August 18, 2023

Visiting Ukraine in 2023: How to make your business trip safe and comfortable?

business triprecommendations to visitingUkraine

Recently, we started receiving questions from our clients from Israel, Great Britain, and the USA about the possibility of meeting their new Ukraine-based teammates in person. To cover these queries, we composed a short but coherent guide on visiting and staying in Ukraine safely in 2023.

How to get to Ukraine in 2023?

Right now, Ukraine is in a no-fly zone. However, as the country has joined the EU “Connecting Europe” program, the Government can soon reopen Lviv Airport (Western Ukraine) for the humanitarian corridor. As this hasn’t yet happened, let’s consider other options for getting to Ukraine.

Flights to bordering countries

Ukraine borders Moldova, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania. Bratislava (Slovakia) and Warsaw (Poland) have more options for crossing the border with Ukraine than other countries. You will easily find direct flights to these cities from almost all European capitals and other cities across the globe.Moldova, ChisinauIts capital was widely used by Hasidim, who wanted to go to Uman to celebrate Rosh Hashanah in 2022, and the situation will most probably repeat itself this year too. There are plenty of direct flights from Tel Aviv and London. If you’re traveling from New York, you will have to stop in Warsaw, as there are no direct flights connecting the USA and Moldova.In Chisinau, you can book a transfer of a car or a bus that will comfortably take you to any city in Ukraine you want.

Crossing the border by train

Traveling by train is the most comfortable and fast way to cross the border with Ukraine. However, as more and more Ukrainians come home from abroad and so many officials, volunteers, and journalists want to visit Ukraine, the demand for tickets is quite high. To get a ticket, say, from Warsaw to Kyiv, we recommend you to buy it 20 days in advance when the tickets officially become available. Moreover, you should better start at 8 a.m. by Kyiv as some days, tickets are off 15 minutes after the sales start. The easiest way to book a ticket is with the Ukrzaliznytsia app.If you want to travel to Ukraine by train, start planning your business trip by buying a Warsaw – Kyiv or Warsaw – Lviv train ticket, as this part is a bit challenging. You can find out more train schedules here.

Traveling by bus

Besides trains, there are also buses that connect Ukraine with the rest of Europe. It’s a cheap ($18 to $70) but frustratingly long journey. For example, a bus trip from Bratislava to Kyiv will take 26 to 27 hours.If you decide to take a bus, come to Lviv first, even if your final destination point is Kyiv. Staying on a bus for more than 20 hours is exhausting, especially if you’re higher than an average person. Overall, a bus is not a way to cross the border with Ukraine that we would recommend. Find out more about the schedule and prices of the routes by the link.

Other options

If your main goal of visiting Ukraine is to contact your MWDN team, we will be happy to help you organize your trip. Please, let us know about your plans in advance by contacting us or writing a DM to an MWDN representative on social media. At the moment, we can promptly organize a transfer from Warsaw, Chelm (Poland), and Chisinau to Lviv or Kyiv.

Documents, visas, and insurance

Despite martial law, there are no additional limitations for foreigners who want to cross the border with Ukraine. If you have Israeli or United States citizenship, no visa is required, and you can stay in Ukraine for up to 90 days. United Kingdom citizens can stay in Ukraine with no visa required for as long as they want. However, for some reason, the situation is different for some other countries, like Mexico or New Zealand, so if you are a citizen of these or other countries, please check out the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine with the entry regime to Ukraine for foreign citizens.As Ukraine is not the safest place in the world right now, we highly recommend you get war risk insurance before you visit the country.

Staying in Ukraine during wartime

Staying in Ukraine can be relatively safe if you follow some simple recommendations by the Ukrainian Government.

Always have an ID with you. It’s better to be an international or national passport.
Be aware of Armed Forces checkpoints. There are much fewer of them in Summer 2023 compared to the last year, but militaries there can still ask you to show your ID, open your bag, check your phone, examine your car, etc. You’re obliged to submit their orders.
Do not ignore the air alarm. Find an air-rade shelter whenever you hear it or get a phone notification. To stay informed about hazards from the sky, download an Air Alarm App (also available at Google Play).

If no shelter is available, increase your safety by staying away from windows and following the two-wall rule. This is a safety rule that increases the chances of survival of people in a building that has been exposed to shelling by explosive or armor-piercing munition. In the event of a shelling hazard, according to the two-wall rule, it is safer to be behind two walls relative to the open space.

Get inside before the curfew. In some cities (Kyiv and Lviv included), the curfew starts at 00:00 and lasts till 5:00. More information on the curfew at the link. Be inside the hotel or apartment during this time, and in case of an air alert – you can go to the shelter. In other cases, don’t be outside during the curfew.
Don’t touch suspicious things. Even though the Government reacts promptly to the explosives in cities apart from the front line, we recommend you not to touch things on the streets if it wasn’t you who put them there.

How is it going in Lviv and Kyiv?

Cities far from the front line are much more calm and serene these days than last year. Molls, shops, restaurants, cafes, markets, cinemas, theaters, exhibitions, and museums work, so you will easily grab some food or diversify your leisure with other cultural or entertainment activities.As Lviv is a crucial transfer and gathering point for Ukrainians and foreigners alike, in 2023, the city is more crowded than ever. Bars, restaurants, and hotels are full, so if you need accommodation or some fancy traditional food, book a table or a hotel suite in advance.Kyiv seems less crowdy – it is a large city with well-developed infrastructure, so finding a place to eat or a place to live won’t be a problem.

Image source: DeepState interactive map of Ukrainian front line

Hotels

During the blackouts in the winter of 2022, the Ukrainian Association of Hotels and Resorts conducted a survey among its members and composed an interactive map with hotels color-coded based on their readiness for anything.

In green, you will see hotels with shelters, power generators in case of electricity shortages, and Starlinks or other ways to provide residents with an internet connection during the blackout.
In yellow are hotels that can provide guests with everything necessary during air alerts or blackouts, however, with some restrictions.
In blue are the hotels that are doing their best to become a vanguard for their residents, whatever may come, but many things still can be improved.

Common sense recommendations for visiting Ukraine

These are some obvious things that will dramatically facilitate your stay in Ukraine.

Buy a SIM card the moment you get to Ukrainian soil. The internet connection in Ukraine is very good, and you will surely benefit from being online during your trip.
Don’t argue with the Armed Forces representatives.
Have some national cash with you. Credit cards are widely used, but there might be cases when you need hrivnas (including smaller bills).
Keep your bag close to the body. Be aware of pickpockets; don’t leave your luggage and other personal belongings unsupervised.
Be respectful.

Summing up

We hope this guide will help you with your safe and comfortable trip and stay in Ukraine. Yet again – be sure to contact us if your goal during this trip is to meet your teammates from MWDN. Here are some links we used for this article:

Skyscanner to book flights
Ukrzaliznytsia app
Air Alert App (also available at Google Play)
Buses from anywhere to anywhere around Europe

Hope to see you soon!