Vacation in Ukraine: the most popular places in 2021

If you don't want to organize your vacation abroad, you can have a great holiday without leaving the country. A wide range of opportunities are at the service of vacationers who wish to spend their holidays in Ukraine: from ski resorts to warm sea beaches.

Given the complications associated with COVID-19, the list of open travel destinations and places of resort is changing all the time. For example, the general quarantine measures were extended by the Ukrainian government until June 30, 2021, and the strict lockdown in Kyiv—until April 30.

So those who plan to spend their holidays within the country should constantly keep their finger on the pulse of the current epidemiological situation.

Resorts on the coast of the Sea of Azov

Pryazovia (the Azov region) is famous for its picturesque places, warm sea, delicious seafood, and fresh air.

One of the resort towns on the coast of the Sea of Azov is Berdyansk that provides vacationers with luxurious beach recreation areas, landscaped bathing sectors. Here you can visit healing springs with mineral water, therapeutic mud. The moderate continental climate and no less reasonable prices make it possible for tourists with any income level to enjoy a vacation here for a long time. For example, in May the air here will warm up to +22 C during the day, and at night the temperature will not drop below +20 C.

Another resort is the town of Kyrulivka that is situated on the Azov coast. The climate here is no less pleasant than in Berdyansk. The beaches are clean, the absence of industrial enterprises in the foreseeable surroundings ensures the purity of nature and the crystal freshness of the air.

Travel companies recommend several popular guest houses and hotels. Accommodation in them will provide comfort and coziness and at the same time reasonable cost of services: guest house "Grace", located just one and a half km from the city center and the hotel "Cleopatra" 2 km from the center. The average price per person per night in the hotels starts from 2,100 UAH.

Mariupol—the main resort on the Sea of Azov

The main resort center of the Azov Sea, the center of therapeutic mud baths is Mariupol. Here the swimming season starts from the second half of May, and closes at the end of the second week of September. Tourists of the city are attracted by the local history museum, the drama theater, as well as many other attractions that can be visited both as part of the excursion program and on their own.

Among the most popular hotels, experts in the tourism business recommend Columbus, located 3.5 km from the city center, and the hotel Spartak built one and a half km from the center. The cost of rooms per day ranges from 450 to 700 UAH per person.

Black Sea resorts

The Black Sea beaches are the best place to relax with the whole family. Resort cities and seaside recreation centers, in addition to beaches and sea bathing, offer a wide range of attractions and a rich excursion program to choose from.

Black Sea resorts: Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi

The city of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, located eighteen kilometers from the Black Sea coast, is one of the pearls of the domestic tourism business. Its main attraction is the legendary Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi fortress. This is the largest complex of medieval fortifications in Ukraine.

Among the most popular hotel complexes, Fiesta is recommended here—a hotel, located one and a half kilometers from the city center. The cost of accommodation here is from 800 UAH/person per night.

The resort town of Chornomorsk

Chornomorsk has deservedly earned a reputation of the tourist and beach recreation center on the Black Sea for a very long time. It is small but extremely comfortable and very family friendly.

It is quiet, calm, there is no rush of large beach resort centers. A particular benefit: a huge number of urban green areas (parks, squares, fountains) and clean beaches with fine sand.

In May, the air in urban and suburban areas will warm up to +18 C during the day and up to +12 C at night. Experts of the tourist business recommend staying in Chornomorsk at the Chornomorsk Mayak motel that is located 5 km from the city center. Here the price tag is from 550 UAH per person per day.

Alpine skiing: Bukovel

In terms of the level of comfort, infrastructure, as well as climatic conditions and beauty of the landscapes, Bukovel is not inferior to well-known foreign resorts. The Carpathian ski resorts and resort complexes are rightfully considered to be sports and entertainment centers of the European level.

The Bukovel ski resort is the largest domestic base for winter sports. Here there is a real abundance for lovers of snowboarding and skiing. In addition, the stunning nature and dazzling panoramic views will provide a portion of positive emotions for the most sophisticated tourist for the year ahead.

In May, the air temperature here will rise to +17 C, and at night the thermometer will not drop below +8 C.

The most famous hotels in Bukovel are considered Millie & John, located three kilometers from the city center (price—from 350 UAH per person per night), and Radisson Blu Resort Bukovel (one and a half kilometers from the center, the cost of accommodation is from 290 UAH/person/night).

Dragobrat resort

This sports and tourist ski resort is located above all similar high-altitude bases above sea level. The city is situated at an altitude of 1,300—1,700 meters. It receives visitors from November to May inclusive. The most famous and popular hotel complexes of Dragobrat are Peak that is located half a kilometer from the city center (the cost of accommodation is from 1000 UAH per person per night) and Golden Palace that is situated 23 kilometers from the city center (the cost for a room is from 450 UAH/person/night).

Slavske resort

Another ski resort that is favorite for vacationers—Slavske—is considered the most beautiful place in the Carpathians. Tourists come here all year round. This is not surprising, since here, in addition to sports recreation, there are extraordinary landscapes and a miraculous mild microclimate. In May, the air warms up to +21 C during the day and to +11 C at night.

Among the most popular hotels, tourism experts call the hotel complex Na Horbi that is situated a little further than three kilometers from the city center (the cost of accommodation is from 600 UAH per person per night) and Smerekova Khata that is located at a similar distance from the center (price for a hotel room is 600 UAH per person per overnight).

Mineral waters of Ukraine

In Ukraine, at the moment, there are about 200 deposits of mineral water that are used as medical rehabilitation centers. Domestic resorts of Myrhorod, Morshyn, and Truskavets are widely known far beyond the borders of Ukraine.

Khmilnyk resort town

Khmilnyk is a town on the banks of the Southern Buh (Pivdennyi Buh in Ukrainian) in the Vinnytsia region. Among other things, it is famous for its unique radon resort—the only one in the country. Among the city's attractions, the most striking is the palace of Count Ksido.

The city hotel complexes Exclusive (located a kilometer from the center, room price rates start from 400 UAH per person per night) and the mini-hotel Leleka (rooms from 345 UAH/person/night) are in demand.

Truskavets—a city in the hills

The resort city of Truskavets is situated in a picturesque valley near the spurs of the Carpathian Mountains. Clean mountain air, picturesque landscapes, historical monuments, and therapeutic mineral water of the TM Naftusia await vacationers here.

The most famous hotels here are Green Park that is located a kilometer from the city center (room price rates from 990 UAH/person/night) and Hermes, where rooms at a price of 550 UAH per person per night await visitors.

Carpathian Mountains of Ukraine

A huge number of vacationers from all over the world come to the Carpathians every year. Amateur athletes who are fond of snowboarding and alpine skiing are very fond of spending their active holidays here.

Ivano-Frankivsk ski resort

The city gives its guests its unique colorful spirit of Western Ukraine. Ivano-Frankivsk is ideal for outdoor activities. Here you can enjoy downhill skiing, walking—both within the city and in the mountain coniferous forests. Tourists are offered professional guides and a rich, varied excursion program.

Among the popular hotel and hotel complexes Koruna that is located 66 kilometers from the city center (the cost of accommodation here for one person is from 1930 UAH per night), and the hotel Nadiya, located less than a kilometer from the central city square (price per room starts from 688 UAH per person), are called.

Lviv

Lviv is a city with an incredible number of ancient monuments, beautiful places, breathtaking views and sights. The widest choice of cafes and restaurants in the traditional Ukrainian style.

In May, the air here will warm up to +18 C, and at night—up to +10 C. Recommended hotels in the city are the Ethno hostel, located just two kilometers from the city center (price from 200 UAH/person/night), and Z-One, located almost in the center (the cost starts from 468 UAH per person per night).

Uzhgorod

Uzhgorod attracts tourists from all over the world with its antiquity, beautiful landscapes and coziness. There are many sanatoriums and recreation centers here—there are lots of places where you can improve your health and just stay to breathe fresh air and go sightseeing.

Odesa

There is not any man who has never heard of the legendary Odesa. The city, located on the Black Sea coast, does not need additional recommendations. There is everything here to have a rest with plenty of zing, plunging into the whirl of unique local flavor—from Derybasivska Street to Pryvoz. There are several health centres of the sanatorium-resort type in Odesa. There are magnificent beaches and original hotels with the names that will impress any tourist.

Among the most popular hotels are the hostel Krovat na Deribasovskoy (price from 89 UAH per person per night), located a kilometer from the center, and hotel apartments Olymp Club, five and a half kilometers from the city center (the cost starts from 599 UAH per person per night).

Tips for travellers

As the well-known blogger AlexUA advises, the following Internet services will be helpful for those who are planning their vacation:

• In order to quickly find and buy at a reasonable price the necessary tickets, the TicketsUa service can be used. The payments there are accepted in hryvnia from cards of Ukrainian banks.
• On the Aviasales website, you can always find the best price for a plane ticket.
• The service Hotel Combined is a search engine that will find suitable accommodation all over the world with 30% savings, as it "paws through" all the necessary sites dedicated to booking hotels, apartments, and economy-class accommodation.
• Booking.com does not need any additional recommendation—it is an excellent global accommodation search engine.
• Airbnb is the most popular search engine for vacation rentals that also provides good bonuses for the first booking upon registration.
• The service Rentalcars is for those who wish to find and rent a car.
• Travel insurance for Ukrainian citizens, as well as issuing a green card for traveling abroad by car, can be done through the services Hotline Finance and Cherepaha.

Alternative to well-known resorts

As Maksym Uzol and Olha Manko say in their video blog, in addition to the well-known hotels of the tourist and sports recreation area in the Carpathians—such as Bukovel, Dragobrat—you can spend your holidays in the mountain resorts of the Lviv region.

For example, in the town of Oryavchyk (Skolivsky district, Lviv region) there is an unforgettable housing complex—the so-called glamping hotel with domed houses. Glamping is extremely popular in Europe. This phrase means "glamorous camping". You live in a tent that has a kitchen, shower, toilet and everything to live there.

This type of housing complex has several interior options. One suggests a hemispherical dwelling with large panoramic windows. The other is similar to a Native American wigwam or teepee, in accordance with traditional Native American interiors, including a place in the centre for an open fireplace.

According to Max Uzol, the dwelling here resembles a space station, inside which a tree spirit hovers. The rooms have everything you need for a comfortable stay. And on the territory of the glamping vacationers are offered a lot of entertainment—a bathhouse, an archery range, as well as excursions to local attractions: the park Skolivsky Beskydy, the waterfall Kamenka, and the mountain lake.