St, 16) is also cosy. The glazed ceiling construction in the Coffee Mining Manufacture (Rynok Square, 10) is architecturally exciting – but it always seemed jam-packed to us.

Classic Ukrainian |

Due to the spontaneous travel decision, I didn’t invest much time in restaurant research for once. To us, the selection seemed relatively clear and we didn’t stumble across any special culinary discoveries. Visually, we liked the restaurant Atlas, which also convinces with a solid local cuisine.

In the restaurant Amadeus (Katedralna Square, 7) we were lucky enough to get a table without a reservation. The interior looks rather austere with the white-covered tables and it feels like all the dishes in the world are listed on the menu – too extensive for us. However, the food ordered was still very good and convincing in terms of quality.

Best Burger Place |

If you’re in the mood for a simple burger with fries, Burger Joint (Staroievreiska Street, 26) is the place to be. But next time I would choose a beef version like the friend. My chicken was rather “well” done, which spoiled my appetite.

Late Night Drinks |

At the same height as the Burger Joint, a cross street further away from Rynok Square, the Music Lab – bar and concert location in equal measure – is ideal for a nightcap. Lviv is known for its street music and festivals in the summer months. For us, it is rather surprising that even on freezing cold winter nights people dance to live music in the alleys around Rynok Square. So remember to pack warm clothes. It could be long nights.

Practical tips for your city trip to Lviv

• The airport is connected to the city center by buses – stop at Liubinska Street (travel time about thirty minutes / cost depending on the bus 2 or 4 hryvnia)
• The currency is Ukrainian hryvnia/hryvnia
• If you pay by card in restaurants, you have to charge separately for alcoholic beverages
• English is not understood everywhere, basic knowledge of Ukrainian and/or Russian is an advantage
• It is worth checking the current opera programme before your trip.
• At some sights you pay an extra price for taking pictures (e.g. 10 hryvnia extra at the Lychakivsky cemetery)

The most important facts about Lviv / Lviv

Best time to visit:	Spring, Autumn and Winter
Entry requirements:	Valid Swiss passport for stays of up to 90 days (February 2019)
Currency:	Hrywnja (UAH )
Languages:	Mostly Ukrainian, Polish and Russian
Population:	728,545 (March 1, 2015)