With an area of 603,700 sq km in the Eastern Europe, Ukraine borders Russia to the north-east, Belarus to the north, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary to the west, Moldova and Romania to the south-west, and the Sea of Azov and Black Sea to the south. As of December 1, 2010 the population of Ukraine is 45 795 911 inhabitants, 31 448 057 of them live in cities and towns.
The following are some of the major gay cities of Ukraine:
Kiev (Kyiv in Ukrainian spelling). The capital of Ukraine and also the largest city, it’s located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. By December 1, 2010 Kiev has 2 797 553 inhabitants. Kiev is the seventh largest city in Europe as for population (after Moscow, London, Paris, St. Petersburg, Berlin, and Madrid).
This major city of Ukraine is the most important gay center of Ukraine, although the gay activity in Kiev is hidden in compare to such astern European gay capitals like Prague, Budapest, or even Moscow. Main street of the capital Kreshchatik is crowded by beauty queens in the evening.
Kharkov (Kharkiv in Ukrainian spelling). The second largest city in Ukraine and the administrative center of Kharkov Region (Oblast) as well as Kharkov District (Rayon), founded in 1653. By December 1, 2010 Kharkov has 1 447 070 inhabitants.
As for gay life it’s one of the important cities of Ukraine, because the city is educational center of Ukraine. It has more colleges, military academies, and universities than any other Ukrainian city. The gay scene in Kharkov is relatively good developed thanks students and military cadets. A famous gay cruising area in Kharkov is its Freedom Square, which is the second largest city square in Europe, and the fourth largest square in the world.
Dnepropetrovsk (Dnipropetrovsk in Ukrainian spelling). The third biggest Ukrainian city with population of 1 007 200 (as for January 1, 2011). The city was one of the key centers of the nuclear, arms, and space industries of the former Soviet Union. Because of its special features, the city was closed for foreigners until the collapse of the USSR.
The former center of nuclear weapons production is surprising green along the wide and slow-moving Dnieper river and has remarkable embankments, long boulevards and spacious parks. Despite the amount of inhabitants there is no remarkable gay activity there.
Odessa (Odesa in Ukrainian spelling). The fourth largest city in Ukraine, it’s often referred to as “Little Paris”. This famous Southern city with a population of 1 009 204 (as for Dec. 1, 2010) is the largest seaport in Ukraine and a major seaport on the Black Sea. Traditionally it has multinational culture and special humor, well-known on the whole territory of the former USSR.
A world famous tourist’s destination Odessa is multinational city it has strong influence of Jewish, Greek, Bulgarian, and Armenian communities. Gay life in Odessa is quite intensive mostly thanks foreign and domestic sailors.
Visiting Odessa you should remember the city has leading position in Ukraine as for the temps of spreading HIV-epidemics. According latest official information over 150 000 HIV-positive people live in Odessa.
Lviv ( (known in Ukrainian spelling and also in German as “Lemberg”) . Western gate of our country was founded in 1256 by King Daniel I of Galicia, who named the city in honor of his son Lev I of Galicia, Prince of Galicia and Volynia. In 1356 Lviv got Magdeburger Recht. Lviv has more architectural and historical sights than any other Ukrainian city.
It’s a major metropolitan city in Western Ukraine and the administrative center of Lviv Region (Oblast). With 733 989 inhabitants the city is the only big city in Western Ukraine also serves as Ukraine’s second major international airport.
The population of Lviv remains strongly religious. It has traditionally three big confessions – Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics, and Eastern Orthodox. In this point of view the gay life in Lviv is hidden, and to meet gay men there still is very complicated.
