Ukraine (Lonely Planet Travel Guides) [Paperback]

Sarah Johnstone (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2005

Be dazzled by the golden domes of myriad Orthodox cathedrals, be awed by the monumental Stalinist architecture of Kyiv, be inspired by the breathtaking natural beauty of the Crimean peninsula. On the edge of Europe, Ukraine is a land of the unconventional and quirky, a unique mix of cosmopolitan and Soviet, and this insightful guide shows you how to make the most of it all.

Read All About It – Ukraine’s colorful political events and fascinating history explained

Find Adventure – ice fishing, mountain biking, caving and skiing are just some of the activities on offer

Rest Easy in rural homestays or refurbished Soviet hotels – reviews to suit every budget

Get Around – 35 detailed maps include Cyrillic for easy navigation

Talk The Talk – our practical language guide helps you chat to the locals: budmo!

Editorial Reviews

Review

…these smart and exhaustively researched guides have become the gold standard for serious, independent travelers.' --San Francisco Chronicle

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Lonely Planet; First edition (July 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 186450336X
• ISBN-13: 978-1864503364
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,341,189 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #46 in Books > Travel > Europe > Belarus & Ukraine

More About the Author

Greg Bloom (b. 1969) is a Phnom Penh-based travel writer and editor. He specializes in writing guidebooks about Southeast Asia and the former Soviet Union. Over the years he has been detained by authorities in Uzbekistan, taken a shlagbaum to the head in Kyiv, jumped out of helicopters atop volcanoes in Kamchatka, hit 100km/h in a Latvian bobsled, flown out the back of a jeepney in Puerto Princesa, and survived a bus crash on the back roads of Bicol on the Philippine island of Luzon - mostly in the service of Lonely Planet.

Greg dabbled in careers as diverse as Christmas tree salesman, ski bum, PR flak and New York City bike messenger before moving to Ukraine in 1997 and settling into a career as a journalist. He was editor-in-chief of the Kyiv Post, an English-language weekly, from 1999 to 2003. He later lived in Manila for almost 5 years before moving to Cambodia in 2008. His travel articles have appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald, the South China Morning Post, the Toronto Globe & Mail and Action Asia, among other publications.

You can read about his travels at www.mytripjournal.com/bloomblogs.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Go with the Bradt Guide, February 20, 2008

By 

J. Mosher (Ohio, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ukraine (Lonely Planet Travel Guides) (Paperback)

**NOTE: This review was written about the 1st edition (with the Swallow's Nest mansion on the front), not the second edition (with the painted eggs on front). I've glanced at the second edition, and it does seem to have improved with the involvement of former Kyiv Post editor Greg Bloom.**

This is probably the worst travel guide I've ever read. It completely misses the point of travel in Ukraine. It's constantly referring to the sub-standard quality of virtually everything and trashes all but three or four destinations. I can't tell you how many times I read descriptions of places I've visited an scoffed at how offhandedly they were dismissed.

People don't visit Ukraine for a relaxing week of 5-star hotels and Western European-style tourism. If not looking for family or engaging in business, people come to Ukraine for a decidedly different tourist experience. Yes, it's an experience that is a little rough around the edges. But it's also filled with cheap and convenient travel, incredibly hospitable and authentic people, and rich and diverse landscapes, including snowy birch forests and rocky sub-tropical beaches. All among an interesting mix of European and Soviet history. However, this book is content to write off entire regions of Ukraine.

The LP folks were recently back in Ukraine doing research for the new edition, but I'm not all that hopeful much of this can be salvaged. Go with the Bradt Guide, it's the best guide to Ukraine available.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars -, August 10, 2005

By 

J. Stehno (Suisun, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ukraine (Lonely Planet Travel Guides) (Paperback)

It's nice to finally see Lonely Planet print a book just on Ukraine with some current and updated info for people traveling there. The only disappointment I had was that there is very little coverage of Eastern Ukraine, the Donbass Region to be exact. Granted most tourist types won't venture to areas like Lugansk. For those who do want to brave the adventure don't rely on this book for any info. east of Donetsk. Other than that I thought the book was pretty good. It's compact size makes it easier to carry compared to when Lonely Planet combined Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus in their previous printing.

27 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not up to lonely planet standards, September 23, 2005

By 

ebeowulf - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ukraine (Lonely Planet Travel Guides) (Paperback)

The lonely planet series has generally been wonderful. Every time I bought one, they were not only a fun read but were chalk full of info on things to see and do. The Ukraine book, however, seems very disappointing in comparison. For one, the book is very small for such a big country. The author only visits a number of selected cities and totally ignores whole sections of the country, especially in the east which has 5 pages for the entire section. Even within those cities she does visit, however, the sightseeing oppurtunities (according to her) appear very sparse, the accomodations listed are very limited, and there is very little information about day trips or things to see outside the city. Finally, the entire book is very politicized. It looks like she wrote the book during the Orange Revolution, and got caught up in the strong nationalistic and anti-russian feelings that accompanied it. Unfortunately, this also shows through in her writing.

So in general, this book is not good enough to go to Ukraine. There aren't many options available right now, but something better than this is definetly needed.