Ukraine

Capital City: Kiev

People: Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belarusian 0.6%, Moldovan 0.5%, Crimean Tatar 0.5%, Bulgarian 0.4%, Hungarian 0.3%, Romanian 0.3%, Polish 0.3%, Jewish 0.2%, other 1.8%

Religion: Ukrainian Orthodox - Kyiv Patriarchate 19%, Orthodox (no particular jurisdiction) 16%, Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate 9%, Ukrainian Greek Catholic 6%, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox 1.7%, Protestant, Jewish, none 38%

Language: Ukrainian (official) 67%, Russian 24%, other 9% (includes small Romanian-, Polish-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities)

Currency: Ukrainian Hryvnia

Electrical Voltage:

How to get there:
By plane: The cheapest way to fly into Ukraine is through Kiev Borispol. The main international hubs for these flights are Frankfurt, Milan, Munich, Prague, London, Rome, Vienna and Warsaw with several flights a day of Austrian AUA, CSA Czech Airlines, LOT, Lufthansa, Alitalia, Air France, British Airways, KLM and MALEV; also Ukraine International, which code-shares on these routes with the respective carriers, and another Ukrainian carrier, AeroSvit. Special offers on flights come and go, depending on the whim of the carrier. The only low-cost carrier flying into Ukraine, as yet (February 2007), is AirBaltic, with flights routing through either Riga, Latvia, or Vilnius, Lithuania, although AeroSvit could be considered a somewhat low-cost carrier (considering there aren't many others.) There are several airlines which offer direct flights to cities like Dnipropetrovsk (Lufthansa), Donetsk (Lufthansa, Austrian), Odessa (MALEV, LOT, Austrian, CSA Czech Airlines), Kharkiv and Lviv (LOT, Austrian Airlines), but they are more expensive. To fly inside Ukraine, the most common airline is AeroSvit. Although this is the unofficial national airline, and its routes cover all of Ukraine's major destinations, the planes used on some routes are older Soviet aircraft. Ukraine International also recently introduced flights within the country from its hub in Kiev, mainly flying newer Boeing 737 aircraft.

By train: One can enter Ukraine by train from any land-bordering neighbour. When coming from Europe there will be a wait at the border while the train's bogies are changed in order to adapt to different rail gauge. It is also generally quicker and cheaper to buy a ticket to the border and then change trains, rather than wait getting through train. Generally, in Ukraine a railway travel is much cheaper than plane, and is comparable (but probably cheaper) to bus or car travel. It will take at most a whole day to ride across the country, so unless you are in hurry take a train. It's a good practice to take long-distance trains, which are much more comfortable. Avoid cheap third-class travels if you're cautious of local experiences.

Weather:

Travel Documentation and Custom Duty: Tourist visas are no longer required for citizens of the European Union, USA, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Vatican, Monaco, Iceland, Norway, San Marino, Mongolia, Serbia, Montenegro and the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (except Turkmenistan). This applies only for tourist travel lasting less than 90 days.

Getting Around: Train, Car, Bus, Airplanes

Tourism Website: http://www.ukraine.org/tourism.html

Medical Facilities:

Banks:

Emergency Numbers: