Lviv Ukrainian Christmas Tour with traditional dinner
Feel what Ukrainian Christmas is really about on a private tour with a local guide
While most of Europe gets together for Christmas on December 24th and 25th, Ukrainian Christmas is celebrated on the 6th and 7th of January. This resembles the birth of Jesus Christ according to the old Orthodox Julian calendar. And with many traditions dating back to Pre-Christian pagan times, Ukrainian Christmas is even more so like no other. That’s why we want to use our chance to bring Ukrainian Christmas traditions as close to you as possible and make you feel the real spirit of this wonderful fest right here in Lviv.
To book the day trip as a Premium Tour, simply select the option in the booking form beneath the booking calendar.
Christmas in Lviv starts every year around the second week of December and goes on until the festival of Jordan (Epiphany) in the Orthodox calendar, which is celebrated on the 19th of January. Apart from the Christmas Market in Lviv, which actually is not even a Ukrainian tradition, there will be many things to see and hear:
But Lviv isn’t just a Ukrainian city. It is also the center of the Armenian minority in Western Ukraine, which have their own Christmas traditions. And Lviv was for centuries inhabited by Polish people, of which there are still several thousand left in the city. Polish people also celebrate Christmas differently in Lviv. Our tour will therefore bring you to those places and will introduce you to these traditions. And on top of that Lviv is also a center of various denominations – several Orthodox communities, Greek-Catholics which also have slightly varying religious traditions. Our tour is the perfect opportunity to get an insight into all of these!
However, Christmas, not just in Ukraine, is also a fest of food. And that is why our tour simply would not be perfect without a Ukrainian Christmas dinner. Just like on our Lviv Ukrainian Food Tour, the Christmas Tour is a good possibility to introduce you to Ukrainian cooking! The traditional Christmas dinner on Sviaty Vechyr traditionally consists of 12 dishes, which all will be served to you during this dinner. Here are a few to name:
And the whole dinner has a set up, which reminds on the birth of Jesus Christ and mixes it with the old pagan traditions, where on Christmas Eve also dead relatives are being remembered. And with this you get many more stories from our guides personal experiences with Christmas and about their own family traditions. Because every family celebrates it slightly different.
The Christmas Dinner itself is only included in the price of the Premium Tour!
It’s very easy. You just need to book it here, as all our tours are easily bookable online. We will then approve the tour and send you a payment link.
We offer cancellation for all clients. For our Basic Tours our Cancellation Policy applies. If you book a Premium Tour, we charge only 10% even you don’t show up.
If you book a Basic Tour, we will meet for most tours at the Amphitrite fountain or at the entrance. With our Premium Tours we offer a free Hotel pick up service.
No problem. We have a Tour FAQ page. Here we answer most questions. If you can’t find an answer there, please use the contact form on the right or contact us here!
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