My father is from Crimea and is 81 and would like to go back. He left in 1943 and has never returned. We want to take him but are having trouble figuring out the easiest, least expensive, and least difficult way to get there. We would like to go through Munich and Frankfurt on the way there and back as we have family in both places. We would like to stay about a week to 10 days in Crimea. We would appreciate your help in suggesting best way to fly, etc. We considered flying to Kiev but it is an 11 hour drive to Simferopol and we don't know how the roads are and if it is safe. Is plane or train better? Thank you for all your help.
Diana
Posted by
Singapore
354 posts
I know that there are direct flights from Istanbul to Simferopol, that take only 1.5 hours - my parents went to Ukraine that way. I'm not sure about getting to Istanbul from LA though, or if there are better flying options through another European city.
Posted by
Denver, CO, USA
1557 posts
One option - Fly to FRA or MUC and then take connecting flights. Try Aerosvit or Ukranian Airlines via Kiev. In the past I found the internal Ukrainian flights quite cheap. Not sure how expensive getting from FRA to KBP will be. Other options will be to try Carpatair from Timisoara, Romania. They normally have reasonable fligths. Again, not a straightforward routing but an option to check. If you can get to Kiev then you can easily get an overnight train to the Crimea.
Posted by
Colorado Springs
334 posts
It's been several years (maybe 5?) since we were last in Ukraine. I would not recommend driving yourself - when we were there it wasn't even possible to rent a car outside of Kiev (and you don't want one there). This may have changed, but road signs are all in Ukrainian (and sometimes Russian, especially in Crimea). If you father speaks (and reads) either Ukrainian or Russian, getting around shouldn't be too hard. As Arnold said, the overnight train to Simferopol is a good option - but it helps to be able speak the language (or hire someone to help getting from the airport to the train station and getting tickets). It's a good way to experience Ukraine. We had a 4 person compartment (you would have 2 strangers with you unless you get a 2 person cabin for more money), but what they call a "platscart" (or something like that works pretty well) - it's more open, but you still have sleeping options. Request lower berths - that way your luggage is in a cupboard under the bed you are sleeping on (the bed is the top of the cupboard). However, with your father's age, a flight to Crimea really might be best (Simferopol or Sebastopol). Getting to Ukraine is not inexpensive, however. We've connected through Vienna and through Frankfurt (I think British Air flies to Kiev also). Once in Simferopol you can get around fairly easy by tram, buses and marshrutkas (mini-van buses). We've been to Crimea both on our own (with a Ukrainian friend) and on a tour of Mennonite areas. I hope you can make the trip - our group trip with persons who left Ukraine either before or after WWII was a special experience.