Kyiv is a rewarding city to visit with kids: there are museums where you can and should touch the exhibits, animals you can feed by hand and parks where they can run off steam in any weather. We gathered places checked for age, opening hours and weather, and at the end a few ideas for a trip out of town.
At a glance: what to choose
- For the youngest: the Lemur petting zoo, Shumiland, the oceanarium.
- For curious schoolkids: the MAN Science Museum, Experimentarium, Kuboid, the Water Museum.
- On a rainy day: the oceanarium, Miniland, the Natural History Museum and all the science museums.
- To run off steam: Zakrevskyi Period Park, where a ticket has no time limit.
- For a whole day out of town: XII Months Zoo, Yasnohorodka or Kyivan Rus Park.
Animals: the zoo, the oceanarium and Lemur
The Kyiv Zoo covers 34 hectares and is home to about 300 species: elephants, giraffes, a hippo, lions and tigers. It is also home to Tony, the only gorilla in Ukraine, who is already 52 years old, and the new Birds of Ukrainian Polissia aviary spans over 600 square meters with a pond. The shady alleys of the arboretum help even on a hot day.
The Morska Kazka Oceanarium has the largest underwater tunnel in Ukraine: sharks and rays swim right over your head. There are over 50 aquariums and a coral reef seen through the portholes of a sunken ship, and every Wednesday and Saturday there are feeding shows for rays and reef sharks. On weekdays it is open from 10:00 to 19:00, on weekends until 20:00, and on Mondays only until 15:00.
The Lemur zoo has over 20 species of tame animals: kids can pet, hand-feed and even hold lemurs, raccoons, meerkats, llamas and mini pigs. The location in Retroville mall is open daily from 10:00 to 22:00, and there is a second one in Osokorky.
Kyiv Zoo. 34 hectares of wildlife a step away from the metro
32 Beresteiskyi Ave, Kyiv
from225UAH
Kyiv Oceanarium “Sea Tale”. Ukraine’s largest underwater tunnel among sharks and rays
3 Andriia Malyshka St, Dytiachyi Svit mall, Kyiv
from389UAH
Lemur Zoo at Retroville. Over 20 species of tame animals you can pet, feed and hold
47 Yevropeiskoho Soiuzu (Pravdy) Ave, Retroville mall, entrance 6, Kyiv
from520UAHScience you can touch
The MAN Science Museum at VDNH is the first state museum where not touching the exhibits is forbidden. It has over 120 interactive exhibits in eight zones: a bicycle with square wheels, a two-meter hologram and the spacesuit of Leonid Kadeniuk, Ukraine’s first astronaut. Instead of tour guides, explainers stand by the exhibits, ready for any question.
Next door at VDNH is Kuboid, a museum where math is explored hands-on: 2 floors, 8 themed zones and over 30 puzzles in the brain-teaser zone alone, for kids from 3. Shumiland has 23 life-size moving dinosaurs, a fairy-tale forest and a mirror maze. It is open daily from 11:00 to 20:00, and kids under 3 get in free.
Experimentarium has about 300 exhibits to spin and launch, mirror and laser mazes and science shows. It opens only on Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 to 19:00, and with a wristband you can step out for a snack and come back. The Water Museum in Khreshchatyi Park fills an 1876 water tower, 29 meters tall, and an underground reservoir from 1909, and a guided tour is already included in the ticket.
MAN Science Museum. The first state museum where NOT touching is forbidden: 120+ interactive exhibits in 8 zones at VDNH
1 Akademika Hlushkova Ave, VDNH, Pavilion No. 23, Kyiv
Free
Kuboid. A museum where math isn’t studied but explored hands-on
1 Akademika Hlushkova Ave, Kyiv. VDNH, Pavilion 3
from320UAH
Shumiland VDNH. A dino park, a fairy-tale forest and a mirror maze in one park
1 Akademika Hlushkova Ave, Kyiv
from175UAH
Experimentarium. A science and technology museum with hundreds of interactive exhibits and a mirror maze
154 Borshchahivska St, Kyiv
from320UAH
Water Museum. An 1876 water tower and an underground reservoir where water becomes an interactive show
1V Mykhaila Hrushevskoho St, Kyiv
from150UAHMiniatures, mammoths and trampolines
Miniland is the largest model railway in Ukraine: 87 square meters, over 1400 figures, real moving trains and over 6000 LEDs that turn day into night. It is open Wednesday to Friday from 15:00 to 20:00 and on weekends from 11:00 to 20:00, and closed on Monday and Tuesday. Kids under 4 get in free.
At the Natural History Museum the skeletons of a mammoth and a prehistoric whale stand side by side, and it holds the largest meteorite collection in Ukraine. One ticket opens four museums under one roof. And when the kids just need to run, head to Zakrevskyi Period Park: a trampoline arena, mazes and obstacle courses over more than 3500 square meters, a separate zone for kids under 6 and a ticket with no time limit.
Miniland. Ukraine’s largest model railway – 300+ buildings and moving trains at 1:87 scale
34-V Stepana Bandery Ave, Kyiv
from230UAH
National Museum of Natural History. Four worlds of nature under one roof
15 Bohdana Khmelnytskoho St, Kyiv
from150UAH
Zakrevskyi Period Park. A trampoline arena, mazes and over 50 attractions for kids with no time limit
61/2 Mykoly Zakrevskoho St, Kyiv
from10UAHA whole day out of town
XII Months Zoo in Demydiv is open 365 days a year: it is home to Archibald, the only white rhino in Ukraine, giraffes take treats from your palm, and over 200 animals live on 16 hectares by a lake. Yasnohorodka, 30 km from Kyiv, is the largest ostrich farm in Ukraine, with over 500 birds, an incubator and a kids’ park. At Kyivan Rus Park ancient Kyiv has been rebuilt on 10 hectares: wooden walls, a princely stable and archery. The park is open daily from 10:00 to 18:00.
XII Months Zoo. Open 365 days a year in the open air – a rhino, giraffes and over 200 animals near Kyiv
79 Verbova St, Demydiv village, Vyshhorod Raion, Kyiv Oblast
from450UAH
Yasnohorodka Family Eco Park. Ukraine’s largest ostrich farm, 30 minutes from Kyiv
32 Pidlisna St, Yasnohorodka village, Fastiv Raion, Kyiv Oblast
from300UAH
Ancient Kyiv at Kyivan Rus Park. A life-size reconstruction of the fortified center of the ancient city in the 5th–13th centuries
Zastuhna village (near Kopachiv), Obukhiv Raion, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine
from80UAHIf you would rather not think about the drive, there is the Wildlife of the Kyiv region tour with ostriches, bison and a petting zoo in one day, and Buky Canyon with the Golden Pheasant biopark, camels and peacocks.
Wildlife of the Kyiv region. Ostriches, bison and a petting zoo in one day from Kyiv
Dates to be announced
10 hours (08:00–18:00, approx.)
from1,400UAH
Buky Canyon. 2-billion-year-old rocks, the Golden Pheasant biopark and Parade Allure horses in one day from Kyiv
Next: Nov 11 at 08:00
About 12 hours (08:00–20:00)
from1,680UAHGood to know
- Monday and Tuesday: Miniland is closed, and Experimentarium opens only on weekends. Early in the week, go for the zoo, the oceanarium or VDNH.
- Free for little ones: kids under 3 at Shumiland and under 4 at Miniland.
- Tickets: prices and hours can change, so the current details are on the cards above.
Want to show the kids Kyiv itself too? See our 2-day route and day trips from Kyiv.
