Kiev or Kyiv is a fairly impressive city, full of churches and parks. There are more than 100 parks, many more gardens and with a population of ~3 million, the per capita green space must be high. It is very nice to see that the green cover is being preserved. There are plenty of cafes, bars, restaurants and night clubs and hence, it is no surprise that Ukraine is among the top 10 countries in the world when it comes to alcohol consumption per capita. However, one should not expect a great deal of variety in cuisine, especially for vegetarians.
The river Dnipro divides the city with largely residential colonies located on one side. The city centre is full of old buildings and they appeared to have been maintained quite well. The sidewalks for pedestrians are very wide, and that makes walking a pleasure.
One can actually see the main attractions in a day or two itself. Things to see and do would include:
- Sophia’s cathedral
- Kyiv-Pechersk cave monastery and the miniature museum
- St. Michael’s golden domed cathedral
- Independence square
- Short cruise on river Dnipro
- Walk in the parks overlooking Dnipro river – Khreschaty, Marriinsky, etc.
- Mariinsky palace and the parliament building
St. Sophia’s Cathedral, Kiev, Ukraine 
St. Andrew’s Church, Kiev, Ukraine 
Kiev Pechersk Lavra monastery, Kiev, Ukraine 
Independence square, Kiev, Ukraine 
St. Michael’s golden domed monastery, Kiev, Ukraine
There are more churches, historic streets, museums etc to see and activities to do in case you have more than 2-3 days. For example, would you like to drive a Soviet era battle tank? Or fire an AK-47 rifle? You could do these in Kiev.
One interesting aspect is that most of the underground passages are full of petty shops and in few places, they are almost like shopping malls. Metrograd is probably the most famous underground shopping mall running a distance of perhaps 0.5 kms(my best guess!) from Lvo Tolstoho Square to Bassarabska Square.
Buying souvenirs
If you are looking to buy a souvenir, there is a shop close to Maidan Nezalezhnosti(Independence Square). Greater choice but if you know what to buy, you could also pick it up at one of underground shops. I checked 2 places and did not find any difference in price. Souvenirs are available at the airport as well but they are far more expensive. What cost UAH 450 in the city was priced UAH 750 at the airport.
Day trips from Kiev
There are a few options but the most popular is the tour of Chernobyl.
Is Kiev worth visiting?
Finally, is Kiev worth visiting? While Kiev is impressive, I would rank it below other East European towns such as Prague, Budapest etc. But yes, if you are keen on Chernobyl, it is certainly worth spending 2-3 days in Kiev.
