The Lychakiv district of Lviv is extremely diverse, interesting and rich in historical, cultural and natural sights. Visits to Lychakiv are a good opportunity to get to know Lviv better as well as be enriched with positive emotions. This area is famous for its spacious green areas and will be an ideal option for planning your leisure time in the hot season.
Lychakivska Street is the dominant street in the district, one of the oldest and longest in Lviv. On either side of it are the real pearls of the Lychakiv district – the open-air museums "Lychakiv Cemetery" and "Shevchenkivskyi Hai". Visiting the first can be continued with a walk in the "Pohulianka" park, which is located nearby. From the museum of folk architecture, it is easy to go to the "Znesinnia" landscape park. However, this is only the beginning! Lychakiv district of Lviv will be able to captivate everyone with its attractions.
Populating, construction, subcultures
People have inhabited this part of the city since long ago. Archaeologists claim that it was here that the first settlements within the boundaries of modern Lviv were located, and the guides like to tell about the pagan temple that existed on the territory of the current "Znesinnia" park. In ancient times, Lychakiv was famous for the luxurious estates of rich burghers – Polish, French and German families lived here (Zettner, Longchamps de Bérier and Lütchen). The first two families gave the names to separate parts of the district, and the entire Lychakiv suburb (later the district) probably got its name from the last one.
In the interwar period, Lychakiv was an area of prestigious low-rise construction. It is worth mentioning the so-called "Professor's Colony". This is an area with multi-storey villas built in the 1930s. The first residents of these buildings were teachers of Lviv University. On the other hand, the development of Pasichna Street will arouse greater interest among admirers of Soviet architecture. You can also find many amazing palaces built at different times in this area, but small side streets can also be a real discovery here. Each of them is a cozy, distinctive world with a unique atmosphere.
Batiars were a phenomenon of the Lychakiv district of Lviv, its characteristic attribute. This is an urban subculture, the representatives of which were noted for their freedom-loving non-conformist way of life, existence on the border of the allowed and forbidden, legal and illegal, but always within the limits of decency and humanity. Batiar culture was celebrated in many songs, folklore, and later also reproduced in films.
Where is it worth visiting?
A significant part of the treasures of the Lychakiv district is located within walking distance from the center of Lviv. In particular, this is the "Lychakiv Cemetery" – a real artistic masterpiece and the burial place of prominent and wealthy Lviv residents, a location with unique sculptures, which were worked on by the best masters of their time. Here you can find both sleeping beauties and steadfast stonemasons, proud eagles, but all of them have been humbled by time. There is also the "Shevchenkivskyi Hai" folk architecture museum not far from the center. Visits to this museum will allow you to forget about the noise, asphalt and bustle of the city and will help you immerse yourself in the world of the inhabitants of the Carpathian region - Boiks, Hutsuls and Lemks. Here there are authentic wooden temples and houses, folk instruments and many other elements of the traditional culture of Ukrainians. A walk in the "Znesinnia" park is an opportunity to take unique selfies, as well as capture unusual views of the central part of Lviv. After walking through this area, you can even forget that the bustling center is very close.
An option to continue the dialogue with nature is a walk in the "Pohulianka" park. There are several water bodies here, as well as many opportunities to organize a small picnic. If you have more free time and desire to have an extreme rest, you can try to explore the secrets of Honey Cave on Maiorivka or the Devil Rocks between Lviv and Vynnyky. Vynnyky itself will also be a good option for spending leisure time.
What should you pay attention to?
There are not as many temples on Lychakiv as in the city center, but each of them is a separate and unique world. St. Anthony's Church is a pearl of Baroque architecture and one of the few shrines that functioned in the city even in Soviet times. An architectural complex built in the 19th century with distinctive Gothic elements rises above it. Today there is an Orthodox theological academy, an operating church of St. John Chrysostom. At the intersection of Lychakivska and Mechnikova streets, there is the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, which is very important in the context of the history of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. Above Lychakivska rises the Church of the Intercession, with architectural features typical of Italian shrines. In particular, it is a high bell tower, the so-called campanile tower.
The route along Pekarska Street should include the Church of the Holy Trinity - it is the former Church of the Sacraments. In addition, on Lysenko Street, under the hill, you will see the former Franciscan church and the shrine of the city's Orthodox community, built in the 19th century in the style of Byzantine churches.
Only on Lychakiv
Football fans will be interested in the base of FC "Rukh", which represents Vynnyky and plays in the higher league of the Ukrainian football championship. On the way, you can visit the local archaeological museum, which will surprise you with its unique exhibits, and see the Lviv tobacco factory, which has a very ancient history. At the end of Lychakivska Street, it is worth paying attention to the complex of buildings of the "Enzym" company, which is the leading producer of yeast in Ukraine and an exporter of this product to the West. The unique space of Lychakiv district, as well as of Lviv in general, is the Botanical garden of Lviv University. It began with a private garden with exotic plants, which was laid out by the French architect Pierre Denis Guibaud for the local ruler Ignatius Zettner. Today, exotic plants and trees from different parts of the world are grown there, and it is especially beautiful here in spring.
Lychakiv district is a must-visit for medical professionals. Here are the main and historical buildings of the Lviv Medical University, buildings of the Lviv National University of Veterinary Medicine, the Museum of Medicine, a military hospital, the Ohmadyt Children's Hospital, etc.
Shadows of the great ancient times. Lychakiv's lost magnets
From the middle of the 19th century, there was a brewery on "Pohulianka", established by the owner of the area at that time, Jan Klein. Today, only the skeleton and the memory that the local beer was considered the best in Lviv remained from it. Lovers of active recreation can take maps of the Austrian and Polish times and organize a route along the old railway, fragments of which, like the non-functioning railway station, are also located in Lychakiv.
Unfortunately, nothing has survived from the first luna park on Ukrainian lands, which operated in Kaiserwald during 1908-1914, on the territory of the modern "Znesinnia" park.
