Chernobyl and Pripyat can be visited. How to organize a trip and how much does it cost?
The topic of the Chernobyl disaster has already become part of not only history, but also pop culture. The accident of reactor 4 at a nuclear power plant in Ukraine inspired the creation of films, books and computer games. Currently, an HBO series based on the events of April 1986 is triumphing. For years, the so-called “Zone” has also attracted daredevils who want to see the place of drama for themselves. Most often, they do it on their own, but as it turns out, you can find many offers of official trips online.
Due to the popularity of films, games and the new HBO series, Chernobyl has once again become a place that awakens the imagination. Many people want to see the site of one of the greatest disasters in human history with their own eyes. On the Internet you can find many offers of trips to the so-called “Zone”, i.e. the closed area surrounding the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. One of the main attractions is Pripyat. It is an abandoned city that was built in 1970 especially for power plant workers and their families. Currently, it is treated as an open-air museum of Soviet urban planning and an unofficial monument to the disaster. The day after the reactor 4 accident, the entire city was evacuated. Over 50,000 people were transported within two and a half hours. people. The evacuation was so quick that everyday items that residents left behind can still be found on site.
Trip to Chernobyl
Trips to the “Zona” have been popular for many years. On the Internet, including on YouTube, you can find a number of accounts of people who traveled around the Chernobyl power plant on their own. Most often, however, it was done illegally or with the tacit consent of the local authorities. Some of the reports are very interesting productions that show not only “The Zone”, but also its inhabitants. Noteworthy are the materials by Arkadiusz Podniesiński, especially his film “Alone in the zone”. However, many interesting productions can be found free on YouTube. Among them, it is worth watching the channels Tube Raiders and Napromieniowani.pl.
In recent years, organized tours have also become popular. You can find many offers online that allow you to legally visit Pripyat and the surroundings of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
“Explore the abandoned Chernobyl on a 1-day tour from Kiev and experience incredible emotions in the exclusion zone at the site of the former disaster. Take advantage of the excellent organization of the tour, including all necessary permits for entry. – we read in the description of one of the offers.
“Dead zone? Or just an area without human interference – the life of a Soviet city that stopped in 1986, the omnipresent returning nature, the remains of nuclear infrastructure, the gloomy socialist realist architecture of the abandoned Pripyat… – we read in the next description.
How is the trip and how much does it cost?
Organized trips to the Chernobyl power plant follow a similar pattern. The journey begins with a meeting in Kiev, from where the group and guide will travel by train or bus to Chernobyl. Upon arrival, participants are introduced to the history and informed about safety regulations. During the trips, you also visit places such as the museum, the church of St. Elijah, Eternal Glory Park, river port and a monument commemorating those who secured reactor No. 4 immediately after the explosion. The main points of the trip, however, are visiting Pripyat, the vicinity of the nuclear power plant, and the so-called “Moscow Eye”, located near Pripyat, i.e. the “Duga” over-the-horizon radar, which was used for espionage purposes and jamming foreign radio stations.
Most tourist offers include a one-day trip. Trip prices, which do not include the necessary entrance fees to the “Zone”, range from PLN 380. Trips with paid entry and permission to take photos and videos range from PLN 870 to PLN 1,600.
