Getting Around Odesa
Odesa is a compact, largely level city, and its historic core is easy to explore on foot. For longer hops, visitors can choose between trams, trolleybuses, marshrutkas (shared minibuses), buses, and taxis or ride-hailing apps. This guide covers the practical options for moving around the city and reaching it from the airport.
Walking
The north end of the central city grid is compact, and parts of it are pedestrianised, so it rewards exploring on foot. Most of the main sights are concentrated in this area.
That said, walking is not practical for every trip. It is too far to walk from the centre to the beach, to the airport, or to the bus and railway stations if you are carrying much luggage.
Public Transport: Trams, Trolleybuses and Marshrutkas
Odesa's city public transport consists of trams, trolleybuses and marshrutkas. There is no metro in the city; the network is built around these surface modes.
Marshrutkas are the main mode of transport because they cover a lot more ground than the rail-based routes. They pick up anywhere — just wave your hand — and set down anywhere, so you simply call out to the driver when you want to get off.
Several routes are especially useful for visitors:
- Tram 5 runs from the bus station area to the Arcadia area, passing Starokonny Rynok (known for its flea markets), the Moldavanka district, Pryvoz Market, the Railway Station, the Musical Comedy Theater, and many of the city beaches along the way.
- Trams 3 and 12 run the length of Preobrazhenska Street, one of Odesa's major transport arteries. Along their route they pass Deribasivska Street, Gorodskoy Sad, Soborna Square (Cathedral Square), the Tiraspolska Square tram hub (where you can transfer to routes 10, 15 and 21), and the Pryvoz Market area. Route 3 then switches east to the Railway Station, while route 12 turns west towards the Moldavanka section of the city.
- Route 28 follows the same path as route 5 through the city centre, but after passing the Theater of Musical Comedy it runs north towards Shevchenko Park and Lanzheron Beach. In Moldavanka it uses a different route towards a different terminus than tram 5.
Because these routes are in high demand, they are often overcrowded.
Connections and Transfers
Passengers on tram route 5 can transfer to trolleybuses 5, 7 and 9, which continue to the city centre; trolleybus 10 goes to the seaport area, and trolleybus 14 serves the airport. It is also possible to transfer to trams 3 and 12 at the Preobrazhenska Street stops, which will take you to Deribasivska Street. Transfers to routes 10 or 21 carry passengers all the way to the Tiraspolska Square transport hub, which is still close to Deribasivska Street.
Tickets and Fares
Usually there is a conductor on board who will collect your money and issue your ticket and change. Unlike Kyiv, there is no system of pre-purchasing tickets or validating them. If there is no conductor, pay the driver on exit.
Single-ride tickets cost 8 грн on trolleybuses and trams, 10 грн on the funicular, 15 грн on buses, and 15–20 грн on marshrutkas.
Schedules
Schedules are available on EasyWay and Google Maps.
Buses and Coaches
Odesa has two main bus stations. Pryvoz, next to the railway station, is mainly for shorter trips, though long-distance services increasingly run from here too. The Central Bus Station, which is not actually central, traditionally handled most of the long-distance routes.
Pryvoz Bus Station is really several stations in one — a confusing jumble where you may have to hunt back and forth for your departure point. Its original core sits on Vul Vodoprovodna, a short walk west of the train station and next to the market. Small buses and marshrutkas head to regional destinations such as Mykolaiv, Vylkovo and Belgorod-Dnestrovsky every hour or two, and also run to Moldova. The station has been extending east in a haphazard collection of coach stops all the way to the railway station, with no centre or signage — so if in doubt, ask anyone who seems to be waiting with luggage.
Long-distance coaches also depart from Starosennaya Square. Ecolines buses run from there to Kyiv, Minsk, Moscow, St Petersburg, the Baltic States, Poland and Western Europe, with timetables at ecolines.net. Autolux buses also run from here to Kyiv and directly to Boryspil Airport; their website is only in Russian and Ukrainian, so you need a Cyrillic keyboard to use it.
The Central Bus Station is further west on Vul Kolontayivskoi. It traditionally served long-distance coaches, but timetables indicate these nowadays mostly depart from Pryvoz as the coach stands there have expanded — so check your ticket carefully for where you ought to be.
Taxis and Ride-Hailing
Taxi is the easiest way of getting around the city. Popular taxi companies and ride-hailing services include:
- Uber
- Bolt
- Uklon
- OnTaxi
- Opti
Driving and Parking
You don't really want a car in central Odesa. Finding your way around isn't difficult thanks to the grid system and clearly signed main streets, but your main concerns will be security and parking. Check ahead with your hotel, as it may have its own parking. Parking is permitted except where specifically restricted. You may be approached by someone demanding a small fee — pay up cheerfully and think of him as security rather than a parking attendant.
Be aware of roadworks, which can bring congestion and diversions. Cycling is possible since the going is level, but it won't be fun and is unsafe at night.
Getting from the Airport into the City
Due to the Russia-Ukraine war, Ukraine's airspace is closed to civil aviation, so Odesa's own airport is not currently an arrival point for visitors. The closest operating airport is in Chișinău, Moldova: Chișinău International Airport (IATA: RMO), which is served by many airlines with flights around Europe and Asia.
From Chișinău, onward travel to Odesa is typically by road. Marshrutkas and buses run from Odesa to Chișinău, taking about 6 hours depending on border hold-ups; most cross via Bessarabia and the Palanca border post, while some run directly through Tiraspol in Transnistria.
Once you are in Odesa, the city's trolleybus network provides a link to the airport area: trolleybus 14 serves the airport and can be reached by transferring from tram route 5.
Arriving by Train
All trains terminate at the main station, Odesa-Holovna, in the Pryvoz area of town next to the bus stations and market. Ticket desks are obvious in the main hall, and any desk will exchange e-vouchers for tickets. Come at a quiet time and the place is relaxed and helpful — just watch out for the "technical break" times posted on each window. Turn up 15 minutes before the weekend express departs and it's all a bit chaotic.
If you don't care for what's on offer at the station café or currency exchange, stroll across the street to the bus stations, where there's lots more. Pryvoz Market is handy for stocking up for a long journey. Lots of marshrutkas and taxis wait outside, and the centre is a 2-km walk north.
For overall route planning and current timetables, the easiest website to navigate is Deutsche Bahn. To buy tickets within Ukraine, visit www.uz.gov.ua and remember to use Ukrainian spelling, e.g. "Odesa" and "Kyiv". Booking online is strongly recommended, as it will save hassle trying to negotiate your journey at a crowded foreign railway station. Inter-city e-tickets should be printed at home and are good to go; other sales are just a voucher which must be exchanged for a ticket before travel, at any mainline station within Ukraine.
Arriving by Boat
There are ferries several times a week to Batumi and Poti in Georgia and to Istanbul Haydarpasa in Turkey. The ferries run all year and take vehicles; trucking is an important part of their business. For schedules, prices and tickets, see www.ukrferry.com. The network serves other Black Sea ports such as Sochi, Samsun, Varna and Constanta, but usually without direct sailing to Odesa.
The ferry terminals are at Chornomorske, southwest of Odesa on the northeast bank of the river. Reach them by marshrutka from central Odesa.