Local gems in Kyiv

Arsenalna

Kyiv

A.V. Fomin Botanical Garden

Kyiv

The A. V. Fomin Botanical Garden in Kyiv, often called the Old Botanical Garden, is one of Ukraine's oldest scientific garden institutions. Founded in 1839 as part of the biology faculty of the then Vladimir University, it was later named after its long-serving director Alexander Fomin. Across 22.7 hectares grow thousands of plant species from every climatic zone on earth, from Mediterranean herbs to Siberian conifers. The garden is a beloved green retreat for Kyiv residents amid the metropolis, especially in spring when cherry trees bloom. Since the Russian war of aggression, it has also become a quiet symbol of the preservation of nature and culture.

Bessarabska Square

Kyiv

Bessarabska Square anchors the southern end of Khreshchatyk, Kyiv's main boulevard, where it meets the Taras Shevchenko Boulevard in the heart of the city. The circular square is best known for its centrepiece, Bessarabsky Market — a historic covered market from the early 20th century, celebrated for its elegant cast-iron Art Nouveau roof and considered one of the finest market halls in Eastern Europe. The square functions as a busy traffic junction and a natural gathering point for Kyivans, blending the rhythms of everyday city life with the grandeur of the surrounding architecture. It remains one of those places that captures the city's character in a single glance.

Bessarabskyi market

Kyiv

Bessarabsky Market is one of the best-known landmarks in central Kyiv. Built in 1912, the building covers nearly 2,900 square metres beneath an impressive glass roof supported by a steel frame with neoclassical facade elements — one of the architectural highlights of the Ukrainian capital. Inside, a lively market trades in fresh produce: meat, fish, cheese, vegetables, and regional Ukrainian specialities. The market hall stands directly on Bessarabska Square, just steps from Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti), making it an unmissable stop for anyone wanting to explore the culinary side of Kyiv.

European Square

Kyiv

European Square is a central hub in the heart of Kyiv, not far from Maidan Nezalezhnosti. The square takes its name from a hotel that once stood here and today serves as an important transport node where several main roads, bus lines and the Teatralna metro station converge. The surroundings are shaped by theatres, shopping centres and the everyday city life of the Ukrainian capital. Forming part of the axis towards the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, it sits in the immediate vicinity of the city's historic cultural sites.

Halytska Square, Kyiv

Kyiv

Halytska Square (Halytska Ploscha) is a city square in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. Until 2023 it was known as Victory Square (Peremohy Square) — the renaming took place as part of Ukraine's ongoing decommunisation and deoccupation process, which accelerated sharply following Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. The new name references the historic region of Halychyna (Galicia), which covers much of western Ukraine and is deeply embedded in Ukrainian national identity. The square thus reflects Kyiv's broader cultural and political reorientation since 2022, as the city actively reclaims its own distinct identity.

Khreshchatyi Park

Kyiv

Khreshchatyi Park is an approximately 11.8-hectare green space in the heart of Kyiv, laid out in 1972. It sits directly between the lively Khreshchatyk Boulevard and Shevchenko Park, forming a leafy buffer zone in the densely built city centre. The park offers paths for walking and jogging, shaded benches, and a sloping topography that provides partial views over the surrounding neighbourhood. For Kyiv families and commuters it is a familiar everyday retreat — unassuming, but central and alive.

Khreshchatyk

Kyiv

Khreshchatyk is Kyiv's main street and the heartbeat of the Ukrainian capital — a boulevard up to 100 metres wide with six traffic lanes cutting through the city centre. The buildings lining it are largely products of Stalinist reconstruction in the late 1940s and 1950s, after the Nazis dynamited the original Khreshchatyk during their retreat. Despite this traumatic backstory, the boulevard today radiates vitality: wide chestnut-lined pavements invite strolling, and a continuous run of cafés and shops keeps the street busy. On weekends and public holidays it is closed to traffic — transforming entirely into a pedestrian zone filled with street musicians, families and impromptu gatherings. Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square), inseparably linked to Ukraine's recent history, lies at its eastern end.

Monument to Bohdan Khmelnytsky in Kyiv

Kyiv

The Bohdan Khmelnytsky Monument on Sofiyivska Square in Kyiv is one of the most iconic landmarks of the Ukrainian capital. Unveiled in 1888, the equestrian statue depicts the Cossack Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky, who in the 17th century led the uprising against Polish noble rule and founded the Zaporizhian Hetmanate. With his mace raised, he appears to point into the distance — historically interpreted as a gesture toward Russia, but today read as a symbol of Ukrainian strength and independence. The monument stands close to Saint Sophia's Cathedral and is a key point of interest for locals and visitors alike.

Monument to the Magdeburg Rights

Kyiv

The Monument to the Magdeburg Rights on the Kyiv bank of the Dnipro is considered the oldest surviving monument in the Ukrainian capital. The neoclassical white stone column was erected in 1802 to commemorate the city charter that Kyiv received in the 15th century, based on the Magdeburg Law — one of the most important documents of medieval self-governance in Eastern Europe. The monument stands in the Podil district directly on the riverbank, connecting the memory of Kyivan Rus, the city's Christian heritage and the history of civic freedoms. The location also offers a pleasant view of the river.

One Street Museum

Kyiv

Tucked into the historic Podil neighbourhood — one of Kyiv's oldest and most characterful districts — the One Street Museum is dedicated entirely to the life of a single street and its residents across the 19th and 20th centuries. Founded in 1991, it presents everyday objects, archival photographs and personal documents that together paint an intimate portrait of urban life in old Kyiv. The deliberately modest, personal approach sets it apart from grander city museums: this is the history of ordinary people in one block, not of empires or rulers. A quiet counterpoint to Podil's busier tourist trail.