Railway Trains in Ukraine

What kinds of trains there are and how to buy tickets

Train stop in the Carpathian Mountains

Trains are Ukrainians' preferred mode of long-distance transportation. Prices are low by European standards, and sleeper cars make it possible to sleep at night in relative comfort. In addition to long-distance trains, there are short-distance "elektrichki" (electric trains) that connect regional capitals with outlying towns and villages.

An overnight train ride in Ukraine can be a fun adventure (especially if others traveling in your compartment befriend you and offer you vodka, which is known to happen).

Ukrainian train stations

Large cities generally have two train stations located next to each other — a station for long-distance trains ("вокзал" or "ж/д вокзал") and a station for local electric trains ("пригородный вокзал" - Russ.; "приміський вокзал" - Ukr.).

Buying train tickets

In large cities, there are railway ticket offices scattered around town in addition to the central train station ("вокзал" - Russ. and Ukr.) where you can buy train tickets (but not for "elektrichki"). You will need to present a passport, picture I.D., or a xerox copy of a passport for each person whom you are buying a ticket for.

Tickets for electric trains can only be bought at the electric train station. You do not need to present any documents, and your ticket allows you to sit anywhere you want in the train. At the ticket counter you simply need to state your destination. Tickets are very cheap (usually around 2-5 UAH for trips of up to an hour or two). There is never a shortage of tickets, so you can plan on buying one directly before departure.

At smaller stops it sometimes is not possible to buy a ticket, so get on the electric train without one and tell the ticket officer what station you got on when he or she comes around, and they'll give you a ticket on the spot.

Buy train tickets ahead of time!
You need to buy tickets in advance, because often they run out several days before departure. This is especially true of the summer months and weekends. Often tickets reappear a few days or a day before departure as people return their tickets or new carriages are added to the train to satisfy demand. Often ticket buyers return to the ticket counter multiple times to ask if there are tickets for the train they want.

Ordering train tickets over the phone
The biggest inconvencience about the Ukrainian railway system is that you can't book tickets over the phone or Internet; you must go wait in line in person with your picture I.D. It can be a huge waste of time, so try going first thing in the morning if you expect long lines. There is a state-run ticket booking service that delivers tickets to your doorstep for only 10 UAH ($2 USD) on top of ticket cost. The only problem is, the number is almost always busy. Dial 050.

International train tickets
These can only be bought at special windows. Fares to western European countries are about twice more expensive as similar distances within Ukraine, partly because the rail width is different in Europe and all carriages must be adjusted at the border, which takes an hour or two. Only 1st class sleeper cars are available for international travel.

Read about international train connections from Ukraine
- Read about crossing the Ukrainian border by train

What to say at the ticket counter

Here is what you'll need to tell the ticket lady behind the glass (issuing tickets is considered a woman's job):

• your destination
• the date of departure
• class of carriage (SV, kupé, or platzkart)
• the number of passengers
• your preferred train number or time of departure, if necessary
• the same information for your return ticket, if necessary

You will typically have to answer additional questions as the ticket lady looks at options: where you're willing to sit (top or bottom bunk, next to the restroom, etc.), whether you want to look at other options if the train or the date you want is full, how to spell your name if you give her a foreign passport. Discussing all this through the glass requires fluency in Russian or Ukrainian, since it can be hard to hear or make out what the lady is saying (and you've most likely got a line of people standing behind you).

Here's how a typical conversation might go (simplest possible dialogue in Russian):

— Добрый день. Один билет до Симфероля на 19-е июня, пожалуйста.
Hello. One ticket to Simferopol for the 19th of June, please.
— Так... (looks at computer screen) Плацкарт или купе?
O.K.... 3rd or 2nd class?
— Купе, пожалуйста.
2nd, please.
— Верхнее или нижнее?
Top or bottom [seat]?
— Нижнее, если можно.
Bottom, if possible.
— Дайте паспорт... Как, "Робинсон"?
Give me your passport... "Robinson," right?
— Да-да.
Yes.
— Обратный будете брать?
Do you need a return ticket?
— Нет.
No.
— 90 гривен, 6 копеек. (hands back passport)
90 Hryvnias and 6 kopeks.
— Спасибо.
Thank you.

Classes of carriages in Ukrainian trains

There are three classes of train carriages in Ukraine today:

• 1st class, or "SV" (sleeping wagon)
  Two bunks in a locking compartment, sometimes with a T.V. and a sink.
• 2nd class, or "kupé" (coupe)
  Four bunks (two top, two bottom) in a locking compartment.
• 3rd class, or "platzkart" (economy class)
  Six bunks (two top, two bottom, and a top and bottom bunk on the other side of the corridor) in an open compartment.

Pricing
The approximate price ratio is something like this: if a 3rd class ticket costs 50, a 2nd class ticket might cost 70 and a 1st class 140.

Which class should I get?
In my opinion, there is little difference in "quality of sleep" between 1st and second class, since the both compartments are closed, it is very dark, and the bunks are long enough (about 190 cm). 3rd class is harder to sleep in since there is more noise from everyone else in the carriage, the lights are turned low but not completely off, and the bunks are slightly shorter (about 180 cm).

The only advantage of 3rd class is that you can carry a bike with you, which is impossible in 1st or 2nd class. Also, some people like the more open feel of 3rd class. It can be more fun to ride in during the day, since you can see more people and can walk around more easily.

Returning train tickets

Electric train tickets are nonrefundable (they are usually too cheap to matter). Long-distance train tickets bought with a picture I.D., however, can be returned, but at a significant loss. Three hours before departure you lose even more, and an hour after departure I believe you can still return the ticket, but you will lose most of the value of the ticket.

Not all ticket counters process ticket refunds, so you will need to inquire. You will need each passenger's picture I.D. (or xerox copy) to return tickets, and the process is somewhat lengthy since the ticket lady has to write somethings out by hand. I believe they ask for your address for accounting purposes.

Transporting baggage on the train

Many train passengers in Ukraine carry large bags of stuff with them on the train. Quite a bit of baggage is allowed without having to buy a "baggage ticket." Here are the baggage regulations in Ukrainian. Large, bulky items need to be transported in a special baggage car and submitted for transport no later than 24 hours before departure. You will need to go to the train station to find out how to do this. Generally you can get your things out of the baggage car only during stops in major cities that are long enough to allow this.

Bicycles may be transported either in the baggage car or in any regular 3rd class carriage across the top shelf of the compartment (wrapped up and with the front tire off), but you will need to purchase a baggage ticket in any case. To buy a baggage ticket ("багажная квитанция" - Russ.; "багажний квиток" - Ukr.), show your train ticket to the lady at the ticket counter and tell her what you're taking with you. Or, ask for a baggage ticket right away as you're purchasing your train ticket.

Sending documents and packages by train

Until recently, this was a common, unofficial practice: people would send passports, documents, and important packages with train officers, who would take a few Hryvnias and give the package to the recipient at the designated station. Now this service is official. Here is a list of the trains you can send packages with and the prices (in Ukrainian).

Continue to Riding the Train in Ukraine