Kropyvnytskyi



Kropyvnytskyi (Ukrainian: Кропивницький; formerly: Yelisavetgrad, Kirovohrad) is the administrative center of Kirovohrad Oblast (province, also referred to as Kirovohradschyna) and Kirovohrad Rayon (district). It is an industrial and cultural center of Kirovohrad Oblast. Kropyvnytskyi is located on the Dnieper Upland, on the banks of river Inhul. It is a motorway junction. There is a train station (Znamyanka - Pomoshnaya line) and a civilian airport. Kropyvnytskyi is not famous for its places of interest, but the downtown still bears the remnants of old architecture. Some of the old buildings are renovated and some are still in the process of renovation. The city administration is doing a good job of making Kropyvnytskyi a better place both for locals and tourists. The locals like to call Kropyvnytskyi "a little Paris" due to its resemblance to Paris before the Soviet Union have destroyed the look of the city in the 20th century.

Understand
Kropyvnytskyi was founded in 1754 as Yelisavetgrad (usually spelled Elisavetgrad or Elizabethgrad in English language publications). From the middle of 19th century till the beginning of the 20th century, Kropyvnytskyi enjoyed its golden age. The industry was on the increase, the culture flourished. It was there where the first professional Ukrainian theater was opened.

Kropyvnytskyi became the center of Kirovohrad oblast in 1939. The city has a developed social infrastructure and a number of educational and cultural institutions.

Kropyvnytskyi's geographical position has an impact on language. The most commonly spoken language is Russian and "surzhyk" (a mix of Russian and Ukrainian languages). Everyone can speak and understand Ukrainian. The knowledge of English is low, but it won't be a problem in hotels or restaurants where most people can speak decent English.

By bus
International buses: Chișinău (two daily)

There are lots of buses from other Ukrainian cities. It's easy to pay for a ticket online. For that purpose it is advised to use special website.

By car
M-13 and M-12 highways go through Kropyvnytskyi. M12 is a state international highway (M-highway) that connects Lviv Oblast to the Central Ukraine, where before crossing Dnieper it continues further as M04. M13 is a state international highway connecting Kropyvnytskyi to the border with Moldova, where before crossing Dniester it heads towards Chișinău as part of E584.

By public transport
Kropyvnytskyi has a convenient public transport system:

Single ride tickets in buses cost 7 грн, in trolleybuses — 6 грн, in marshrutkas — 10 грн.
 * 11 bus routes
 * 8 trolleybus routes
 * 18 marshrutka routes

Schedules are available in the official Telegram channel (in Ukrainian), on the map (in Ukrainian), and on rozklad.in.ua (in Ukrainian).

You can also check information about public transport on EasyWay and Google Maps.

By taxi
Taxi is the easiest way of getting around the city. Some popular taxi companies include:



Eat
In general, it is very cheap to dine in Kropyvnytskyi by European or US standards. There is a big number of pizzerias - oddly, locals have more pizzerias than anything else, and any other cuisine is practically ignored. The food is usually tasty and fresh. It is strongly advised to taste the national cuisine. Most famous dishes are borshch, vareniki, draniki (also called deruny).



In the centre there are a lot of cafes with good prices.

Go next

 * Cherkasy - 135 km north
 * Dnipro - 255 km east
 * Kherson - 250 km south, the 'Gate' of Crimea
 * Mykolaiv - 190 km south
 * Odesa - 330 km southwest. Pearl of Southern Ukraine
 * The Strategic Missile Forces museum, located on the border of Kirovohradska and Mykolayivska oblasts. Missiles: SS-24 "Scalpel" silo-based and RS-20 missile (SS-18 "Satan"). Also in the museum you can see samples of rocket engines, auxiliary vehicles, mock nuclear warhead.
 * Uman - 165 km west
 * Vinnytsia - 320 km west
 * Zaporizhzhia - 300 km east
 * Zaporizhzhia - 300 km east