Three weeks Vacation in Lviv: eat whatever you find, drink, travel until you pass out: spend less than 1000 TL

If you’re thinking, “Actually, I don’t have a lot of money, but still, let me take a different vacation, breathe the air of a place I have never seen before”, we have a suggestion for you: Ukraine Make a note of the city of Lviv in your mind. Because this city, located in the westernmost part of the country, almost “a stone’s throw” from the Polish border, is a suitable place for those who want to spend a different holiday intertwined with culture and nature.. Moreover, it is really cheap.

About Lviv

It has a rich history from the Middle Ages to the present and Although the Ukrainians call the city, which has a cultural heritage, Lviv, it is called by many different names.. It is usually called Ilbav in Turkey, Poles call it Lwow, Russians Lvov, Germans say Lemberg.

Ukraine left the Soviet Union in 1991 and gained its independence. But in the city of Lviv, at least in its architecture, there seems to be almost no traces of those ancient times.. At first glance, it reminds one of Western or Central European cities.. The city surpasses the traces of the Austrian and Polish architecture of which it has been a part for a long time.

You can see the traces of the old Soviet architecture in some streets and rural areas of the city, but this makes you feel part of the former USSR.

Where is Lviv, Where is Lviv?

Lviv is only 70 kilometers from the Polish border. Most of its people are half-Polish.. Although the number of speakers of an internationally valid language such as English is small enough to be counted with fingers, the majority of those who can speak Russian and Polish are in the majority.

Speaking of Russian… In fact, the majority of the people, especially those over a certain age speak Russian as their mother tongue. But maybe they don’t like to talk because of the tension.. There are also those who say, “I was born here, my mother tongue is Ukrainian, but I speak Russian better,” like the driver of the taxi we took.

The people of the city have a history, past and they take care of their present and are really proud of where they live. While walking on the street, we encountered people wearing shirts or dresses with local motifs on the first day.. Since we did not know the city yet, we thought that these people were members of a music or dance group by chance and went to the meeting place for their show.. Or that it is the country’s national holiday. We realized the truth at the end of the first day: people here love these shirts and dresses with local motifs.. So they’re not members of a band, they’re people who live there.. These are the clothes they wear in their daily life.

Places to Visit in Lviv

The heart of Lviv beats in Rynok Square.. It’s like the miniature squares we built out of the legos we played when we were little.. Rynok Square, which is on UNESCO’s cultural heritage list, draws people in at first glance. It takes you on a journey through history with its beautiful buildings, each of which you can look at for hours, and its cobblestone streets that seem as if time has never flown.

Before exploring the side streets with colorful and lively cafes, these buildings around the square, dating back to the present without losing their texture, and Neptune and Apollon statues decorating the same square. you can watch and have an “aesthetic feast” for your eyes.

Lviv and Street Musicians

Then it’s time to enter the streets all over Rynok Square and find the treasures there. comes to discover. During this time, when you enter each street, different types of music hit your ears.

Lviv, a city rich enough to make people who are interested in history and culture dizzy, is also a street musicians. city. Moreover, accompanied by the delicious smells of coffee and chocolate.

You listen to Vivaldi from a child violinist at the beginning of a street, two young women come to the beginning of another street and give you a musical feast with a harp.

Or, just below the statue of the founder of the city, King Dannylo of Galicia, in Halytsky Square, a young man with a guitar in his hand will tell you the history of rock. He sings his unforgettable songs.

Sometimes, you get emotional with the melodies of an old accordionist sitting on the corner of another street with his small stool, even if you don’t understand the words of the song he is singing.

What to Eat and Drink in Lviv? Lviv Cafes

Lviv is also a cafe paradise. There are hundreds of cafes side by side not only in Rynok Square but all over the city. One of them is House of Legends. You can go to the top of this building and see the lucky chimney sweep.

Lviv How are the Prices?

The interesting thing is that the prices of what you eat and drink in these cafes are about the same. Unless of course you prefer to eat in a very luxurious place.. For example, in an average cafe the highest you can pay for a breakfast or lunch is 80 or 100 hryvnia. This is about 10 or 12 TL with our money.

Speaking of cafes, let’s not go without saying that. The townspeople literally love to eat. It is almost impossible to find an empty table and sit during the opening hours of the cafes.. If you don’t eat meat dishes, a sweet side dish is added to almost all meals in cafes and restaurants where moderate people eat and drink. Let’s also note that the plates in restaurants and cafes are served on a heap, unlike ours.. The milintzi or siriniki (which we know as pancakes) in a cafe in the morning will keep you full until the evening.

By the way, if you happen to be in Lviv, don’t come without eating apple strudel or pancake. At least once.

Lviv Transport

Lviv does not have a metro network. But instead there are buses, trams, minibuses and taxis. Moreover, transportation is cheaper than water compared to many cities.. It’s 2 hryvnia to go from place to place on the trams, which are usually used by over middle-aged and highly decorated women.

But actually it’s just If you want to visit every inch of Lviv, not Rynok Square, you can do it on foot.. Because all the places to visit are within walking distance.. Wherever you go, even if you don’t realize it, your path will eventually lead to Rynok Square.

How is the Population of Liviv?

Lviv is actually a really small city although it receives many tourists from almost all over the world.. So much so that during the three weeks we stayed in the city, we lived in the same neighborhood with many people for years.. We started saying “good morning” to each other in the morning or “good evening” in the evening.. By the way, at least contrary to the judgment in my mind, the people of Lviv are extremely friendly, smiling and helpful.

When you ask anyone for a way, let alone describe them, some will take you to your destination. even taking it change its way. When they realize that you are a foreigner, they do their best to tell you about their city.. They tell you everything they know about the place you want to go at once. The interesting thing is, they don’t ask where you are from at first, as is customary in many places.. There are those who never asked this, and there are those who ask last.. Because apparently, it doesn’t matter where you are from, the important thing is that you go to their city and try to see and learn something about it.

Places to Visit and See in Lviv

Lontskoho Prison

We encountered the most interesting of such volunteer guides in a museum that brings deep sorrow and reflection.

The electricity was cut that day in Lontskoho Prison, the first prison museum of Ukraine, where we were taken on foot by a Lvivlian whom we asked for directions.. But still, the woman on duty named Olesya let us in.. He voluntarily opened it to visit one by one and showed all the wards and gave information about them.

This old prison, where especially the dissidents stayed, both during the German occupation during the Second World War and the Soviet Union regime. Olesya told us her terrible history. He showed the death row, the narrow room where people were shot, and the other wards of the prison and gave information about all of them.

Citadel

<

When we realized that we were especially interested in the Second World War period, he took us to another place of his own accord.. He showed us around the Citadel, which was also used as a prison and mass murder site during the German occupation, and the park it is in.. He gave information about each of them as he passed through the streets leading to this area. He talked about who lived in the past years, and what happened to them afterwards, even in the houses lined up almost on the side of the street.. He said that he could not work because the electricity was cut in the museum he was in charge of, and that he spent his spare time telling us about the history of his country.. Then he shook our hands and said goodbye to us before we even had a chance to suggest a coffee.

Lviv Museums

Here let’s come to Lviv’s museums. You don’t have to pay astronomical fees to visit many museums here.

Opera House

One ​​of the first places you should see if you are in Lviv is the Opera House. The building bearing the signature of Zygmunt Gorgolewski is one of the must-see places with its fountain pool in front of it and the square with trees on both sides extending right at the end.. If you have the opportunity, go inside the building or even watch an opera or ballet.

The interior of the building, which was built in the new Renaissance style, makes you feel like you are in a temple of art.. You can’t get enough of watching any work in this hall.. As for the ticket prices, watching the Swan Lake ballet in a six-person box with a very good view of the stage costs 250 hryvnia, or a little more than 30 TL.

Shevchenkivsky Hay (Shevchenko Park -National Museum of Folk Architecture)

One of the most must-see places in Lviv Shevchenkivsky Ha ie Shevchenko Park. In other words, the National Museum of Folk Architecture. This is one of the endless parks in Lviv, spread over areas almost larger than the city, an open-air museum.. All over the country, houses, churches, schools where people lived in past centuries have been rebuilt.. This is a museum that reveals the rural architectural style.. You pay 20 hryvnia, i.e. 2.5 TL, to enter. When you start walking straight after entering the park, it is as if you are going to a different time.. 17. You get to know about the period by entering the exact examples of the houses where the Ukrainian people lived in the 18th and 19th centuries.. If you want, you can wear local costumes and take a souvenir photo.

After your visit to the buildings in the park, you can stay inside until the evening closes, take a walk or jog, sit on the grass and read a book.. If you want and it is not crowded, you can even lie down on one of the benches in the garden of the houses and watch the clouds passing by in the sky.

Ivan Franko Park

We said that there are many parks in Lviv that are almost bigger than the city. One of them is Ivan Franko Park. This is a large park stretching behind the statue of Ivan Franko, located directly opposite the magnificent university building.

Stiirksy Park and Culture Park is one of the lush green spaces in Lviv.

One ​​of the places to visit in Lviv is Potocki Palace. The Italian Palace and House of Scientists in Rynok Medan are also must-see places in the city.

The city’s attractions One of its places is the Lviv History of Religions Museum. It is possible to find many works belonging to Christianity, Judaism and Islam religions here. The ground floor of the history of religions museum is almost like a museum in itself.

Lychakiv Cemetery

Don’t say, “Do you ever visit a cemetery in a foreign city you’ve been to?”. The Lychakiv Cemetery in question is visited. ‘Cause this isn’t a cemetery, it’s some kind of museum. You can even call it an architectural museum.. The fee you have to pay here is 15 hryvnia, or about 2 TL. From time to time, night tours are also made for this cemetery, where each tombstone is a separate work of art.. In this museum cemetery, there are the final resting places of famous Ukrainians as well as Poles, former residents of the city.

House of Scientists

One ​​of the places in the city to admire the architecture of House of Scientists. This imposing building is by Austrian architects Helmer and Felner.. Built between 1897 and 1898, this structure housed a German commander during the occupation during the Second World War.. It is now used for various arts events. There is already a cinema institute in the garden right behind.

Entry here 15 hryvnia. So 1. 80 TL. cents. Let’s summarize the subject as the product of a fine taste that makes those who see the building tremble at the first moment.

Pharmacy Museum

Lviv ‘ One of the interesting places of the city is the Pharmacy Museum… This museum, which has a history dating back to 1735, is worth 15 hryvnia.. You enter by paying 85 TL. The underground part of the building is also arranged as a museum.

Things to Do in Lviv

Lvivska Visit Manifaktura Kavi

Now is the time to tell about Lviv’s underground. The bottom of the city has been evaluated as much as the top. There is a lot to discover there too.. One of the most interesting of these places is Lvivska Manifaktura Kavi.. As you pass in front of Rynok Square number 10, an irresistible smell of coffee will already call you inside.. At first, you will see the coffee pouring from a huge machine and spinning in a giant band, the clerks selling coffee to dozens of people, and then the officers placing the coffees in the sacks they sew in front of everyone.. Post one of a kind bookstore and gift shop. Don’t stop, keep moving forward. Inside, a semi-dark cafe with only two windows awaits you.

But don’t stop there, go back to the exit and turn right and there it is! Stairs going down. When you go down those stairs, you will see an underground cage designed like a mine.. At the entrance you will be given a miner’s helmet with a light on it and your tour will begin.. You can sit here and sip your coffee if you wish.

As for why this place was designed like this, people used to think that coffee was mined from underground just like other mines.. So that’s the reason! The father of the idea is Yuri-Franz Kulchinski. He was captured by the Ottomans during the siege of Vienna in 1863.. He also learned how to make coffee there.. When he returned to Lviv, he both introduced the coffee and acted as the father of ideas for this place.. You’ll also see a statue of Yuri-Franz Kulchinsky holding a coffee tray while walking around the mine.

Eat at Krivka

<

Let’s continue underground. One of the first places that comes to mind when Lviv is mentioned is the restaurant bar called Krivka.. Located in an old bunker from WWII, this place is really interesting. You have to tell the guard at the door the password to get in.. The password is ‘Slava Ukraina’ i.e. great Ukraine. The officer in a military uniform offers you a drink from the flask after you open the door.

A few steps When you get down and enter inside, a different world awaits you.. You can have a drink or a meal at this bar, which is made from a shelter, and listen to the singer who sings local songs accompanied by an accordion.. Here, too, the prices are not exaggerated.

Lviv Chocolate Factory

When you visit the Lviv Homemade Chocolate Factory, you will both see the chocolate making and visit the three-storey building and inhale the thousands of colors and smells of chocolate.

Lviv Post Office Museum

This is both a museum and a restaurant. If you wish, you can sip your drink accompanied by various kinds of pasta by watching the walls where communication tools such as postage stamps, fax machines, telephones and a very rich stamp collection are exhibited.. It is even possible to see how the pasta you eat is made.. Because when you enter the interior of the restaurant, you will meet a young master who makes pasta with his hands without caring about what is going on around him.

Ratusa City Hall

Let’s come to Lviv, that is, let’s watch the city from above. There are two important options for this: One is Ratusa City Hall in the middle of Rynok Square… If you wish, you can tour the building and climb up the tower and watch Lviv from a bird’s eye view.. If you want to go up to the tower, you have to buy a ticket on the fourth floor.. This 65-meter-high tower can be reached by climbing 350 steps.. On the fourth floor you have to pay 10 hryvnias, which is a little over 1 lira.

High Castle

<

This is not the only point from which the city can be viewed from above. There’s also the High Castle if you’re willing to climb a bit.. It’s free to climb here. You just need to fine tune your breathing. But the view you will see when you go out is the highest point of the city, where the ruins of this castle, which was built in 1250, are the highest point of the city.

Zolochiv Castle

Lviv’s Do not think that everything is over after you have visited and seen it.. Because places to visit outside the city are waiting for you.. For this, it is best to join the organized daily tours.

There are Olesko, Zolochiv and Piddhirtsi castles among the must-see places near the city.. Zolochiv Castle dates back to 1634. Since then, it has been used as the regional king’s castle, city prison, public order center, and school.

Olesko Castle is also a 17-century building. Although its former glory is far behind, its past is full of good memories.. It was damaged in a great fire in 1951, and in 1975 it was renovated and started to serve as an art gallery.

Pidhirtsi Castle

The most impressive of these castles in appearance is Pidhirtsi Castle. It is known that it was built between 1635 and 1640.. There is also an interesting legend about this castle.. According to rumors, Jevuski, the ruler of the time, lived in the 1720s and hated his wife very much.. He hung the princess on the wall of the castle and the princess died in this way. Local residents say that every year, on the day of the death of the princess, she can be heard crying.. So it’s not in vain that when we see this castle from afar, it reminds me of the haunting thriller locations.

These three castles can be seen in a tour package. The price of the tour, which starts at 10 in the morning and lasts until the evening, is 250 hryvnia, that is, 30 TL.. It comes to approximately 40 TL with 75 hryvnia as an entrance fee.

Carpathian Mountains Tour

It’s impossible not to see the Carpathian mountains when you go to Lviv. For this, it is best to join daily tours again.. The tour starts at 7 am and lasts until 9 pm.. The cost of this, including the entrance fee, is 375 hryvnia, which is a little more than 45 TL.

There is a group of musicians singing local songs to us on this tour, which is partly by bus and partly by train. accompanied by.

Another more comprehensive Carpathian tour included Kamenice Castle, where the Ottomans ruled for a while, and Sinevir, one of the country’s most important lakes.. The price of this goes up to 500 hryvnia, ie 60 TL.

Actually There are many things to stay and do in Lviv. You can spend hours just wandering the streets, examining the buildings with impressive architecture, and taking pictures.

You can imagine getting lost in the streets of the city and traveling to the past.. You can sit on one of the benches in the lively streets and listen to the concerts of street musicians all day or until late at night.. Moreover, if you get bored of classical music, you can listen to a jazz concert in another street.. If you get tired of that, young musicians are playing something you will definitely like on another street.

What You Should Know About Lviv (Lviv Tips)

• A few notes about the city: street signs in Lviv are written in both Cyrillic and Latin script. So finding a way is not difficult at all.
• People have great sympathy for Turkey. Some people even say ‘hello’ in Turkish by saying the letter H out of their throat when they find out where you are going.
• The most important reason for this is undoubtedly the Turks you will often come across on the streets.
• The ancestry of most of Lviv’s natives is Polish. It is very common to come across parents with Polish parents in a family.
• Most of the men and women in the city are physically above average in appearance. And it has nothing to do with age.. Even though a man or woman in their 60s carries the traces of years, it still preserves its good old look to a great extent.
• The younger generation in the city pays great attention to their clothing.. 8 out of 10 women on the street dress like they came out of fashion magazines.
• Lviv also got its share from shopping malls. The shopping center in the center is in an old building that preserves its historical texture.. Her name is Roksalana. They gave here the real name of perhaps the most famous historical personality from their country, namely Hürrem Sultan, whom we know.. In front of Roksalana, where you can find stores selling world-famous brands, village women also sell vegetables and fruits.. There is a public market right inside and a flower market in front of it.
• The other shopping mall in the city, Lviv Forum, is a little further away from the center and is in a newly built building.
• If you turn on the TV and watch the news channels, you may suddenly be horrified by “where did I come from”. Because many news channels convey the developments related to the problem areas.. We even came across a channel broadcasting live from the front.. But don’t panic right away. Lviv is a quiet place away from the hustle and bustle.

Visa-free Lviv and Lviv Airport

Visa-free travel to Lviv. In fact, with the agreement between the two countries, it will soon be possible to enter with an ID as in Georgia without the need for a passport.. Danylo Halytski Airport is also a really small and quiet place.. It took a total of 20 minutes to get off the plane, to passport control and to collect the luggage.. But you still have your return ticket and documents showing where you will stay ready.. Because they take some of the male passengers, especially from Turkey, in a separate room and interrogate them.. Despite this, the staff at the airport in general are friendly and do not cause much difficulty.

Lviv Hotels, Lviv Hostels

Perhaps you will spend the most for accommodation in Lviv. But if you choose one of the hostels all over the city instead of hotels, you can solve this job cheaper than many parts of the world.

Flights to Lviv

Turkish Airlines, Atlas Jet and Ukraine International Airlines have flights to Lviv. If you follow very closely and do a good research, you can also get the plane ticket very cheap.. If you set off from Istanbul, it takes 1 hour and 50 minutes to reach Lviv.

In short, if you want to have a different holiday without having visa problems and spending astronomical money, get to know a new city in Lviv waiting for you.

Lviv Weather, Lviv Climate

Let’s get to the weather… Lviv’ variable it has an aura. During the first two days we were there, it was tiringly hot.. The next days were rainy and cool. Sometimes we experienced three seasons from spring to summer in one day.. In summary, if you’re going in the summer, it’s a good idea to pack a mixed suitcase.

Lviv Shopping

Souvenirs in Lviv surprised us the most. Actually you don’t have hundreds of options. You can buy things like keychain, coffee cup, bag, t-shirt. Of course, liquor coffee or chocolate too.. But the most assertive aspect of the city in terms of souvenirs is clothing items decorated with local motifs.. In the market opened close to the opera house, you can find buckles, bags, jewelry, but not necessarily shirts, dresses and even socks with local motifs.. Here things are changing. If you are interested in ethnic wear, especially hand-embroidered clothes suddenly tempt you.. The prices of those handcrafted shirts, each of which are truly like a work of art, range from 2000 hryvnia to 240 TL to 6000 rivna, or 720 TL. But you can watch them just like you watch other works of art in the city and just satisfy your eyes.. After all, our goal is not to fill our backpacks or suitcases on the way back from our trip, but to get to know a city, breathe its air, enrich our soul and brain, and collect beautiful holiday memories.

Lviv Nightlife

Lviv’s nightlife is pretty famous. Most of the cafes and markets in the city close at 9 or half past 9 at the latest.. Few places open until midnight. If you ask where people go after these cafes and markets are closed, of course they have fun in nightclubs scattered all over the city.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Nazan Mengü

He entered Istanbul University School of Press and Broadcasting Graduated from Istanbul University Faculty of Communication. He completed his four-year school in six years and started working in the print media.. He worked as a cultural and art correspondent for years.. At that time, he never missed business trips to archaeological excavation sites.. Then he suddenly found himself in the internet media as a magazine editor.. Where Hollywood celebrities go and who they hang around with is a “professional interest”. Fan of the Second New poets. He likes to travel when he is not succumbing to his fear of flying.. In fact, her biggest dream is to travel and write, that is, to become a travel writer.. Approaches touristic catalogs with a distance, “studies” before traveling, reads and researches. Through social media, they get “acquaintances” living in their destination and get first-hand information.