National Museum of Natural History. Four worlds of nature under one roof

A prehistoric animal skeleton at the National Museum of Natural History
A snow leopard in a diorama at the natural history museum
A mastodon skeleton at the National Museum of Natural History
A butterfly collection at the natural history museum
Bats in the natural history museum exhibition
A prehistoric animal skeleton at the National Museum of Natural HistoryA snow leopard in a diorama at the natural history museumA mastodon skeleton at the National Museum of Natural HistoryA butterfly collection at the natural history museumBats in the natural history museum exhibition

The National Museum of Natural History is one of the largest natural history museums in Europe, right in the center of Kyiv. Four themed departments under one roof introduce visitors to minerals, fossils and the planet’s animal and plant life.

Why visit

  • A real mammoth skeleton and the skeleton of a prehistoric whale stand side by side in one spacious exhibition hall
  • The largest meteorite collection in Ukraine: almost ninety specimens gathered from all over the world
  • Two structures on display were actually built by Stone Age people from the bones of ancient mammoths
  • One admission ticket gives access to four themed museums under one roof at once
  • The museum’s historic building is right in the center of Kyiv, a few minutes’ walk from the metro

Good to know

Ticket validity
The ticket is single-entry and valid only on the day of your visit; re-entry is not possible
Photography
Amateur photos with a phone or camera are free; professional equipment is paid
Gemstone hall
The Aesthetics of Stone hall is open only as part of a guided tour; there is no free entry
Box office
It closes 30 minutes before the museum does, so keep that in mind when planning
Needs checking
The age at which children may visit unaccompanied, the rules on pets and whether there is a shelter: please check by phone
Free admission
Children under 6, veterans, people with Group I disabilities: with an ID on site; rates valid from March 23, 2026

Imagine a hall where a mammoth skeleton that has stood here for almost a hundred years looks down at you, and next to it is the skeleton of a prehistoric whale that swam in the seas millions of years ago, when water still lapped where Kyiv stands today. At the National Museum of Natural History, encounters like this happen on every floor. The Paleontology Department shows 25 skeletons of extinct animals: a mammoth, a woolly rhinoceros, a giant deer, the primeval aurochs, as well as a prehistoric giant elephant and a giraffe. A special highlight is two dwellings actually built by Stone Age people from mammoth bones, found in the Cherkasy region. These are not models but real archaeology. The Geology Department holds the largest meteorite collection in Ukraine, almost 90 specimens from different corners of the world and beyond, as well as minerals sparkling with agates, topazes and beryls. The Zoology Department is a gallery of predators, birds and mammals in natural poses, arranged in dioramas that take you from Ukrainian Polissia and the Crimean subtropics to the Carpathian Mountains and the glaciers of Antarctica. The botanical collection completes the journey through the planet’s plant world. One admission ticket, and all four worlds are open to explore in a single visit.