We could have expanded this travel guide forever by listing all the cool architectures to see in Lviv but we think it is best to list them all in one since there are so many of them waiting for you to explore in Lviv.

Check Out All The Old Architecture In Lviv Old Town

Rynok Square is the main market square in Lviv and that is where you will begin to fall in love with Lviv. Around the square, you will find many cool colorful European buildings, old churches, cathedrals and chapels, that dated all the way back to the 14th Century.

 

Lviv Latin Cathedral and Dominican Cathedral are two of the biggest religious structures in Rynok Square and are as equally beautiful. If you are lucky, you might see many wedding photoshoots happening in front of the Dominican Cathedral.

 

Other beautiful churches both from the outside and inside are the Bernadine Church and Monastery, an art-filled Baroque-style church located South of Rynok Square and the Armenian Cathedral of Lviv, built in the 14th Century located North of Rynok Square. Be sure to drop by the when you are exploring Lviv Old Town.

 

One of the most unique churches in Rynok Square that you should not miss is the Chapel of the Boim Family, a 17th Century monument of religious architecture with an intricately beautiful ornate Renaissance details and carvings, unlike anything you will see in Lviv. It is located right by the side of Lviv Latin Cathedral and you can’t miss when exploring Lviv’s Old Town.

 

Be sure to also walk towards the Taras Shevchenko Memorial and check out Lviv Opera House, a stunning example of Austro-Hungarian influence on the city when Lviv was the capital of Galicia in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

 

Climb Up Lviv Town Hall Observation Deck

You know you are in a European-style city when there is a tower you can climb in the middle of an Old Town to see the view from above. Lviv Town Hall Observation Deck is a great place to go up and absorb the view of Lviv and all its beautiful architectures, churches and cathedrals from above.

From up at the top, you can see the cityscape of Lviv and all its stunning churches and cathedrals as far as the eye can see. You can also see the High Castle, where you will be climbing for a beautiful sunset later on. You may also spot a hidden alleyway you may not have seen from down there so be sure to keep an eye out for that.

The entrance to the Town Hall is on the south side of the building and you will have to walk up a few flights of stairs before you arrive at a ticket booth.

The entrance fee to the Observation Deck is 40 UAH and from there, you will have to walk up the small staircase of about 400 steps and once you arrive at the top, you will get a panoramic view of the city.

 

Enjoy Summer Events At Rynok Square

One of the highlights of visiting Lviv on weekends during the summer months is to participate in countless events that often take place at Rynok Square.

Jazz Festivals in Lviv is among the top 10 Jazz festivals in Europe and the Leopolis Jazz Fest that happens at the end of June every year for 4 days is the perfect reason to travel to Lviv during that time.

There aren’t just Jazz Festivals that are happening in Lviv during the summer months. When I was there, a week before the Jazz Festival, there was an open-air Yoga Music Fest concert at Rynok Square organized by Lviv Yoga Day where they brought many Ukrainian indie bands like Atmasfera and Yoga Brothers and make you fall in love with them.

 

Explore The Medieval Pharmacy Museum (Apteka-Muzey)

If you ever wonder what a medieval Alchemist lab looks like or if you want to walk around in one, a visit to the Medieval Pharmacy Museum (Apteka-Muzey) in Lviv is a must.

Located right at the Northeast corner of Rynok Square, you will find a drugstore turned museum where, when you walk in, you might think it looks like a regular pharmacy but if you tell the pharmacist that you want to see the museum, she will let you in behind the counter for 30 UAH and then you can roam free around this Medieval pharmacy lab.

This medieval pharmacy museum was initially opened as a drugstore in the 18th century. It was known under the name of “Under the Black Eagle” back then and the place was filled with antique pharmaceutical apparatus, pill-processing machines and old medicines that you can still see today.

 

Marvel At The House Of Scientists

I’m always on a lookout for a great spot for photos and one of them that I found in Lviv is the wooden stairway of the House of Scientists. The House of Scientists is one of Lviv’s most photogenic interior structures out there.

There is virtually nothing in the rooms in the House of Scientists but the main attraction here is not the rooms but its unique oak staircase with perfectly carved railings located at the center of the hall.

You could almost imagine what pre-WW2 life of the high class was like when you walk into the hall and see the stunning staircase. The staircase is so beautiful that many locals choose to have their pre-wedding photoshoots here at the stairs.

The House of Scientists is a little bit out of the Old Town area but it’s only 15 minutes walk. Once you arrive, you will have to walk straight into the building’s entrance on the right and turn left through a door where the security guy will come and ask you to pay 15 UAH to get into the main hallway where the stairway is at.

 

Discover Rare Books At Lviv Book Market

Right along Pidvalna Street, almost every day but mostly on the weekends, you will find a nice cozy flea market where they sell vintage books, vinyl discs, and ornaments you can buy as a souvenir.

Unfortunately, they are mostly books in Russian but every now and then you might find some rare English books and vinyl discs in the mix so keep an eye out.

Even if you don’t plan to buy anything, it is still quite nice to walk around the market, find a bench under a tree somewhere and read your favorite book or watch locals excitedly browse these vintage collections.

 

Climb Up The High Castle During Sunset

One of the best sunset spots in Lviv is from the Lviv High Castle, a historic castle located on top of the Castle Hill. Do not expect to see a renovated castle up and the top as that has since long been destroyed and a TV Tower was built in its place.

That said, the Castle Hill is still a great place to climb since it is considered to be the highest point in the entire city and what better way to see a place than to get a panoramic view from the top of the highest point in the city.

 

Go Cafe-Hopping

As you know by now, I am a coffee addict and Lviv is the worst (BEST) place to be if I was to recover from my addiction but since I am not doing that (thankfully), I spent almost a week cafe-hopping from one place to another, discovering the best place for you to try when you are in Lviv.

One of my favorite cafes is Lviv Coffee Mining Manufacture where they dug out the ingredient from right up the Rynok Square. They named their coffees like Lviv Rainy Day Coffee and For Lovers, etc, and they even set your coffee on fire with their most popular beverage, the Flaming Coffee.

Another great cafe I would recommend you to drop by if you like an authentic-looking interior, centrally located but hidden away in a quiet alleyway in Rynok Square, you can’t go wrong with Na Bambetli (На Бамбетлі)

 

Visit A Folk Village At Museum Of Folk Architecture And Lebensunterhalt

If you are interested in the history of the people who live around this area near the foothill of the Ukrainian Carpathian mountain in the medieval time, the best place to immerse yourself in the Folklore of the region is at the Museum of Folk Architecture and Lebensunterhalt.

They brought all the old wooden houses and religious structures from around this region and put them into this open-air museum in the middle of a forest for people to learn about them.

One of the most iconic structures in the Folk Village is the wooden Church of St.Nicholaus that was built in 1763 in the village of Kryvky in the Carpathians. Fun fact about this church is that the length of the church is equal to its height.

There are several other structures that are worth visiting all scattered over the hills and forests of the Znesinnya Park located a few kilometers east from Lviv so take your time. You can easily spend half a day here just walking around and reading up the history of each house.

To reach the Folk Village with public transport, you can get on tram #1 or #2 (5 UAH per trip) from the tram stop at Rynok Square, ride for about 5 stops and get off at Mechnykova Street where you will have to walk for about 18 minutes to reach the Folk Village.

You can also walk to the Folk Village from Rynok Square which should take around 40 minutes in total. What I did was, I simply took the tram on my way there and then walk downhill back.

Be sure to bring an insect repellent if you are visiting the museum during the summer months as there were quite a few mosquitoes when I was there especially in a more remote area of the village.

 

Visit All The Ancient Castles Around Lviv

Last but not least, now that we have seen most of Lviv Old Town, it’s time to go out of the city and see the beautiful medieval castles in the area and the surrounding beautiful landscape with a day trip to Oleskiy Castle, Pidhirtsi Castle, and Zolochivsʹkyy Castle.

Also you can get to these castles all in one day with the Castle Tours that you can buy from us.

The castles around Lviv may not have the same Grandeur as what you would find in Western Europe but they do have its charm and if you want to experience Lviv other than just in the Old Town area, the Castles Tour makes for a great one day trip out of the city.