Ukraine and Crimea

[Pikey Pete]

Has anyone or anyone you know taken a MH into the Ukraine and or The Crimea. I quite fancy a look over there in the summer but do you need a visa and if so how do you get one.
Not expecting many replies on this one, but I live in hope.
Pete

 

[scotjimland]

Hi Pete

A good place to start

Link Removed

Good luck with your plan

Jim

 

[Bulletguy]

Pete

Motored along the Ukraine border when in Poland a few months back. It was a pretty desolate area i was in and felt at times like i was on the edge of civilisation!

Stopped on a couple of sites which were extremely basic and quite poor but when you are starving hungry almost anywhere will do. English is virtually unheard of and you will be very lucky to find anyone who can speak just a few words though you might find someone in larger towns.

That site ScotJim put on is very good and as you will see you dont need a Visa for a period up to 90 days.

 

[Gubba Rust]

A little experience

Hi, I've never been there by motorhome (it's a very long way, by very poor roads) but last year I spent a week there, in Kiev (Kyjiv) and Odessa (on the Black Sea, not quite as far as Crimea... but far enough!). Infrastructure is dreadful, nothing really works. Having a motorhome would save you from the lack of restaurants and the dreadful standard of hotels, but not from the roads or the brazen corruption of the police. On the highway from Kiev to the Black Sea (supposedly the best road in the country) the police are dotted every 30km or so, pull over traffic, dream up a reason and propose a modest bribe, with no pretense that it is a fine... just give me a few euros and you can go. Since they are so busy with this, I guess they don't provide much real security... that appears to be in private hands! We were never troubled by private corruption, but you see well-built, well dressed young men hanging around everywhere. And finally, the contrast between "bling" and grinding poverty is pretty distressing... 18 years since the Soviet Union collapsed and they haven't come very far. But positively, it's a real experience (OK you'll see MacDonalds, but it is a really different world, and that's what I travel for). And when you find the few jewels... some Kiev buildings and streets, a few restaurants in Odessa, and Pirohiv, a beautiful museum of Ukrainian rural culture between the two... they are really delightful in contrast. I believe that the Carpathian mountains in the south west are really something. Food and beer are good, it's boiling hot in summer and bitterly cold in winter, and the language issue is a real challenge (Ukrainian and Russian, similar but different, and all in Cyrillic letters). If you like a challenge, go. But don't be under any illusions. See my photo album on Facebook Log in | Facebook

 

[ginge61]

been out in the truck wouldnt want to take the motorhome just my thought but up to you ukrane roads not the best and a lot of no go areas maybe in a few years have been in through belarus on through the ukraine kiev and on to moscow used to return through finland sometimes via st petersburgh be well preparied if you do go the cities have facillities but much after that not a lot its not too bad in a truck as you are not knocking the guts out of your pride and joy ive seen fellas scared after hearing stories and leaveing the trucks and flying home just abonded them and gone home done loads of trips all over the place like that but first timers get very warey it dont bother me much but say you wont find many camp sites etc you will need filters for fuel etc and be prepaired to change them on route plus other bits and bobs ie belts etc :thumb:

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[ginge61]

Hi, I've never been there by motorhome (it's a very long way, by very poor roads) but last year I spent a week there, in Kiev (Kyjiv) and Odessa (on the Black Sea, not quite as far as Crimea... but far enough!). Infrastructure is dreadful, nothing really works. Having a motorhome would save you from the lack of restaurants and the dreadful standard of hotels, but not from the roads or the brazen corruption of the police. On the highway from Kiev to the Black Sea (supposedly the best road in the country) the police are dotted every 30km or so, pull over traffic, dream up a reason and propose a modest bribe, with no pretense that it is a fine... just give me a few euros and you can go. Since they are so busy with this, I guess they don't provide much real security... that appears to be in private hands! We were never troubled by private corruption, but you see well-built, well dressed young men hanging around everywhere. And finally, the contrast between "bling" and grinding poverty is pretty distressing... 18 years since the Soviet Union collapsed and they haven't come very far. But positively, it's a real experience (OK you'll see MacDonalds, but it is a really different world, and that's what I travel for). And when you find the few jewels... some Kiev buildings and streets, a few restaurants in Odessa, and Pirohiv, a beautiful museum of Ukrainian rural culture between the two... they are really delightful in contrast. I believe that the Carpathian mountains in the south west are really something. Food and beer are good, it's boiling hot in summer and bitterly cold in winter, and the language issue is a real challenge (Ukrainian and Russian, similar but different, and all in Cyrillic letters). If you like a challenge, go. But don't be under any illusions. See my photo album on Facebook Log in | Facebook

well said

 

[Losos]

Here in Czechland we are quite close to the Ukraine so there are a few 'legal' immigrants and a very large number of 'illegals'

Whenever we've meet any they say exactly the same as Guba Rust has written above and the huge poverty has forced many to move to Czechland which as we all know is hardly a prosperous country ('tho some claim it is the most 'Western' of the Eastern bloc)

The language will certainly be one of your biggest problems and crime.

 

[weymard]

2 years ago I went , from Cherbourg, to Russia (Saint Petersbourg, Moscow, Perm) and return by south of Russia and Ukraine. Very interesting trip, never had some doubt with security. In Ukraine and Russia, my pickup did want to start (forgot to shut off the 12 V refrigerator ), immediately a lot of guy helped me. In Ukraine, as Russia, peoples are very gentle and welcoming. Except the road's police which want euros or dollars ! I never payed ! Just said "niè ponimaiou" = I do not understand ! And they let me go about 20 minutes ! ! (Wife and me know very well Russian ).
I agree with Gubba Rust for the essential, I just add go to LVOV (in the North West), very nice city with XIXe architecture, and go to Carpathes, beautiful and close to Slovaquie that is a pretty country.
For the language, keep a short dictionnary with the current langage, and learn the Cyrilic alphabet which is not difficult for a French, but for a Brits joke ! I forgot to say you for Ukraine you do not need a Visa, they want to enter in European Community !!
If you read French here a report on my trip.
weymard