FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

If you are above 18 years old, Chernobyl is worth visiting and should be on top of your bucket list places to visit this year. Since the early 2000s Chernobyl started to be visited by non-professional foreign delegations. Since 2008 we developed safe trails, itineraries, procedures and radiation check points in order to make your Chernobyl tour not just possible, but super safe. Now you can travel to Chernobyl directly from Kyiv, Ukraine (2 hours by car), have a great meal, accommodation in a Chernobyl hotel and once in a lifetime experience. The closest you can get to Chernobyl today is some 200 meters from the epicenter covered in Chernobyl New Safe Confinement (sarcophagus). For checking on how you can visit Chernobyl safely, choose one of our Chernobyl tours HERE.

We highly recommend to upgrade your Chernobyl tour program by a Chernobyl Power Plant excursion (provided directly by the CHNPP), the only limitations is the time how much in advance you need to book your excursion and provide details to get a permit issued - currently it is 20 days. You can grab one of the few seats available daily for this tour option to any tour type: 1 day, 2 day and private Chernobyl tour.
The 3 hour excursion inside the Chernobyl power plant is very informative and in depth, as it is the only RBMK 1000 MW power plant reactor in the world that is now being decommissioned. You will see the control room of reactor number 2, central control room of CHNPP, safety center, cooling system of reactor number 3, underground shelter, and with an extended program (available only for Chernobyl private tours) you will enter also the legendary control room of reactor number 4.

Most of the Chernobyl tour offers you will find on the market are offers from tour agencies who sell tours of a few official tour Chernobyl travel agencies. For your own good, service and safety we recommend you buy your trip directly by a Cherobyl travel agency. ChernobylX is an official licensed tour agency for Chernobyl exclusion zone, also a member of Chernobyl Tour Operator Association.
People who were travelling several times to Chernobyl zone (with different Chernobyl travel agencies) said they were paying attention especially: Reviews of previous customers you can find on some independent portal like Tripadvisor, if the price for the Chernobyl tour is final (some agencies might charge you extra for many things we believe should be a part of a safe Chernobyl experience etc.), when the group is starting and ending the tour (the longer time, the better), if the Chernobyl tour agency sticks to the program that it is selling on the website, how knowledgeable is the Chernobyl guide (or delegate), what is the chance a tour can be cancelled (some agencies cancel when not enough people), and what is the guarantee if they do not get what they were promised (ChernobylX has a 100% money back guarantee in case you were not satisfied - for more please read HERE. So what is the best Chernobyl tour? To be honest, maybe trust your gut feeling and what values of a Chernobyl tour provider you resonate with.

There are no more than 10 official Chernobyl tour providers (tour operators) granted license to Chernobyl exclusion zone and meeting all conditions and requirements, with their own guides. ChernobylX is one of them. Providing your Chernobyl tour program, permits and insurance is done directly by us and you can check it before the tour by contacting us, or on the tour in the official papers needed to enter Chernobyl zone at the checkpoint Dityatky.
If you look for some other, cheaper alternatives, there is a high chance you stumbled upon a Chernobyl tour reseller, which just sell you to some oficial Chernobyl tour agency, with conditions you might not be aware of - without any refund possibility, meals, radiation checks, dosimeters or with a Russian speaking group which might be fun if you are a student of Russian language...but usually resulting in complains and basically destroying the reputation of the Chernobyl tourism. The highest risk we encountered is that your data - email, date of birth and passport details you are providing for obtaining the Chernobyl zone permits might be misused or sold to third parties. Please choose your Chernobyl tour provider carefully.

Good luck with that :-) Actually, the best way is to tell her or him that you both are going to visit Chernobyl. Such a Chernobyl trip is just for adventurous couples, so if she/he does not feel to be adventurous enough, you will forgive her/him by letting you go to Chernobyl. Promise you will not drink a lot of vodka and that you love her/him.

Even international media gladly use our Chernobyl blogs and youtube channel ChernobylTV to stay informed. Most of the time you can find stories from the past but you can also have a glimpse into the future on our Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn feeds. For more maps and a “virtual travel” around Chernobyl, please visit Chernobylmaps.com.

Chernobyl babushkas (officially called Chernobyl self-settlers from Ukrainian samosely) are an essential part of Chernobyl exclusion zone, most of them are Chernobyl liquidators (participated in the liquidation works from 1986), live a very simple life (e.g. without water supply, only wells), and love to be visited by Chernobyl tourists to have a little chat. There are around 100 of them still living in Chernobyl zone, most of them in Chernobyl city, few in villages of Teremci, Parishev, Opachichi or Kupovate. With coming to Chernobyl, you are directly helping them as 1% of tour prices goes directly to buy medicaments, groceries and necessary goods for Chernobyl babushkas.

We help arrange a full service tours for our B2B partners (other tour agencies), however we are limited in helping individuals with their journey from their home country - finding flights, trains etc. We will gladly give you hints on finding the best way to Kyiv, Ukraine for your Chernobyl experience. We will get you in touch with our partner hotels and airBNB providers in Kyiv.

People might think that Chernobyl tours are tight to schedule and are not flexible, they would love to try an illegal Chernobyl tour. However, the bonuses taking such a tour - like sleeping in an abandoned flat in Pripyat, or saving money for the tour are very questionable and most of LEGAL Chernobyl private tours can fulfil your needs. Illegal Cherobyl tours are there ever since and there is a very extensive and dangerous adventure. First, you will need to walk to reach pripyat at least 20 kilometers via contaminated areas, even during the night with a very limited chances to get some sleep. The water supply is limited, most of the waters you might use for drinking or cleaning, might be contaminated. Food might be an issue as well, we even took one of this Chernobyl illegal tourists to the hospital probably after tour poisoning back in 2018. There is a fair chance you will get caught by police patrols. The fines for trespassing Chernobyl zone are not very high, however the consequences like being on the black list (to enter Ukraine or Chernobyl zone), spending a night or two in a lock up is not the type of adventure you are seeking.

You can choose from 3 types of tours and occasionally seasonal special tours: 1 day, 2 day and Private Chernobyl tour (1-5 or even more days). All tours have a “Backpacker” price with limited service and a “Hero” package with all perks and comfort. They start at 99 €/119 USD/89 GBP and end around 1600 €/1999 USD/1499 GBP per person. For a private tour to Chernobyl the rule is: the bigger group, the cheaper, and every tenth customer (usually YOU - the organiser) is free of charge.
As a premium partner of Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (with the largest amount of tourists in 2019 and 2020 to CHNPP) we recommend also adding a 3-hour Chernobyl Power Plant excursion to your Chernobyl tour at the most competitive prices: 139 €/169 USD/129 GBP. With Chernobyl private tour also an extended program is available with visiting the iconic control room of reactor no. 4 for only 199 €/239 USD/179 GBP.
Chernobyl tour cost is guaranteed. All prices are final, you will not pay any extra surcharges or services, there are no booking or cancellation fees and a 100% money back guarantee. All ChernobylX prices include transportation (from/back to Kyiv), permits to all 3 safety zones, accommodation (hostel or 2* hotel) directly in Chernobyl or in Slavutych (on several day tours), dining (based on your package), professional English guide (note, there might be a surcharge for unplanned Spanish, German, French, Italian, Slovak Polish and Czech languages), Geiger-Muller counter, respirator, radiation safety control (at least twice a day) and Chernobyl newspaper. Some services like: obligatory insurance, free postcard service, t-shirt, seat choice, or lunch/dinner/full board are part of the HERO package only.
You can pay a reservation or the whole Chernobyl tour by booking (PayPal, Credit/Debit card, Bitcoins) or cash at the pick up in Kyiv.

In order to be permitted to enter the Chernobyl exclusion zone one needs to be at least 18. This restriction is due to the fact that the human body is still growing below this age and it is much more vulnerable to possible contamination (which is highly unlikely, anyway). There is no upper age limit for Chernobyl tour, however keep in mind, unless you take a Chernobyl private tour, the group Chernobyl tours when visiting Pripyat are designed as walking tours to much extent.

It depends on your preferences – the Chernobyl exclusion zone has its magic in every season. In spring everything is blooming, there are no leaves on the trees that would cover the buildings in Pripyat and thus it is very good for photographing. During the summer the Chernobyl exclusion zone is green (and also crowded by tourists at some places) - Pripyat is a city “in the jungle” and this is the best way that you can see how nature overtook the human structures. In autumn, the Chernobyl zone is rather bleak, with falling leaves surrounding the facades of Pripyat houses. There are two magic weeks in October when most of Pripyat turns red thanks to the wild vineyards overgrowing the streets. And during the winter you can see in the best light how abandoned the cities and villages in the Chernobyl zone are, as well as seeing many of the Chernobyl zone’s “wild” inhabitants – moose, wolves and boars. The winters are quite cold in Chernobyl due to the high level of humidity, so please dress up appropriately.

The high season for Chernobyl visits start in March and ends in October each year, so try to come in winter months (and dress well!). One more travel tip to get your spots completely empty: go for more than 1 day Chernobyl tour, as you will get first or last out of Pripyat and exploring becomes so easy. Also, working days are much less crowded than weekends. Ideally, when you want to appear like David Attenborough and walk alone in the streets of Pripyat, a 3-day private Chernobyl tour in the first half of December, during working days, will do the job just right!

Yes, for your private Chernobyl tour you are welcomed to do so and we almost certainly can give you your dream-guide of Chernobyl. For Chernobyl group tours the schedule is limited and we can not ensure your Chernobyl guide will be the one you have asked for.

We will gladly tell the story of Chernobyl in your language if we have the capacity or an interpreter ready. With other languages than English, we face limitations in capacity. German, French, Polish, Czech, Slovak and Spanish guides of Chernobyl are available directly amongst ChernobylX team. We schedule group tours in different languages. For any other dates, we will do whatever we can to ensure a language in your preferred language, however, you might expect some surcharge usually around 100 €/day per group for an interpreter if we are out of our capacity. Hope, one of these languages suits you. Note, the mother tongue of ChernobylX guides is Russian and Ukrainian.

The reservation or whole price for the Chernobyl visit is paid either by booking (PayPal, Credit/Debit card, Bitcoins) or at the ChernobylX bus in cash. No booking and cancellation fees, you can rebook or cancel your Chernobyl tour any time. We will refund you 100% if you cancel the tour at least 24 hours prior to the tour. The sum is paid either in EUR, USD, GBP and CZK.

In case you are not satisfied with our services or services of our subcontractors or partners, you are allowed to cancel the tour with a 100% cashback of your price for the tour ONLY during your Chernobyl tour. This applies when you are traveling with ChernobylX for a one-day Chernobyl tour, reported your non-satisfaction until 14:00 local time (GWT+2 hours), and for a several-day Chernobyl tour, reported your non-satisfaction on the DAY 1 of the tour until 18:00 local time (GWT+2 hours). In this case, you will be immediately refunded and taken to the bus station of Chernobyl city or to the checkpoint Dytiatky. There will be our customer service in touch with you in order to find out what went wrong so we can learn our lesson. Although these situations are very rare (7 out of over 11 thousand customers in 2019), we make anything that is in our hands to offer you not just money back but also propose a remedy, in case you would like to see us again in the future.
Please note, we offer a 100% money-back guarantee only on our Chernobyl tours, as we do have limited control of subcontractors and state authorities in other destinations. However, for other than Chernobyl tours, in case you were not satisfied, we will gladly offer at least a partial refund or compensation.

The price of ChernobylX tours covers all the costs for you to visit Chernobyl in the safest and most comfortable way possible. Chernobyl trips prices include permits to all 3 safety zones of Chernobyl, radiation safety control (at least twice a day), transportation (from/back to Kyiv), accommodation (hostel or 2* hotel) directly in Chernobyl or in Slavutych (on more day tours), dining (optional and variable based on your package), professional English guide (note, there might be a surcharge for unplanned Spanish, German, French, Italian, Slovak Polish and Czech languages), Geiger-Muller counter, respirator and Chernobyl newspapers. Some services like: obligatory insurance, free postcard service, t-shirt, seat choice, or lunch/dinner/full board are part of the HERO package only.

With a group Chernobyl tour you jump on a proven tour program that adjusts to needs and wants of every Chernobyl tourist on your bus. The storyline of your Chernobyl experience is pretty much fixed and the locations are flexibly added or removed from the itinerary based on the situation in Chernobyl zone, e.g. how many other group tours to Chernobyl there are during a day.
Private Chernobyl tour is pushing the limits to the max. Private tours to Chernobyl compared to group tours are super flexible - from the pick up (at your address), throughout the whole visit to Chernobyl, your Chernobyl guide will manage to show and tell you what is close to your heart. In order to make a great preparation, feel free to adjust your Chernobyl program with any of our Customer care specialists or even with your Chernobyl guide (have a call with your guide before the tour). If you rush, no worries, the Chernobyl private tour can be adjusted at any moment during the tour. The Chernobyl locations you can visit and really cherish, not just peek inside, are almost limitless. Even the most famous ones like ferris wheel or swimming pool Lazurny in Pripyat are much more attractive at times when there are no other tourists around.

Other perks of private Chernobyl tour include:
-Booking a tour for tomorrow
-Drive your own car to the zone and get a 90 €/day deduction from your tour price
-Take other 9 friends with you and you go FREE OF CHARGE
-Sunset or sunrise in Pripyat
-Special visits to: Spent fuel storage, Dogs of Chernobyl shelter, Fire Station etc.
-Visiting Chernobyl Power Plant including control room of reactor no. 4
-Evening talk over a beer with one of the liquidators
-Cooking with Chernobyl babushkas
-Camping site next to Chernobyl zone ready for you
-Fly a drone in Pripyat or Duga radar
-Tesla S as your car on the tour - only 160 €/day
-Fly a helicopter or drive a boat at the river Pripyat

If you are interested in seeing just the main tourist points in Chernobyl and Pripyat, it is okay for you to go for a one-day Chernobyl tour. We at ChernobylX were able to squeeze the best places in Chernobyl zone in an extended one-day program where you can still enjoy the highlight of meeting a real Chernobyl hero.
Clients sometimes tell us that this was not just a tour, it was an experience instead. And a real experience takes time. A night spent in Chernobyl zone or Slavutych (New Pripyat) is something that you will never forget. And that is why we do most of the overnight tours to Chernobyl. During our two-day Chernobyl tours we manage to show you places that remain hidden for the majority of tourists, so you can dive deeper into the Chernobyl atmosphere and truly challenge what you know or have seen from documentaries or Chernobyl HBO miniseries. To sum it up, you will experience 3 times more during a two day tour to Chernobyl compared to the 1-day Chernobyl visits. By the way, more than 10% of our customers join us for a two-day tour after visiting Chernobyl for just one day. If your schedule allows you, we recommend choosing a two-day tour. This all at 100% money back guarantee.

We can offer you a several day Chernobyl tour on private where you can choose from 1-7 days. If even that is not enough, please contact directly our customer care at info@chernobylx.com.
If you are looking for a Chernobyl group tour for 3 and more days or a several-day photo workshop, we recommend you will find it on our partner: chernobylphoto.com.

You are welcomed to cancel or move your Chernbyl tour anytime free of charge up to 24 hours before the tour, if you need to cancel or move your Chernobyl power plant excursion (as part of your Chernobyl tour), you can do it free of charge up to 14 days before the tour start date. If you cancel your Chernobyl tour after these deadlines, expect at least 30% cancelation fee. Moving the tour is always easier than canceling it, as most of the fees already paid for your permits, insurance or dosimetric control and they can not be fully refunded. From the experience in the past years we were successful in moving any Chernbyl tour without any surcharge for our customers.

Chernobyl zone is an area under special regime, where radiation safety and Chernobyl power plant decommissioning works are the priorities. Not tourism. Your Chernobyl tour can be cancelled, shortened, and the Chernobyl tour program might be changed anytime. A total cancelation of the Chernobyl tour occurred to ChernobylX only once in 2012. We deeply care about your comfort and safety, we inform and take action immediately as anything affecting your Chernobyl tour arises, usually these are minor changes, not affecting the overall quality or outcome of your visit in Chernobyl.

In case of any changes, or cancelation, our customer care is there to help you, refunding or deferring your chernobyl tour for your convenience.

First of all, you already are helping Chernobyl babushkas with coming for a Chernobyl tour with ChernobylX. Our promise is to dedicate 1% of the price of your tour directly to Chernobyl babushkas, buy them medicaments, groceries, products and organising charity tours to help them in the garden, around the house and with anything they need.
Once you are touring Chernobyl and you are going to visit Chernobyl babushka, we always make sure we bring some goods to her, you are welcome to bring or buy anything you believe will cheer up an Ukrainian pensioner living in a half-abandoned village. Hint: Chernoyl babushkas appreciate some sweets, fruits and chocolate. However, the biggest gift is you to come and talk to them, being interested in their lives and stories. You are the greatest gift!

The commonly used names of Chernobyl and Kiev- the capital of Ukraine are a heritage of Soviet influence even in English or your mother tongue. All cities were called in the Russian language in the Soviet Union era, however, Ukraine is an independent country now with its own culture and language, which is slightly different from Russian. Chornobyl and Kyiv are Ukrainian names for what we tend to call Chernobyl and Kiev.

We have only one discount policy: 9+1 FREE. If you get 9 of your friends joining you on the Chernobyl tour we will make it private only for your group and at the same time, you as the organizer are going completely free. Enjoy!

If we share common values, we will gladly partner with you and share joined success in a fair way. Please contact us at info@chernobylx.com with any inquiry, if you are a travel agency, please contact the Head of sales Nikol at nikol@chernobylx.com.

Depending on the products, we usually offer a 5-15% commission depending on the type of products and volume.

Visiting Chernobyl is (un)safe as much as visiting any other place in the world. The level of radiation is above normal natural radiation background levels only in some places of Chernobyl zone. Most of these contaminated places are avoided during the Chernobyl tour, or the group stays near these places only for a brief amount of time.
So how exactly safe are the trips to Chernobyl? During a one day spent in the Chernobyl exclusion zone, the body receives a dose of gamma radiation comparable to 0,0005 dose by X-ray scan or to 3-5 hours spent in an airplane. In numbers, you will receive 4-6 microsieverts of gamma radiation – an absolutely non harmful dose of radiation. For comparison, most of the nuclear power plants around the world have a safety limit for their employees set at 50-100 microsieverts per day. During a one-day Chernobyl tour you will probably get less radiation then during your flight to Kiev.

Safety on your Chernobyl tour is our number one priority, thus we ensured these actions to make this the safest Chernobyl tour: a (radiation safety) dosimetric control for you at least twice a day, you will get a free respirator and a Geiger-Muller counter will be borrowed to you anytime at no cost, our trained Chernobyl guides will take you only on health-non-hazardous places and trails. We ensure the dose of radiation received during 1 day of your Chernobyl tour will not exceed 6 microsieverts.
Please note: for your Chernobyl Power Plant excursion (if you upgrade your tour), the daily limit is slightly higher due to visiting higher contaminated places (circulation cooling system of reactor no. 3, with extended programme even control room of reactor no. 4). The radiation dose received during 1 day of your Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant excursion will not exceed 8 microsieverts.

After 35 years after the Chernobyl accident, we can manage to take you inside the very historical room where the dramatic moments of the faithful night on April 26, 1986 took place: Control room number 4.
You can book this expanded Chernobyl power plant tour including Control room #4 ONLY for a Private Chernobyl tour in your prefered dates, at least 20 days before the tour starts. The price is 199 €/239 USD/179 GBP per person.
Safety is guaranteed by Chernobyl power plant with their equipment, trained guide and full-suit protection including Geiger Muller counter and whole body radiation safety scan (dosimetric control). The premises of Control room #4 are still contaminated, so you will spend there only several minutes in full protection, in order to keep the dose of radiation for the whole day in Chernobyl under 10 microSieverts (10% of safety daily dose in majority of nuclear power plants in the world).

Since 2008 and over 25 thousand safely travelled customers, we can with a certainty sa It is highly improbable to get contaminated during your Chernobyl tour. The travel guides of ChernobylX are specially trained to lead you just along safe roads and paths, your safety is their number one priority. During the visit to the Chernobyl exclusion zone you will go through a dosimetric control several (at least 2) times a day – at the checkpoints to the Chernobyl safety zones, as well as at the entry to the canteen or Chernobyl power plant. On top of that your Chernobyl group will be equipped with the famous yellow Geiger-Müller counters (you can borrow it for free) which measures the radiation level constantly.
On top of that, you can get a respirator free of charge from us anytime while touring Chernobyl, in case you are afraid of radioactive particles in windy weather in Chernobyl zone. The radioactive isotopes and radiation sources are sinking 1 cm/year into the soil, most of the most radioactive particles had already their halflife and they turned into more stable and less radioactive, or even stable, isotopes. Comparing the radiation level at the time of the Chernobyl accident to the radiation level in the Chernobyl exclusion zone today, it is a fraction of the famous quote from Anatoliy Dyatlov in Chernobyl series: “3,6 Roentgen. Not great, not terrible”. Besides the fact, the Roentgens became obsolete and we use Sieverts instead to measure radiation, the average level of radiation in Pripyat nowadays is thousand times lower, only three times the natural radiation background. Most of the places visited in the Chernobyl zone by the ChernobylX expedition contain radiation levels lower than natural, every day radiation – i.e. lower than in your living room.
Since 2008, when ChernobylX started to organize Chernobyl tours, there has been only one case that a visitor had his shoes contaminated and they could not be washed. So he left them in Chernobyl and went back to Kiev barefoot. Of course our first stop was a shoe store.

Dosimeter and Geiger Muller counter are two gadgets you will need and with ChernobylX you will have free of charge on your Chernobyl trip. Dosimeter is a device that measures ACCUMULATED radiation received on its chemical monitor (and likely is the same dose for your body) and you will get one by entering the Chernobyl zone or on your Chernobyl Power Plant visit. However, the data can be entered only after your tour in a lab, thus you will know the amount of gamma radiation you have received in Chernobyl after several days (and only if you ask the lab, they contact you only if you exceeded a radiation dose limit). Thus, ChernobylX as the only Cherobyl travel agency equip its tourists with a free Geiger Muller counter where you can see ACTUAL level of radiation and ensure your safety all the time (please note, there are 6-8 dosimeters per group available anytime). This way, we can not just measure Chernobyl radioactive hotspots, but make sure wherever you step, you know the safe level of radiation. Geiger Muller counter also accumulates the radiation dose during the day, so you have your dose recorder right after your Chernobyl tour.

Your safety is the number one priority for ChernobylX, that is why created the safest Chernobyl tour in the world. We will gladly assist you with any health constraint you are facing and make your Chernobyl trip super safe. We can easily adjust program and transportation for people in the wheelchair, although the visit of Pripyat of Chernobyl-2 with Duga radar will be bumpy. With asthma or blood disease you should be fine, as you will not be facing some extended radiation (as mentioned in our SAFETY, you will get more radiation on your flight to Kyiv.), however we do not take any responsibility for health risks, especially if you did not follow the rules of Chernobyl zone or the instructions of your Chernobyl guide. We highly recommend you to consider any travel, not just to Chernobyl, if you are advised by the medical professional for a treatment or medicaments. We will not accept people with limb disease, cancer, tumor, COVID-19 (or any other contagious virus), pregnant women on our Chernoby tour. P.S. The risk for pregnant women is probably negligible, and there was even one child born and raised in full health in the city of Chernobyl after the accident.

Video games want to convince us that the Chernobyl zone is full of paranormal activities or mutants. Not in reality. There are spotted and well documented mutations in the radioactive soil of plants, like the soy bean project by Slovak scientist Martin Hajdúch. Indeed, you might see slightly odd tree structures in Pripyat as well (although hard to tell how much of this is done by radiation).
In the past, shortly after the accident in Chernobyl, there were also mutations visible on animals, especially small ones like frogs or mice. Some Chernobyl studies were conducted also on fish and ferrets (unfinished). However, due to Soviet Union collapse, it is very hard to track. For example here is one great source with a lot of citations on Chernobyl animal mutations.

During the Corona pandemic, we have ensured the absolute safety of you and your fellow travellers on our Chernobyl trips by an airline-level of disinfection and precautionary measurements: temperature check, face masks, gloves, antibacterial gel, disinfected buses and cars, Chernobyl guides and drivers with masks. Together we can make sure you come back home safe and thrilled. For more details please read the Corona update.

You are free to come to Ukraine nowadays, just check from which country you are coming, so you can follow the local quarantine rules, and the best and up to date info can be found here: https://visitukraine.today/
Ukraine experienced a severe COVID-19 hit in 2020, with the culmination of infected people in November 2020, after several lock-downs and even closing their borders twice. As of 2021, the situation with positive COVID tests is decreasing. The vaccination of the Ukrainian population started in Q2 2021. You are asked to keep all the safety medical measurements against COVID-19 when entering and staying in Ukraine.

Anybody from any country is permitted to enter Ukraine. People entering Ukraine from the “Green Zone” countries do not need to self-isolate or observe. There is a 14 day quarantine requirement for travelers coming from “Red Zone” countries.

All passengers are to wear masks. The number of passengers in the transport vehicle is to be equal to the number of sitting places. Restaurants, shops etc. are operating. Visitors are to wear masks at all times on the premises.

Useful Links:

Map of GREEN and RED zone countries:
https://www.endcoronavirus.org/map-visualization
Official statistic of Corona in countries:
https://www.endcoronavirus.org/countries#winning
Official statistic of Corona in Ukraine:
https://covid19.gov.ua/en

Information Page for Tourists and Visitors of Ukraine:
https://visitukraine.today/

You can choose from 2 options: a refund or a reschedule.

Travellers arriving from countries in what the Ukrainian authorities call the “Red Zone” are required to undergo 14 days of self-isolation approved by the “Dii Vdoma” tracking app (see below), or quarantine in a Government-approved facility for 14 days upon arrival.
Mandatory self-isolation or quarantine is no longer necessary if a traveller undergoes a PCR test and receives a negative result no more than 48 hours in advance of his/her arrival in Ukraine, or once in Ukraine.

The Chernobyl expedition starts usually at 7:30 AM in Kyiv (DAY 1), group tours meeting point is in front of the KFC/Puzata Hata restaurant at the Central railway station in Kyiv. For a private Chernobyl tour, you might wish an earlier or later pick up time, and we will pick you up at your address in Kyiv (Hotel/airBNB).
You will get a “fresh” newspaper from 1986 with the Chernobyl story and you are welcomed to watch a documentary on your way to Chernobyl, also most of the journey there is a WiFi available (some territories, including Chernobyl zone are not covered with a good mobile internet signal, however).
The ChernobylX van or jeep arrives at the Chernobyl exclusion zone around 10 AM. After passing the checkpoint “Dytiatky” the group will start the excursion. More day tours check into the hotel or hostel (based on your tour package). There will bea lunch break during the Chernobyl expedition (lunch included in HERO package), also breakfast (all packages on several day tours) and dinner (only for several day tours with HERO package). There might also be a chance to stop at the local grocery shop to buy some snacks, drinks or souvenirs.
After the Chernobyl tour and last dosimetric control, the van or jeep will return to Kyiv between 6 and 8 PM (20:00) local time.
During a two-day Chernobyl tour the night is spent at the hotel in Chernobyl (or Slavutych) with a cultural program – talking with local Chernobyl guides and experts about the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Pripyat city, accident, evacuation and the future of the whole Chernobyl exclusion zone. Several day Chernobyl tours start with a traditional Ukrainian breakfast at the hotel before their follow up program.
If booked a tour with a Chernobyl Power Plant excursion (highly recommended!), you will be picked up by the CHNPP guide at the van, and you will rejoin or continue to Chernobyl tour after Chernobyl Power Plant.
During your tour to Chernobyl zone you will have a chance to meet and talk to living legends of Chernobyl - liquidators or Chernobyl babushkas. This will be organised in a very smooth way during your visit in Pripyat, at the power plant or in Chernobyl city. Chernobyl private tours are more flexible in their Chernobyl tour program. Please note, part of the Chernobyl tour organisation are the safety measurements - we ensure at least 2 whole body radiation controls, we provide you with a dosimeter and a Geiger-Muller counter, as well as a basic radiation safety training.

The tour to Chernobyl with ChernobylX starts in Kyiv, Ukraine. Group Chernobyl tours (1 and 2 day) start at the Central Kyiv railway station (Pivdenny) in front of KFC (Puzata Hata) restaurants. The Chernobyl private tour starts at your address in Kyiv (please provide with your booking). Our tours to Chernobyl ussually start at 7.30 AM local time, finish between 6 and 8 PM at the same departure spot.

We advise you to book your Chernobyl tour at least 2-3 weeks in advance as many of them are likely to be booked out, especially in high season: March-October. For Chernobyl Power Plant excursions, make your booking at least 20 days before the start of the Chernobyl tour.

Normally we need at least 5 days to process your data and get you a permit from the Chernobyl zone administration. Sometimes, especially on private tours, we can manage it much faster. Chernobyl tour for tomorrow can be a big stretch. If you need to book a Chernobyl visit for any day close to tomorrow, please call us, whatsapp, viber at +380 99 051 9999.

It takes time to get your Chernobyl permit issued, the rest is easy to manage for our team. To be sure, contact us at least 2 working days ahead of your planned Chernobyl tour date, so we can ensure Chernobyl permits being issued on time. Our record is 2 hours, however you might not be that lucky :)

We do not organise big bus and shopping Chernobyl tours. Thus, the maximum number of people on group Chernobyl tours with ChernobylX is 15 (sometimes 18 on one day Chernobyl tours, most of the time there are not more than 10 people in the group). This is the number that still guarantees the highest quality and smoothness of the whole Chernobyl tour. On top of that, with this number of adventurers in one group you can be sure you will never have unwanted people in your unique Chernobyl photos.

For your Chernobyl private tour we can organise tours for up to 300 people a day, our record is 150 in more than 70 cars (CATrophy event Chernobyl 2017). Can you beat that?

The basic language of the Chernobyl tour is English, but there is a possibility to have it in: German, Spanish, French, Italian, Russian, Czech, Slovak and Polish. We have regular dates for group tours in different languages, at least once a month. In case, you will not make it for the date of your preferred language, there might be a surcharge for a translator (as we will be out of capacities in the particular language). We will try to make your Chernobyl experience the most valuable, providing you all the Chernobyl information and stories in your mother tongue is a pleasure for us.

The Chernobyl exclusion zone is running under special management, most of the time it allows to travel to Chernobyl on your own car (bus), but not motorbike. You can use your car, bus or caravan on a Chernobyl private tour, where we offer even a discount of 90 €/100 USD/80 GBP a day. If you plan the visit on your car, please contact us in order to issue a Chernobyl zone permit for your vehicle in advance.

Transportation and safety are one of the pillars of ChernobylX legacy in Chernobyl tourism. We run Chernobyl group tour with our Mercedes Sprinter (2014+) that are equipped with comfortable seats, chargers, WiFi and A/C. the Chernobyl private tours are serviced äbased on the number of tourists) by Mercedes Sprinters, Mercedes Vito (2012+), Toyota Landcruiser (2012+) and for a 160 €/day you can have an all inclusive Tesla model S.
For private tours to Chernobyl you are welcomed to use also your own vehicle - bus, caravan, car - and we will gladly apply a 90 €/day deduction from your Chernobyl tour price. No motorcycles or bikes allowed in Chernobyl, sorry.

Since April 1, 2012 it is officially forbidden (due to safety reasons) to enter buildings in Pripyat. Despite this fact, ChernobylX assures you that you will have almost the same experience as the former Pripyat tour.
For an even more intense Chernobyl visit, we also added Chernobyl VR with interiors of the most famous places to our Private Chernobyl tour free of charge. This way you can vividly step into the old Soviet buildings such as Palace of culture Energetyk, Pripyat Hospital, Swimming pool Lazurny and others. Also, wehn walking in the streets of Pripyat with one of our Chernobyl heroes who was living in Pripyat, you might get an invitation for a cup of coffee or tea to his apartment, as most of us already did ;-)

Due to the special management in the Chernobyl exclusion zone, as well as the ongoing liquidation process in some places (Chernobyl nuclear power plant), ChernobylX can not guarantee the program and places visited during the Chernobyl tour. We can definitely guarantee that on your Chernobyl trip you will see the majority of the places listed, as well as many places not listed in the tour itinerary. Private tours to Chernobyl can have some extra places added in their Chernobyl tour program upon request. If you are coming to Chernobyl to see some particular landmark or person, please refer to it during your booking, so we can double check if it is likely to be available on your Chernobyl tour date.

Every Chernobyl visitor has to have a valid passport at all times – this is obligatory. Visitors of Chernobyl zone have to wear pants (not shorts), long-sleeve shirts/jackets and closed shoes (not sandals or flip flops). ChernobylX recommends that you take old clothes and shoes that can be easily washed or maybe even thrown away. As Chernobyl tour is to much extent a walking tour, make sure you wear comfortable shoes and outfit.
It is forbidden to take to/from the Chernobyl exclusion zone any weapons, animals, plants, drugs, etc. Tourists are also not allowed to take artifacts that they have found in the Chernobyl zone out of the zone. Download this LIST of what is recommended to take with you to Chernobyl.

With ChernobylX, we solved your hunger once and for all. We offer a complete and healthy option of dining in Chernobyl. With the HERO package you have lunch (4 courses) included. Enjoyed in the famous Chernobyl power plant canteen, which is a great break of the hassle during the one day Chernobyl tour around Pripyat. With the 2 and more day private Chernobyl tours, we ensure you are covered with a breakfast at your Chernobyl hotel, and we will gladly organise a lunch and dinner in the zone - whether it is dining at the Chernobyl power plant, the Chernobyl hotel, or with the Chernobyl babushkas, which is included in the HERO package of your Chernobyl tour. Please report if you are vegetarian or have any food intolerances as we will take care of it and ensure you with healthy and delicious local food (with all groceries and vegetables supplied outside of the Chernobyl zone).

Vegetarians, gluten free and vegans are welcomed in Chernobyl as well. Although do not expect a wide variety of choices for lunch and dinner, the chefs are used from Soviet times to cook mostly meat dishes. Anyway, please inform us about your diet or any other health limitations before your Chernobyl visit.

After entering the Chernobyl exclusion zone, you will be instructed as to what is and what is not allowed to do in Chernobyl during your visit. You will have to stick to these instructions and to the directions of your Chernobyl travel guide (envoy officer). During the stay in Chernobyl you are, for example, not allowed to smoke, eat and drink in the open spaces. Smoking in Chernobyl zone is allowed only at the places that are marked for this. Eating and drinking is allowed only inside, in the car or van. You are also not allowed to sit on the ground, as well as put your belongings – mostly cameras and camcorders – on the ground. You are not allowed to eat any berries, drink water from open sources such as wells etc. (tap water or bottled water is OK), or touch vegetation and objects on the ground. Download LIST of rules in Chernobyl.

Yes, you can fly a drone in Chernobyl zone and Pripyat on a Chernobyl private tour. You need to get a special permit from the Ukrainian secret service, ChernobylX will gladly help you obtain this permit free of charge upon providing us the details of your drone. Please note, there are restricted areas for drone flights that you are not allowed to fly, your Chernobyl guide will ensure you are staying out of the no flight zones..

During the trip to Chernobyl you are allowed to take pictures and videos of everything and every place in Chernobyl zone, no need to ask. There is a photo and camera restriction only in the premises of Chernobyl nuclear power plant and at the checkpoints with police guards. Please do not make pictures and videos on these spots as well as at places where your Chernobyl travel guide tells you that you are not allowed so.
You are allowed to take pictures and shoot video in front of the reactor number 4 (new sarcophagus) of Chernobyl nuclear power plant from a safe distance. You can also take your tripods with you to the Chernobyl zone. For a drone you need a special permit that we will help you to obtain. You can fly drone only on private tours with this special permit and some places (especially around Chernobyl power plant) are flight restricted zones.

The Chernobyl zone operates under strict rules, which do not allow tourists to stay in Pripyat or 10-kilometer Chernobyl zone after 7PM. During Autumn and winter months, the sunset is before 7PM, so you can have a good photo shooting with a golden hour of sunset in Pripyat or Duga radar. For evening sunsets, morning sunrise or any other special photo request, please book a Chenrobyl private tour with us or with our specialised partner: chernobylphoto.

Chernobyl zone has become a wildlife reserve in the past decades and there is a fair chance of seeing wild animals such as deers, moose, fox, turtle, bores and even wolfs during your Chernobyl tour. If you are specialised in nature and wildlife, go for a Chernobyl private tour and together with Ecocenter of Chernobyl we can take you to places in Chernobyl zone where you will surely spot wildlife.
Feeding catfish in the cooling pond of Chernobyl power plant is possible, however limited since 2018 when the majority of large catfish migrated to parts of the channel with better conditions (cooling pond is continually dewatering).

No, you do not need to take a gas mask or respirator for visiting Chernobyl, Pripyat and surrounding areas. You will get a respirator from ChernobylX for free at the entrance to Chernobyl exclusion zone.

You can buy souvenirs either in the Chernobyl zone - there is a vending machine with Chernobyl T-shirts, CHERNOwear souvenirs can be found in Chernobyl shops and petrol station where we usually have a break on our journey from kyiv to Dityatky checkpont. Please note, the souvenir offer in Chernobyl is very limited.
We strongly recommend to order quality t-shirts, hoodies, but also survival gadgets that you may find useful before your tour online at chernowear.com and we will deliver them on your tour. All in great quality, Chernobyl style, and for an affordable price. Plus, you help Chernobyl babushkas, as 5% of the price goes directly to provide them medication, groceries or needed supplies (e.g. for winter). Thank you!