Spanish traveler Alberto Blasco Ventas views Ukraine’s destroyed Irpin Bridge, which was blown up to stop Russian troops in 2022 and is now a hotspot for thrill-seeking tourists visiting the country.
At the beginning of the war Russian forces planned to cross the bridge in their efforts to capture the Ukrainian capital Kiev.
Russian forces have since retreated hundreds of kilometers away, but launch almost daily missile and drone attacks on the Ukrainian capital, which Blasko Ventas had chosen as his vacation spot.
“This is my first time in a war zone,” said the 23-year-old software engineer. “I’m a little scared, I’m not going to lie, because you never know.”
He was on a “dark tourism” tour offered by one of a dozen or so Ukrainian companies specializing in the marginal but growing sector – allowing tourists to visit the sites of tragic events.
To get to Ukraine, he ignored concerns expressed by his family and flew to Moldova, followed by an 18-hour train journey.
The influencer filmed every step of the trip, which she planned to post on her YouTube channel – followed by 115,000 people – where she’s already listed it as the “most terrifying psychiatric hospital” and “most dangerous border” in the United States. Has been described. In the world between China, Russia and North Korea.
‘Like a vaccine’
Before the war, Ukraine already hosted thousands of tourists each year to Chernobyl, which witnessed the world’s worst nuclear disaster in 1986.
Responding to critics who considered such trips morbid or immoral, Blasco Ventas insisted that he was acting “with respect”.
War Tours, which organized his trip, said it had taken on about 30 clients since January, mainly Europeans and Americans paying between 150 euros ($157) and 250 euros ($262) for the entire tour. Are doing.
A portion of the profits are donated to the military, said company co-founder Dmytro Nykiforov, who stressed that the initiative is “not about money, it’s about memorializing the war.”
Svitozar Moiseev, manager of tourism company Capital Tours Kyiv, said the profits are negligible but the trips have educational value.
“This is like a vaccine to prevent this from happening again,” he said.
The trips typically focus on Kiev and its suburbs, which witnessed an alleged massacre by Russian troops in early 2022.
But some companies come closer to the front – including a multi-day trip in southern Ukraine for up to 3,300 euros.
‘The next best thing’
American Nick Tan, who works in finance for a New York tech company, was among those who wanted to go even further than Kiev.
So he went in July to Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, which faces constant bombardment by Russian forces based about 20 kilometers away.
“I wanted to see it just because I think our life in the West is very comfortable and very easy,” the 34-year-old said.
He said he wanted to go even closer to the front but his guide refused.
The self-described thrill-seeker said he has already gone skydiving, regularly attends boxing classes and raves.
“Jumping out of planes and partying all night and punching people in the face isn’t my cup of tea anymore. So what’s the next best thing? Going to a war zone.”
Their discovery astonished some residents of the wounded Irpin suburb, who live under constant threat of Russian air strikes.
“Recently a martyr drone fell 300 meters from my house. I would have no desire to live through such an experience,” said Ruslan Savchuk, 52.
“But if people want it for themselves, that’s their right,” he said.
Savchuk advises Irpin on his tourism strategy as a volunteer.
“Even a difficult topic like war can do some good,” he said, adding that tourists can generate useful income for local communities.
‘Look at our sorrow’
But Mykhaylina Skorik-Shakarivska, a local councilor in Irpin and former deputy mayor of Bucha, said that most residents agree with “dark tourism”, but some consider the profits from it to be “blood money”.
“The accusations are – ‘Why do you come here? Why do you want to see our suffering?’,” he said, recalling conversations with locals.
Marianna Oleskiv, head of the National Agency for Tourism Development, said the growth of war tourism raised many ethical questions but the market was set to grow.
His agency was preparing specific training for guides as well as monument tours in the Kyiv area.
The Russian invasion caused an immediate collapse of the tourism industry, but the sector’s revenues this year should exceed 2021 – a year marked by the coronavirus pandemic.
This growth comes primarily from domestic tourism driven by Ukrainian men of fighting age, who are generally not allowed to leave the country due to martial law.
According to Oleskiv, Ukraine also recorded 4 million foreign visitors last year.
This number is double that of 2022, but mainly consists of business travelers.
Ukraine is already making post-war preparations, including signing deals with Airbnb and TripAdvisor.
“The war drew attention to Ukraine, so our brand is strong. Everyone knows about our country,” Oleskiv said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
