Askania Nova - Photo Safari In Southern Ukraine Tour

The Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve is located in the southern Kherson region. It’s one of the most beautiful and valuable among all national parks, forests, and natural reserves worldwide.

Baron Friedrich Eduardovich von Falz-Fein, one of the owners of the lands in the 19th century, was fond of zoology from an early age and created a zoo and a botanical garden in the middle of the steppe.

In 1919, Askania-Nova was proclaimed a national park. Later, the Institute for Acclimatisation and Crossbreeding of Animals was founded in the area.

But this is not what tourists come looking for a large part of Askania-Nova is used as grazing land for the animals, which live close to them as they would in the wild.

With 2,250 species of animals in Askania-Nova, the prospect of having a great photo safari in Southern Ukraine comes to life! Here, you can see Saiga and Oryx antelopes, American bison and Andean llamas, Shetland ponies and Kudu antelopes, African water buffalo and zebras, ostriches, and blue wildebeests.

The pride of the reserve is its numerous herds of Przewalski’s horses, whose breeding started in Askania-Nova back in 1899. More than 150 species of trees and bushes grow in the beautiful park, covering 200 hectares in all.

It is also a paradise for ornithologists: swans, flamingos, pheasants, peacocks and peahens, larks, pallid harriers, partridges, bustards, and cranes – a total of 270 species of birds live here.

Since 1985, the Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve has been listed in the World Network of Biosphere Reserves under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme.

Description:

Day 1: Kyiv to Kherson

20:30 - Overnight train from Kyiv to Kherson.

Day 2: Askania-Nova Reserve

9:00 Arrival in the city. Transfer to Askania-Nova reserve.

11:00 – 16:00 Excursion of the site.

19:30 – back to Kherson and overnight train to Kyiv

Day 3: Departure

7:00 – Arrival back to the capital.

Included:

Train tickets;

Transportation;

English-speaking guide;

Not Included:

- Admission fees

- Meals