The center of Kyiv is filled not only with beautiful historic buildings and monuments but also with remarkable museums. Historical, artistic, contemporary – here you will find rarities and installations you won't see anywhere else.
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1. Museum of the Formation of the Ukrainian Nation
An innovative new history museum where the past meets modern technology. On the tour, you will learn about the centuries-old history of the Ukrainian nation and see 25 exhibits featuring realistic 3D figures of prominent Ukrainian figures. The exhibits are based on historical research, have scientific justification, and are the result of many years of work by scientists and experts.
📍 Lavrska Street, 27 (entrance from Zapechernaya Street, back side of the Motherland Monument)
2. Miniland.UA Miniature Museum
The largest Ukrainian railway model "Miniland.UA" is a miniature country that depicts the charm of modern authentic Ukraine. The team of miniature creators is very meticulous, making each model look as realistic and detailed as possible.
By visiting the museum, you will see locations such as the Ivano-Frankivsk train station, a watermill, the narrow-gauge train station in Haivoron, and other interesting places in Ukraine.
📍 Stepana Bandery Street, 34V (Blockbuster Entertainment Center)
3. Pharmacy Museum on Podil
In 1728, this was the first and only private pharmacy in Kyiv, opened by Johann Heiter. The business was very profitable, as only military personnel could rely on medicines in the state pharmacy at the hospital. In the second half of the 18th century, the pharmacy was owned by pharmacist G. Bunge, and after his death, by his son A. Bunge. The family business operated for 110 years until the building housing the pharmacy was sold. Only in 1986 did the pharmacy begin operating as a museum, telling the history of Ukrainian pharmacy.
In the basement, several installations have been created: a healer's hut, a monk-herbalist's cell, and an alchemist's laboratory. There is a phytobar where herbal infusions are served, seemingly made from ancient recipes.
📍 Pritisko-Mykilska Street, 7 (near Kontraktova Square).
4. National Natural History Museum of the NAS of Ukraine
The NASU Museum includes geological, paleontological, botanical, and zoological sections. Here you can find ancient fossils, archaeological finds, cave paintings from prehistoric times, enormous dinosaur skeletons, other extinct animals, unknown plants, and many other fascinating items that captivate and transport you into the past of our planet.
📍 Bohdana Khmelnytskoho Street, 15 (near Zoloti Vorota metro station)
5. Experimentarium
The Museum of Science and Technology is a place where science becomes interesting, and learning becomes easy and unforgettable. The museum's exhibits will captivate both adults and children. Here you can check the conductivity of objects, launch a cloud to the ceiling, dismantle a human model (of course, a model 😉) into parts, and much more.
The Experimentarium's exhibition includes over 300 interactive exhibits dedicated to mechanics, optics, electricity, magnetism, and acoustics – bring the kids and learn something new together.
📍 Kyiv, Stepana Bandery Avenue, 6D (near Pochaina metro station)
6. Khanenko Museum
The Bohdan and Varvara Khanenko National Museum of Arts in Kyiv is a prominent museum of world art in Ukraine, a true place of strength and inspiration for art lovers. The museum's collection includes over 25,000 items, 1,000 of which are on permanent display. The museum regularly hosts exhibitions, presentations, educational cycles, and audio tours in various languages.
📍 Tereshchenkivska Street, 15-17.
7. Jellyfish Museum
The first and currently only live jellyfish museum in Kyiv pleasantly surprises everyone with its uniqueness and beauty. Its extensive exhibition is created by professional aquarists passionately in love with the sea. Here you will find an incredibly large collection of these magical marine creatures.
At the museum, you will learn many interesting facts, such as how many known species of jellyfish exist on Earth, which are deadly poisonous, and which jellyfish is the only immortal creature on the planet.
📍 Address: Khreshchatyk Street, 7.
8. Golden Gate
The Golden Gate Museum in Kyiv is the main entrance to the city of Yaroslav the Wise. For many years, the gate stood in a semi-ruined state until it was restored for Kyiv's 1500th anniversary. The exact original appearance of the architectural monument is uncertain, as there are no remaining images of the Golden Gate from the 11th century, and some elements were altered and supplemented during the reconstruction. Nevertheless, the monument-museum has not lost its historical value and remains one of the city's landmarks.
📍 Volodymyrska Street, 40A (near Zoloti Vorota metro station)
9. Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War
The museum is located on the grounds of a huge Memorial Complex in Kyiv with a Hero Cities Alley and an exhibition of military equipment within the monumental Motherland statue. The museum's exhibitions tell the story of the bloodiest war in human history – World War II, as well as the current full-scale Russo-Ukrainian war.
Museum exhibitions:
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War Amulets – the history of ordinary objects that served as talismans for Ukrainians caught in the bloody socialist cataclysms of the 20th century and in the current Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Ukraine on the Covers of World Media. A visual collection – from the first days of the invasion, Ukrainian symbols and materials about the courage, struggle, and sacrifice of our people have appeared on the covers of well-known world publications. The collection includes 96 covers and reflects the events of the war through the eyes of journalists, photographers, and illustrators.
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Defenders – a project about brave, strong, and courageous soldiers who have been defending Ukraine, Europe, and the world from global Russian evil for over a year.
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Mariupol Diary – the story of an eight-year-old boy who survived for 100 days with his family in an occupied city. The diary entries alternate between joy, pain, blood, and death... The world-famous "Mariupol Diary" can be read, seen, and listened to – the museum created an animated film where the boy himself narrates his story.
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Ukraine-Crucifixion – an exhibition about the current Russo-Ukrainian war.
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Multimedia Project "Children" – in memory of the children killed in the full-scale war.
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MultiMedicines from War – an animation project for children based on alarming and sad drawings, which the museum has transformed into positive and cheerful ones, so that future generations of Ukraine grow up with faith in victory and feel part of a united, brave, and strong nation of fighters.
📍 Lavrska Street, 27 (near Zvirynetska metro station, formerly known as Druzhby Narodiv)
10. Kyiv in Miniature
The open-air park-museum is located on the territory of Hydropark. This is a place where you can see all of Kyiv in detail in 30 minutes and the whole country in an hour. The museum has numerous mini-copies of the most popular landmarks, streets, and architectural works of the capital. In the "Ukraine in Miniature" location, you will be "transported" to different corners of our beautiful country and see detailed copies of landmarks in Lviv, Ternopil, Chernihiv, and other cities.
📍 Brovarskyi Avenue, 9V (near Hydropark metro station)
11. Water Museum
The Water Information Center is located in a former water tower, part of the first centralized water supply system in the capital. At the "Water Museum," you will learn everything about the planet's hydrosphere, as well as more familiar household details of water supply and consumption. Many of the demonstrations are interactive.
📍 Mykhaila Hrushevskoho Street, 1V.
12. Pirogovo
The Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine is located on the southern outskirts of Kyiv. Pirogovo is a huge open-air area where examples of architecture from practically all corners of Ukraine are gathered. With 275 exhibits from the 16th to the 20th centuries, including churches, windmills, apiaries, huts, and more. Walking around the entire museum takes a lot of time and energy, but in the spring-summer season, you can usually rent a bicycle or electric transport at the entrance.
📍 Akademika Tronko Street, 1.
13. PinchukArtCentre
The center of contemporary art is located in the center of Kyiv, near the Bessarabska Market. The "PinchukArtCentre" does not have a single permanent exhibition, as the exhibitions regularly change. It can be a photo exhibition, an installation of visual art, an exhibition using 3D or light technologies. The only thing that unites them all is the modernity, the "fresh" perspective of 21st-century artists.
In March 2024, you can see the exhibition of artist Oleksandr Roitburd "Theorem of Power," dedicated to the artist's reflections on the power of art. The exhibition will run from March 8 to July 14, 2024.
In the spring-summer season, you can also see the "I'm With You" exhibition – an international group exhibition dedicated to empathy and reflection on the theme of war. Among the installation authors are artists from Ukraine, the USA, Mexico, India, Belgium, Denmark, and France.
📍 Velyka Vasylkivska Street, Baseina Street, 1, 3-2 (near Ploshcha Ukrainskykh Heroiv metro station, formerly known as Lva Tolstoho)
14. Planetarium
The Kyiv Planetarium is the oldest and largest planetarium in Ukraine. Here you will learn everything about astronomy, touch space, visit other planets, and even other galaxies. Intriguing, isn't it?
📍 Velyka Vasylkivska Street, 57/3 (near Olimpiyska metro station).
15. National Taras Shevchenko Museum
The Taras Shevchenko Museum provides a detailed account of the life, creativity, and everyday life of one of Ukraine's greatest poets. The museum houses original paintings, personal belongings, and many other artifacts that offer a deeper understanding of Taras Shevchenko's life and legacy.
📍 Tarasa Shevchenka Boulevard, 12 (near Teatralna metro station).
16. Money Museum of the National Bank of Ukraine
The Money Museum of the National Bank of Ukraine is the only one of its kind in Ukraine. Here you will learn everything about money circulation in the Ukrainian lands from ancient times to the present day, the functions of the National Bank of Ukraine, and money protection; you will gain simple financial management skills.
The museum's collection includes hundreds of exhibits, among which are unique and rare banknotes and coins, engravings of portraits for banknotes, commemorative specimens created to mark special events and dates, and more.
Today, the Money Museum of the National Bank of Ukraine offers not only guided tours in Ukrainian and English but also interesting interactive activities for children and adults: quests, workshops, lectures, and master classes.
📍 Address: Instytutska Street, 9, Entrance #2. Working hours: Mon-Fri 9:00-18:00.
17. Apple Museum
The first Apple technology museum in Ukraine opened in June 2023. The museum has over 100 exhibits, including:
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Steve Wozniak's computer (Apple co-founder in 1976, together with Steve Jobs and Ronald Wayne),
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the first portable computer weighing over 7 kg,
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the first computer that provided mass wireless internet access, and many other interesting items.
📍 Khreshchatyk Street, 42 (near Khreshchatyk metro station)
18. Artarea
The cultural and artistic complex is a modern multi-level art space that consists of classical and digital galleries with changing exhibitions. In the classical gallery, artworks are displayed, while the digital gallery features video art created using multimedia technologies that help fully immerse you in the atmosphere and enhance emotional perception.
📍 Sofiivska Street, 11-15 (near Khreshchatyk metro station).
19. National Art Museum of Ukraine
"The Museum with Lions," as locals call it, is the most important art museum because it houses masterpieces of Ukrainian art from the times of Kyivan Rus to the present. It was founded at the end of the 19th century by the Ukrainian intelligentsia as Kyiv's first public museum. The building itself, in the neoclassical style, is one of the creations of architect Vladyslav Horodetsky, also the author and owner of the House with Chimeras. The extensive collection of Ukrainian sacred art, primarily from the Baroque era, includes icons and iconostases, polychrome sculpture, and old prints. The collection of Ukrainian avant-garde artists of the 20th century is extremely interesting, featuring works by Oleksandr Bohomazov, Oleksandra Ekster, Adalbert Erdeli, Mykhailo Boychuk and his school, Fedir Krychevsky, Tetyana Yablonska, and Mykola Hlushchenko.
📍 Hrushevskoho Street, 6 (near Maidan Nezalezhnosti metro station)
20. Church Museum of Savior on Berestove
Masterpieces of Ukrainian iconography can be seen not only in museum halls but also in ancient churches themselves. Thus, the churches of St. Sophia of Kyiv, St. Andrew, and St. Cyril have museum status. After a long restoration, the Church of the Savior on Berestove, near the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, has recently opened to visitors. The church, built during princely times, preserves unique frescoes from the 11th-12th centuries and wall paintings from the 17th century, created after the church's restoration by Metropolitan Petro Mohyla in the 1640s.
📍 Lavrska Street, 9 (near Arsenalna metro station)
21. Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine
Among the numerous museums operating on the territory of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, you cannot miss the Museum of Historical Treasures – a branch of the National Museum of History of Ukraine. Most exhibits are precious jewelry found by archaeologists during excavations of burial mounds. Here you can see the famous Scythian gold, ancient jewelry from the Black Sea Greek colonies, the precious adornments of the Huns, Avars, Pechenegs, Polovtsians, Mongol-Tatars, and the works of Kyiv Rus craftsmen. The museum also features jewelry from the 16th-20th centuries from Ukraine and other countries in Europe and Asia, including a unique collection of Jewish ritual silver. The museum also displays works by contemporary Ukrainian jewelers.
📍 Lavrska Street, 9 (near Arsenalna metro station)
22. Museum of Microminiatures by Mykola Syadristy
On the territory of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, there is a truly unique Museum of Microminiatures by Mykola Syadristy, also known as the "master who shod a flea." All the museum's exhibits easily fit on the tip of a needle or the cross-section of a grain and can only be viewed through a microscope. These include portraits of prominent figures, the world's smallest book – "Kobzar," the world's smallest chess set, ship models, and various sculptural compositions.
📍 Lavrska Street, 9 (near Arsenalna metro station)
23. State Aviation Museum
The State Aviation Museum of Ukraine named after Oleg Antonov is the largest technical museum in the country and is located near Kyiv's (Zhuliany) airport. Over eighty aircraft are displayed in the open air, including passenger and training planes, fighter jets, missile carriers, and helicopters. You can enter four planes and two helicopters and even sit in the pilot's seat.
📍 Medova Street, 1 (near Zhuliany airport)
24. National Museum "Chernobyl"
Many Kyiv residents have never been to this museum and may not realize how popular it has been with foreign tourists all these years, who often head there as soon as they reach Kyiv. Especially now, after the world-famous "Chernobyl" series. This museum was one of the first in Ukraine to create a multimedia exhibition, and this is not just about innovation for the sake of innovation: video, sound, and 3D projections are meant to immerse visitors even deeper into the tragic history of the Chernobyl disaster. The museum's artistic solutions also evoke strong emotions, touching the hearts of absolutely everyone. For a complete experience, it is recommended to visit the museum with a live guide, although there are audio guides available in Ukrainian and many foreign languages. The museum often hosts Ukrainian-Japanese exhibitions, as Japan has experienced two radiation disasters – Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and in our time – Fukushima.
📍 Khoryva Street, 1 (near Kontraktova Ploshcha metro station)
25. Open-Air Museum in Pirohiv
The National Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine is the largest open-air museum in the country, featuring over 300 buildings. Its territory is divided into zones representing the ethnographic regions of Ukraine: Dnipro, Sloboda Ukraine, Polissia, Poltava, Podillia, and the Carpathians. People come to Pirohiv for a full day, as the area is vast, and every picturesque hut, church, and windmill is worth photographing. The museum often hosts reconstructions of folk rituals, concerts, and traditional crafts workshops.
📍 Akademika Tronko Street, 1
Now you know almost everything about the most interesting museums in Kyiv. It's now up to you to explore them and discover something new and exciting!
