A weekend in Lviv, Ukraine’s most “Western” city
Ukraine is in my opinion one of the most underrated countries in the world. In 2017, I did my first trip to the country and spent three days in the capital Kyiv. Since I loved Kyiv so much and even declared it one of my favorite cities in Europe, I knew I would revisit Ukraine rather sooner than later.
Almost a year ago, I met Orest, a fellow traveler who wants to visit every country too, in the Dominican Republic. Since he lives in Lviv and I haven’t been there yet, I had a good reason to make a second trip to Ukraine and spend a weekend in Lviv.
Lviv is located on the western edge of Ukraine and is one of the largest cities in the country. The population is a bit more than 700,000. I spent a total of two days in Lviv, which is actually enough time for the city. Thus, a weekend in Lviv is an ideal trip within Europe, if you do not want to take a day off from work.
In this article I would like to describe what Lviv has to offer and also what is the best way to spend a weekend in Lviv.
The characteristics of Lviv
Lviv is a very interesting city, which has characteristics of several countries. Although Lviv is located in Ukraine, you would not notice that you’re in Ukraine if you did not know. The city looks rather like a Central European city. Most likely, Lviv looks Polish but it could also be a Hungarian or Austrian city.
That’s not so surprising given the city’s history. In the last 103 years Lviv belonged to four different countries. Until 1918, the city was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, then it belonged to Poland before being integrated into the Soviet Union during World War II. With the independence of Ukraine, Lviv became Ukrainian in 1991. So if my grandmother had been born in Lviv, she would have lived in four countries without ever moving.
You will notice that Lviv belonged to several countries when you look at the buildings, because different architectural styles meet here. However, you can also see this mixture in the food, as you can find here everything from borsch to pierogi to schnitzel and strudel. Such a variety of influences from different cultures is not so common in Europe (Sarajevo comes to my mind, but any other city…?). However, this is not the only reason why Lviv is an exciting city.
Things to see and do on a weekend in Lviv
Although Lviv is the seventh largest city in Ukraine, it is a relatively compact city. Most of the sights are within walking distance of the Old Town. You don’t really need public transport or cabs, except for the transfer from the airport to the city and back. For this reason, I would recommend taking the hotel near Old Town. I stayed at the George Hotel, which is an architectural masterpiece and could not have been better in terms of location.
When it comes to Lviv’s sights and attractions, I would like to highlight my top3. Perhaps, the best sight is St. George’s Cathedral, a baroque-rococo cathedral about 10 minutes from Old Town. Of all the cathedrals I saw in Lviv, this one impressed me the most.
After that, the Old Town as a whole is a fantastic sight. The center of Old Town is Rynok Square, which you constantly walk past during a weekend in Lviv. This lively square impresses with its beautiful, colorful buildings, many bars and restaurants.
When you are at Rynok Square, you should also definitely climb the Town Hall tower. You can take the elevator to the fourth floor of the building and then walk up the stairs for about five minutes. Once at the top, you will be rewarded with a great view.
By the way, for good photos I would recommend to climb the tower in the morning. Although good pictures are also possible in the afternoon, the sun then shines from a less favorable side.
The other sights I visited were the Opera (marvelous building), the House of Scientists (popular among wedding couples for photo shootings), a monument to Stepan Bandera, the Boim Chapel, Castle Hill (there is no castle to see there by the way) and of course several churches. However, if you hope to see the beautiful Orthodox cathedrals in Lviv, like in Kyiv, you will be disappointed. Because I did not see a single one of them.
All in all, I didn’t find any of the sights uninteresting and there would have been one or two on the outskirts of town, but I skipped them.
The food scene
Lviv has one of the highest densities of excellent restaurants I’ve seen in Europe. Not that online ratings always tell the whole truth, but it’s still remarkable that you have to scroll through 109 restaurants on TripAdvisor to get to one with a rating below 4/5.
The food scene in Lviv is international, although you will find many restaurants serving local food. But judging by the city’s history, the question arises as to what local food even means. I have already given the answer above. In addition to typical Ukrainian dishes, you can also find Polish or Austrian dishes.
What distinguishes Lviv from other cities are the many themed restaurants. Without going into detail about each one, there are several restaurants in Lviv that, in addition to good food, also offer entertainment of a special kind. For example, Kryivka, where you have to knock on a door and then enter a password (“slava Ukraini!”), otherwise you will not be let in.
Once you’ve said the password, you get a honey vodka shot before being led into a war bunker, which is the theme of the restaurant. Then, with excellent local food, you get entertainment in the form of patriotic military songs sung by a voluptuous woman while guest clap their hands and (the Ukrainians) sing along. Great restaurant, absolutely worth it.
A weekend in Lviv is probably not enough to test all of these themed restaurants. But you should definitely visit one or the other. Don’t forget to make a reservation, when you travel to Lviv on a weekend. The queues in front of the good restaurants are sometimes enormous and require a long wait.
Other things to do in Lviv
The sights and the delicious food are of course not the only reason to travel to Lviv. There are other cool things to do on a weekend in Lviv.
Nightlife in Lviv is great. The old town remains as lively after sunset as during the day. An abundance of bars offers the opportunity to end the day with a drink. Prices for alcohol are quite cheap compared to other European countries. Expect to pay about €3 for a cocktail. I didn’t visit any clubs, but there are plenty in Lviv. Therefore, young party animals will definitely be happy in Lviv.
Besides themed restaurants, there are also themed bars in Lviv. The most famous is arguably Masoch Cafe, a BDSM-themed bar named after the Austrian writer Leopold von Sacher-Masoch. Whenever I met travelers who were in Lviv, I heard stories about that bar. Therefore, I assume every tourist who visits Lviv ends up there at some point.
I visited the bar and found it rather silly. The waiting times to get in are long. Besides, the drinks menu is mediocre and comparatively rather expensive. In between there are then “shows” in which volunteers are whipped by the staff. Is Masoch Cafe a must-visit? I honestly don’t think so, but it’s good enough to have a drink there.
For tourists who love thrills, there is also Insomnia, a kind of mix of haunted house and escape room. However, it seems to be quite intense there. Unlike other haunted houses I know, the “monsters” of Insomnia are allowed to touch the visitors. But it’s not just touching. Some TripAdvisor users complain that they were tasered when choosing the most difficult levels. 🙂
Lviv has also a good amount of museums. Otherwise, Lviv is also a city that can be enjoyed without checking off landmarks, by visiting one of the many cafes, enjoying the local beer and chocolate, and people-watching in the old town.
Moreover, you can do a day-trip to the Carpathian Mountains and do some hiking, mountain-biking or, in winter, skiing there. The Carpathians are only an hour away.
Prices in Lviv
Lviv, just like Kyiv, is an extremely affordable city and offers excellent value for money. The Ukrainian currency is the Hryvnia, but you can expect the following prices in €.
Accommodation: I would say a night in a mid-range hotel near Old Town costs between €40-50. However, budget accommodations (hostels, hotels, apartments) are also available for around €15-25 per night.
Transport: Seriously, you only need it from the airport to the city and vice versa (Uber: €3 for the 15-minute ride). I drive within the city would cost about €1.5-2
Entrance fees: I paid an entrance twice (Lviv Town Hall and House of Scientists) for €1.20 and €0.90 respectively.
Food: On average, I paid about €5-10 for a meal consisting of an appetizer, main course and drink, and sometimes a coffee.
Alcohol: A cocktail in a bar costs about €3, beer even less.
Coffee: About €1.50 for a cappuccino, less than €1 for an espresso.
A weekend in Lviv is therefore quite inexpensive. All in all, I would calculate with about €50 per day without accommodation, which includes eating out twice, a few drinks and coffees plus entrance tickets to sights. However, I would also say it’s possible to spend only €15-25 per day if you’re on a tight budget.
Conclusion of a weekend in Lviv
Is Lviv worth it? Yes, definitely. My weekend in Lviv was awesome and I can really recommend visiting this city. Either as a side-trip from Kyiv (the fast train between the two cities takes 5-6 hours) or you visit Lviv only.
On my first trip to Ukraine, I met some travelers who had just spent two weeks traveling around the country. They told me that Lviv impressed them the least of all the places they have been to. From this I can only conclude that the other places were outstanding. After all, I thought Lviv was a very cool city.
Is Lviv better than Kyiv? That’s hard to say. It’s different in any case. Kyiv is not as “western” as Lviv and has a stronger Soviet style. All in all, Kyiv offers more than Lviv just because of its size, which is why I would rank Kyiv a little bit higher. Nevertheless, Lviv is the more charming city of the two.
After visiting Kyiv in 2017 and Lviv in 2021, Odessa would now be a logical next destination in Ukraine. I guess, that won’t happening anymore in 2021, but I can’t wait to travel to the Black Sea city soon.
Ukraine is now one of my top 5 countries in Europe and I look forward to returning soon. If you want to know why I think Ukraine is one of the most underrated countries in Europe, you can read it in this post.
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Thanks for such review, Nikolai.
It was great to have you in Lviv.
Happy travels 😉