Lviv, a city in Western Ukraine, is the administrative centre of the Lviv region and a cultural, educational, scientific and tourist centre of Ukraine.
Lviv is a very unusual and beautiful city. It is one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations. Only Kyiv can compete with its beauty, grandeur and number of amazing landmarks. Various types of architectures, traditions, identities, temperaments, and histories have been woven into a common thread – Lviv.
As the capital of the country’s west, the city owes its fascinating appearance, reminiscent of Prague, Krakow and Vienna at the same time, to its bright and dynamic history, which has been changing and developing for over seven and a half centuries.
Architecturally, the city combines its European influences with Soviet-era leftovers in a remarkable manner, giving the city a peculiar charm. Despite being rather a large city, a unique calmness prevails here. It makes for pleasant strolls through the city’s narrow cobblestone streets, filled with a medieval atmosphere.
Lviv’s historic centre can be called an outdoor museum. For good reason, it was included in the list of UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage sites. Lviv has nearly two thousand historic, cultural and architectural monuments. The heart of the city, the Rynok Square, amazes with colourful houses, taken straight from the pages of fairytales. In its centre stands the Town Hall, from which one can see breathtaking views of the city. You will get a good look at the Cathedral, in which elements of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and Classicist architecture are successfully blended. You will also see the Dominican Church, the famous Armenian Apostolic Church and Lviv’s crown jewel – the beautiful St. George’s Cathedral.
Another fantastic panoramic view can be seen from the Lviv High Castle’s sightseeing platform. The city remains a significant industrial centre of Ukraine. About 90% of the national production of lighting lamps, 100% of the production of forklift trucks and 11% of the production of buses are concentrated here.
Recent years have been characterized by the development of tourism and IT industry, which makes Lviv a major tourist and IT hub in Eastern Europe. Lviv has a developed tourist infrastructure. It is annually visited by more than 1 million tourists. Lviv International Airport, located 6 km from the city centre, offers flights to such cities as Vienna, Istanbul, Munich, Warsaw, Rome, Madrid and Kyiv.
Apart from Lviv being a very important tourist spot and industrial region it also harbours lots of students seeking various degrees in a wide range of fields. The most popular universities of Lviv are as follows: