Odessa Travel Forum

Hi,

I am thinking of moving out to Odessa for a few months from March. If you live there, or have been there, can you help me to get some idea of what life is like there?

Any info about expat communities / opportunities for meeting English speakers would be great

thanks!

Simon

Have been to Odessa and like it a lot.
But mine was for a holiday not living there and I was in centre of city.
Very lively and I had no problems at all being on my own and not speaking russian.
Like everywhere there is an Irish bar (or so I believe).

I'm not from Ukraine but very often visit it. I have to run business there.

Need English speaking people in Odessa Ukraine? - visit Irish pub which is located on Deribasovskaya Street.

Need good hotel? I suggest Mozart. If you want to save on money I recommend to rent central located Odessa apartments. I usually stay at dompavlov.

Would you like to safe om guide? - Buy lonely planet guide book. Sometimes the content of the book coincides with reality. But anyway it's the best guide book.

At the moment life in Ukraine is not good. Prices become higher every day. Cheapening of Ukraine National currency, political crisis

Hi, don't you like to visit Crimea???? Sevastopol, Yalta, Bachchisaray are so close and so beatiful...

I really like Odessa. It has a very urban and cosmopolitan feel, but it's smaller and more manageable than Kiev. It may still be a bit cold in March, but the weather is generally pretty pleasant in the spring. Try to stay until summer, so that you can enjoy the beaches and beach-side bars and cafes. Even off-season, my favorite thing to do in Odessa is to find a lovely little outdoor cafe by the beach, wrap myself in one of the provided blankets, order tea or beer, and enjoy a leisurely conversation. There are a lot of great restaurants and bars throughout the city, and by western standards the prices are reasonable. There is a lot of public transportation, but it's a little erratic and confusing, and often crowded. Do you speak Russian? Try to learn a little, and definitely learn to read Cyrillic.

Many younger Ukrainians in Odessa speak English, and you shouldn't be afraid to make friends with locals. This will really enrich your experience there. And there are quite a few expats in Odessa. That Irish Pub that someone mentioned earlier does often get expats, and the food is pretty good too. Be careful about who you befriend, though. Odessa also gets a lot of wife-hunters, which I find rather distasteful. I was shocked by how many older American men I saw walking with 19-year old, sexily dressed Ukrainian women.