If you’re into jogging and would like to know more about Kyiv, there is a new service in town just for that: guided running tours. Volodymyr Dehtyarov, founder of the Kyiv Running Tours service that combines sightseeing and fitness, says his foreign friend who started doing such tours earlier inspired him to do the same in Kyiv. “The idea looked interesting to me,” Dehtyarov says. “I thought I like communicating with people, I speak English, and so why not do the same in Kyiv?”
The running tours are intended for expats because healthy lifestyle is more popular in Europe and North America than in Ukraine, organizers explain. “Ninety percent of those buying our Kyiv running tours definitely aren’t putting sneakers on for the first time,” Dehtyariov says. He adds that many visitors who play sports in their home countries don’t like to miss workouts here in Ukraine.
Xavier Milos from Leipzig, Germany, is one of them. He likes running and before his visit to Kyiv in early June Milos started looking for like-minded people in Ukraine. “Because I like running this was a great idea to get to know other runners and the city,” the German says.
Locating the tour service through TripAdvisor, Milos is pleased he tried it out. “I liked Volodymyr (Dehtyarov) personally and I also liked that he set the pace not too slow, because we both are keen runners,” he says, adding that both the route and the explanations of the sights were excellent.
At the moment, the Kyiv Running Tours agency offers five main running routes in Kyiv. Each of them lasts one hour and is nearly 10 kilometers long. Guests are offered to visit Mykhaylivska and Sofiivska squares, Maidan Nezalezhnosti, Mariinsky Park, Park Slavy, old Podil district along with the Kyiv Botanical Garden and the Arch of People’s Friendship near European square. “The routes are not cut in the rock, and depending on a client’s wishes, we could change them,” Dehtyarov explains.
The journey along the Dnipro River hillsides, which offer magnificent views of the city’s beautiful landscapes, is the most popular. One running guided tour costs 20 euros for one or two people or 30 euros for a group of up to four people. A group of five or six persons will have to pay 40 euros.
For more information about Kyiv Running tours visit its website at http://kievrunningtours.com/home.
Kyiv Post staff writer Nataliya Trach can be reached at [email protected].
