With Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the Kremlin-backed war in
Ukraine’s southeast, many of Ukraine’s prized Black and Azov sea resorts
are now in enemy hands or have closed indefinitely.
But a team of
travelers from Kyiv is challenging the notion that all is lost. To prove
their point, they trekked around Ukraine to find lesser-known resorts
and attractions not under Russian control or in war zones.
Writer Lala Tarapakina, video producer Ivanka Yakovyna and photographer Andriy Horb began their cross-country tour, dubbed “Find in Ukraine,” in Kyiv in mid-June. And they’re still on the road.
The team began out west, exploring attractions in the lush Carpathian Mountains, before heading south for sunshine and the seaside. Central Ukraine is still to be explored, but they’ll get there, they say.
“This is about discovering unknown sites of Ukraine, places that Ukrainians themselves know nothing about,” says Tarapakina.
In the first month, the team discovered 15 resorts and landmarks. Each spot received a detailed profile on the project’s website, www.findinukraine.com.ua, with photos and short videos. Reviews include details of accommodation, food, prices, safety, internet access, hospitality of local people and road conditions.
The idea for the project began when Ukraine’s biggest and most popular resort area – the Crimean peninsula – was annexed by Russia in March. Even though it remains accessible for Ukrainians, many avoid travelling there for political reasons.
“When Crimea was gone I understood that our kids lost an essential part of their childhood and we need to substitute that part,” Tarapakina says.
But Ukraine offers many substitutions. Tarapakina says the Carpathians alone have a wide range of inexpensive and intriguing travel destinations. The average housing price in the country’s western resorts is around Hr 60 per day, she says. And for Hr 250 one will “live in luxury.”
Low prices come with breathtaking views of sprawling forests and hillsides, as well as wonderfully hospitable people, the team says.
“Those places are not commercial, and locals there treat tourists like guests,” Tarapakina says.
Her favorite place so far is Kalachava, a 40-kilometer-long village deep in the Carpathians. The place has some 12 museums sponsored by a local businessman. Together they tell the history of the region and showcase local craftwork.
“The museums are not usual boring stuff, but interactive and very interesting,” Tarapakina says.
Near the village, the explorers discovered the highest mountain in the area, Strymba, which they say is well worth an excursion.
When the team headed to the country’s southeast, it found even more resort spots previously unknown to outsiders. While not the Crimean seaside, beautiful lakes and cliffs, deserted seashores and natural parks abound in Ukraine’s southern regions.
According to the “Find in Ukraine” team, some of the places in the south do have poor infrastructure and terrible roads. But the beauty in the surrounding nature makes up for those shortcomings, they say.
“An ancient Myhiya village in Mykolayiv Oblast looks like a small Switzerland,” a report about one location published on the team’s website reads.
Myhiya, a village that rests on a picturesque river bank, offers affordable accommodation from Hr 80 to Hr 450 per night, tasty food, rafting, swimming and sunbathing.
The “Find in Ukraine” project has already proven to be helpful. Valentyna Lytvyn, a 24-year-old accountant from Kyiv, made her summer travel plans based on the project’s discoveries. She will go to Myhiya for Independence Day weekend in late August.
“I really like the detailed description of the route, the prices and the pictures,” Lytvyn says of the project.
As of late July, the team was still traveling, exploring Ukraine and making plans to create a new tourist map of the country with a photo exhibition.
