In early May, the weather in the Ukrainian Carpathians can be very changeable. It would seem that winter has long ended, snow has completely melted, green grass and flowering trees are everywhere.

And one night it suddenly snows and winter comes back, even if only for one day. Thanks to this relatively unusual natural phenomenon, you can see very picturesque views of the Carpathians, when snow clearly shows the smallest folds of the relief. Photos by: Vlad Sokolovsky.

spring in the Carpathians

Tags: Zakarpattia oblast

Uzhhorod is a city with a population of about 113 thousand people standing on the banks of the Uzh River at the foot of the Carpathian Mountains. Located about 813 km south-west of Kyiv, on the border with Slovakia, it is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia region.

The smallest regional center of Ukraine, Uzhhorod has a rich and long history, significant architectural heritage. The city looks especially colorful in late April – early May, when sakura, magnolia, tulips, and lilac are flowering. Photos by: uzh_city.

colors of spring in Uzhhorod

Tags: Uzhgorod city · Zakarpattia oblast

Founded in 1260, Chetfalva is a village of about 700 people located in the Berehove district of the Zakarpattia region, less than 1 km from the border with Hungary, about 90 km south-east of Uzhhorod.

Chetfalva is a rather unusual place, street names are in two languages: Ukrainian and Hungarian. It looks like a typical Hungarian village. Local architecture is also very distinctive. In the foreground, you see a futuristic building with a strange parabolic arch-belfry – the ensemble of the Catholic Church of the Holy Spirit built in 1998-2001. Chetfalva on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque old church

Tags: church · Zakarpattia oblast

Uzhhorod, the capital of the Zakarpattia region, is located in the very west of Ukraine. This city at the foot of the Carpathians is the smallest regional center of the country, but has a rich and long history.

Winter in Uzhhorod is usually mild with an average temperature of about zero degrees Celsius. This winter, the first heavy snow fell in Uzhhorod only in January and the streets of the city decorated by the New Year and Christmas illumination became very picturesque. Photos by: uzh_city.

snowfall in Uzhhorod

Tags: Uzhgorod city · Zakarpattia oblast

Among the attractions of Transcarpathia, the architecture of the Hutsuls, one of the indigenous peoples of the Carpathians, occupies a special place with its unique and beautiful wooden churches.

Church of the Ascension (Strukivska) in the urban village of Yasinya located in the east of the Zakarpattia region is one of these old and amazing churches. Yasinya on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque monument of wooden architecture

Tags: church · Zakarpattia oblast

Serednje Vodyane is a large village with a population of about 6.5 thousand people located in the Rakhiv district of the Zakarpattia region, 162 km southeast of Uzhhorod, near the border with Romania.

In the village there are two old wooden churches dedicated to St. Nicholas – The Upper Church of St. Nicholas and The Lower Church St. Nicholas – beautiful monuments of Transcarpathian architecture. Serednje Vodyane on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

The Upper Church of St. Nicholas.

two picturesque churches

Tags: church · Zakarpattia oblast

The Ukrainian Carpathians are part of the Carpathian mountain system located in western Ukraine, mainly on the territory of the Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Zakarpattia, and Chernivtsi regions, with a total area of about 24 thousand square kilometers.

The absolute heights of this picturesque mountain system range from 120-400 meters at the foot of the mountains to 500-800 meters in intermontane depressions and 1,500-2,000 meters along the main ridges.

Tags: Chernovtsy oblast · Ivano-Frankivsk oblast · Lviv oblast · Zakarpattia oblast

Mukachevo is a town with a population of about 86,000 people located in the central part of the Zakarpattia region, 41 km south-east of Uzhhorod.

The town has a high tourist potential for both Ukrainian tourists and foreigners. Ukrainians like to come here to visit the Palanok Castle, St. Nicholas Convent, as well as the town center with its paved streets and cozy cafes. Photos by: Igor Golovach.

explore the center of Mukachevo

Tags: Mukachevo city · Zakarpattia oblast

Berehove is a small town with a population of about 24 thousand people located in the south-west of the Zakarpattia region of Ukraine, 69 km from Uzhhorod by road, near the border with Hungary.

This town is the main center of Hungarian culture in Zakarpattia, the Hungarians make up about half of the town’s population. That’s why besides the Ukrainian, the Hungarian language is common here and has the official status of a regional language. Berehove on Google Maps. Photos by: neo7777vitaha.

walk around Berehove

Tags: Uzhgorod city · Zakarpattia oblast

Hoverla (in Romanian meaning “an impassable height”) is the highest mountain on the territory of Ukraine (2,061 meters).

This popular tourist destination is located on the border of the Zakarpattia and Ivano-Frankivsk regions, about 17 km from the border with Romania. Hoverla on Google Maps.

Tags: Ivano-Frankivsk oblast · Zakarpattia oblast