The site of the world’s worst nuclear accident, Chornobyl, doesn’t seem like an obvious choice for travelers, yet it has been one of Ukraine’s top tourist attractions for years.
Until now, visitors had to explore the 2,600-square-kilometer area either by car or on foot.
Now that the country has created the first cycling route across the exclusion zone, traveling around the abandoned and nonetheless magnifying Chornobyl will be more accessible and engaging.
Developed by Ukraine’s State Agency for Exclusion Zone Management and other relevant agencies, the new route stretches for more than 45 kilometers, crossing four villages in the exclusion zone and the territory of the Chornobyl biosphere reserve. The journey offers mesmerizing views of the thriving forests and meadows along with decaying villages in contrast, the creators say.
“This route gives a great chance to explore the wildlife of Chornobyl and see the people who still live there,” says Yevhen Zhaivoronok, the exclusion zone employee who was involved in developing the route.
“Most importantly, it’s safe,” he adds.
Picturesque bike tour
Thirty-four years after the disaster, the nuclear fallout still affects the environment in the exclusion zone in Chornobyl, a nearly abandoned town located more than 100 kilometers north of Kyiv.
But it’s a much more picturesque place than many travelers imagine it.
Instead of a gloomy land with no greenery but rusty factories and abandoned old buildings — as Chornobyl is often portrayed in pop culture — visitors of the zone are greeted with fresh air, wild forests and rivers with clear water.
After most of the residents left the zone, nature has gained back its domination over the area. Many rare and wild animals, such as horses, bears, foxes and wolves, can now be spotted there.
And the new cycling route is designed to reveal all those beauties.
The path starts at checkpoint Zelenyi Mys located in the village of Strakholissia, some 125 kilometers north of Kyiv. After going through the passport control at the checkpoint, visitors are greeted by guides, who will accompany them during the tour.
The route stretches along the Kupovate, Opachychi, Otashiv and Pliutovyshche villages. Zhaivoronok says that each settlement will amaze travelers.
At Kupovate, for instance, tourists can discover the life of remaining Chornobyl residents.
Called “samosely” (self-settlers in English), they are mostly elderly people who have returned to the exclusion zone after the accident to spend the rest of their lives in their hometown. Although there are only few of them, Zhaivoronok says there’s still a chance to encounter them.
The Otashiv village is known for its deep pine and birch forest, with some trees leaning over the cycling route and resembling a tunnel. The village offers tourists a place to make a stop at a gazebo and enjoy the mesmerizing views of the Prypiat River.
The cycling route also passes through the forests of the Chornobyl Radiation and Ecological Biosphere Reserve. There, visitors have a chance to spot some wild animals and birds.
The new Chornobyl cycling route developed by Ukraine’s State Agency for Exclusion Zone Management and other relevant agencies stretches for more than 45 kilometers, crossing four villages in the exclusion zone and the territory of the Chornobyl biosphere reserve. (Kyiv Post)
Safety first
Although the tour is designed to reveal Chornobyl’s charms, the creators’ main priority was to keep it safe. It took the team nearly five months to build the route through locations where the level of radiation is low and can’t harm anyone.
“Here, safety comes first,” says Maksym Shevchuk, deputy head of the exclusion zone management agency.
Only adults are allowed to embark on the journey, which takes 6-8 hours and includes short breaks every 30 minutes to take pictures and catch a breath.
The adventure does not require any special physical training beforehand — it is a sightseeing route in which the cycling speed will not exceed 15 kilometers per hour.
According to Shevchuk, short breaks every half an hour and the low speed of cycling are required to ensure people’s safety: The faster a person inhales and exhales, the higher is the radiation dose they can receive.
All groups of tourists are accompanied by two guides: one of them leads the group and the other one rides behind to ensure that travelers stay on the route and abide by the exclusion zone safety rules.
All one has to have to hit the road is a gravel or mountain bike, a helmet, a pair of protective glasses and clothes covering the whole body. Tourists can either bring their own equipment or rent it from one of the private tour operators that are authorized to give tours in Chernobyl.
The cycling tours most likely won’t be available during the cold and snowy winter months, but, while the weather is dry and sunny in autumn, tourists can set off on tours. And the team behind the route says it’s well worth it, promising an amazing journey that can surprise even the most spoiled travelers.
“It’s an unbelievable combination of abandoned villages and technological facilities located in the wild picturesque nature — something that’s impossible to find in everyday life,” says Shevchuk.
Healing wounds
Introducing bike tours is one of the steps Ukraine takes to develop the ghost town.
In fact, the country has a grand plan called “Magnets of Ukraine: Chornobyl” that the government worked out last year to attract investment to Chornobyl and enhance tourism and science in the exclusion zone.
Apart from introducing a bike route, Ukraine plans to develop basic touristic infrastructure in the zone, such as convenient checkpoints, new direction signs, and restrooms — a rare find in the area nowadays.
Shevchuk says they are currently cooperating with Ukrainian creative agency Banda on designing the new branding of Chornobyl. Banda was behind the award-winning “Ukraine Now” campaign, developed upon the government’s request to improve the country’s image.
Tourists’ interest in Chornobyl has been growing steadily over the last few years, peaking in 2019, when the hit “Chernobyl” series aired on U.S. television network HBO. That year, 124,000 tourists came to the zone, nearly thrice as many as in 2017. But 80% of them were foreigners. Ukraine, however, plans to change the tendency, attracting more domestic tourists.
Ukraine is still going through the traumas caused by the disaster — human losses and environmental damage, according to Shevchuk.
“It’s a very painful story of our past,” he says. “But we need to get over it.” And of the ways, he adds, is to visit the place, see its nature, draw conclusions and leave the past behind.
State tour operator
Website: solaris.testmticket.in.ua/en
Price for foreign group, 10-15 people: Hr 2,000.
Price for Ukrainian group, 10-15 people: Hr 495.
Additional fees per person: Hr 150 for radiation test, Hr 500 for English-speaking guides and Hr 140 for the Ukrainian one.
Note: state operator does not offer bike and equipment rentals.
Approved private operators
Website: cotiz.org.ua/info/operators
Prices and fees vary depending on an operator; there are about 50 of them.
Note: Private operators offer additional services like bike and equipment rental, transfer to the exclusion zone from Kyiv, snacks and more.
