Rivne Oblast: Nature, Railways and Cultural Heritage

Rivne Oblast reveals many different sides: the landscapes of Polesia, an unusual railway line and cultural sites with long histories. For your trip, you can decide whether to focus on natural features, railway history, or castles and collections. The following places offer a glimpse of this diversity.

Landscapes and distinctive natural features

Rivne Nature Reserve protects the natural complexes of Ukrainian Polesia. It covers more than 42,000 hectares in the north of the oblast and lies in Varash and Sarny districts. A different kind of landscape can be seen at the “Tunnel of Love”: branches from trees on either side of a railway track form a regular arch stretching almost four kilometres. Here, the rows of trees and the track together create the distinctive view.

The floodplain landscape takes centre stage at the “Ostriv Zamok” natural monument. The four-hectare site lies on an island in the floodplain of the Pljashivka River, between the villages of Kozyn and Zarichne. It serves to protect rare tree and plant species. At Basaltove, meanwhile, the basalt columns are between three and 30 metres high. Polygonal columns stand in orderly rows, and there is also a sculpture shaped like a basalt fan. These regional natural attractions include both a river-floodplain island and striking rock formations.

Castles, museums and history

Tarakaniv Fort, also known as Dubno Fort or the New Dubno Fortress, is an architectural monument dating from the 19th century. It is near the village of Tarakaniv in Dubno district, in a landscape above the Ikva River. Dubno Castle has its own history: members of the Ostroh princely family founded it and made it the main residence of their estates at the beginning of the 17th century. When comparing the two structures, both their different origins and their respective settings are of interest.

Ostroh also offers its own perspective on regional history. The castle dates from the 14th century and houses an exhibition on local heritage and art. In Peresopnytsia, the museum exhibition includes more than 1,000 archaeological artefacts from the region’s princely era. The Peresopnytsia Gospel also comes from this historic place; it was created there more than 450 years ago. An observation platform offers views of the landscape and the open-air museum “Kniazhe misto X–XIII st.”; check current access to the platform before visiting.

In Rivne, the Rivne Oblast Museum of Local Lore adds another focus on collections: its holdings include more than 297,000 objects, of which over 20,000 are on view in permanent and temporary exhibitions. This offers a way to explore the region’s museums not only through individual historic sites, but also through the scale of an extensive collection.

Through Polesia by narrow-gauge railway

The Antonivka–Zarichne narrow-gauge railway runs through forests and pine-covered sand dunes. Its stated length is 104 kilometres. Passengers can experience the landscapes of Polesia in small carriages. Check whether the railway is currently operating before travelling. During the journey, travellers may also hear stories claiming that diamonds were transported along the line and that it disappeared from maps for 20 years. These tales form part of the stories associated with the journey; they should be understood as accounts passed down over time, not as verified historical events.

Discover more destinations: Velyka Omelyana, Babyn, Moshchanytsya, Ostroh, Samostrily, Dubno, Klevan, Rivne, Kolodenka, Rivne, Birok, Obariv, Kozlyn, Braniv.

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