Boryspil airport is the main
international airport for Kiev. It is situated 30km south east of the city
centre. It is a very small airport and is similar to a an American
municipal airport or a British regional airport.
On arriving to the airport, passengers leave the plane
and ride on a bus to the terminal, where passports are checked. If the queues
are long, then it can take about 20 minutes to pass through, after which luggage
is reclaimed from the carousel. Sometimes luggage can take time to get to the
carousels, so there may be a bit of a wait here. If there is nothing to declare,
then simply proceed through the green channel, which is situated on the right
hand side of the red channels. There are declaration forms situated near to the
carousels if needed.
On leaving Ukraine there are
certain things to be aware of. Certain items purchased in the country such as
art and media content, tapes, compact discs, videos, dvd's, etc, are not allowed
to be taken out of Ukraine. Also a limited amount of Ukrainian currency is allowed to be taken
out of the country. So a good idea is to change spare currency at the 'Obmin
Valut', foreign exchange, which is situated in the airport terminal.
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2. Taxis.
Taxis are plentiful in Kiev. They are the most expensive form of public
transport to go from Boryspil to to the city centre. It can cost as much as
500 uah, if a tourist is unaware. You will be
hassled by many taxi drivers at the airport!
Normally to catch a taxi from one side of the city to the other, the
price will be around 60 uah. It is an interesting fact that everyone who drives
a car in Kiev, is a potential taxi driver and will stop when hailed by a
pedestrian, they tend to charge less than an official taxi.
3. Minibuses.
The minibuses have their destinations and price
of fayre written on little boards in the front window. The cost of using
minibuses range from 50 kopecks to around
2 uah. They are generally more
expensive than trolley buses and trams because they are privately owned. The
driver takes a definitive route and will stop when asked to do. There is a
fantastic minibus service that runs every 15 minutes either way from
The Main Railway Station to Boryspil
Airport. It costs 20uah. 2/12/05.
Trolleybuses are easy to use. They only cost
50 kopecks to ride. Tickets
are purchased from the conductor of the bus or if late at night, it may be the
driver that sells them, then they are stamped in the machines provided onboard
the buses, by the passengers. Alternatively you can use a 2 week or 1 month pass
card which can be purchased at Metro stations.
Trolley bus number 1 and 42 at
Libidska.
5. Trams
Trams cost
50 kopecks and a conductor walks from carriage
to carriage collectiing the ticket money. After purchasing a ticket, they are
stamped by the passengers using the machines provided inside the tram, the same
way as trolleybuses. Alternatively you can use a 2 week or 1 month pass card
which can be purchased at Metro stations.
A tram at Troeschina and Kontraktova Ploscha.
6. The Metro.
There is a special page dedicated to the Metro -
here.
7. Aftovokzal (Main bus station)
Notes: The main bus station of Kiev.Situated
10 minutes walk from Libidska Metro Station.
The price of bus journeys are slightly more expensive than using trains. A
typical journey to Ternopil (West Ukraine) from Kiev would be
50uah by bus, but by train would cost
around 32uah.
8. Vokzal, Central Railway Station.
Location: Comintern Street.
Notes: The central railway station is a very busy place
and deals with more passengers than Boryspil Airport.
Trains are the main from of transport across Ukraine. The whole station was
completely renovated in 2001, with a new southern building with modern
facilities. The work was astonishingly completed in record time and was
mentioned in the Guiness Book Of Records. Vokzalna metro station (red
line) is
situated next to the central railway station.
