Zhukiv Island

Zhukiv island is known for controversial building sites. This is a very prestigious part of Kyiv but at the same time a reserve. Despite this, powerful people build their houses here by hook or by crook. There were even deaths in unequal struggle of environmentalists and land raiders. Judging by the building pace, in 10 years the island will become a closed territory.

If you are traveling by car, you will see a checkpoint. In 2009 it was possible to pass for free.

The island is quite big and comfortable for a bicycle ride and hiking along the Dnipro. There is no infrastructure here, neither shops nor toilets, only a small "Mayachok" restaurant, which you can find online. But there are many beaches where local people rest.

However, the most interesting object is the so-called "Stalin Subway": the remains of an unfinished tunnel under the Dnipro. There are several fragments of tunnels of different sizes and lengths in Kyiv. The most famous fragments are in the Osokorki and Obolon districts.

We climbed the wooden stairs to the top of the tunnel and went to the place where it disappears under the water. Then we approached the Dnipro and walked along the beaches in the direction of Korchuvate (Kyiv suburb) where we took a minibus to the downtown (see the map below).

Getting there: From the Vydubychi metro station take a minibus #193 almost to the end of the Stolychne Higway. It's not easy for foreigners to find the stop, so use this map.