Lutsk Raion is the most populous in Volyn: more than 450 thousand people across 5.3 thousand square kilometres, with 15 hromadas. It was formed in 2020 from the former Lutsk, Kivertsi, Horokhiv, Rozhyshche and part of Manevychi raions. The centre is Lutsk. In the north of the raion are Polissian forests and the Tsuman Pushcha, and in the south are the hills of the Volyn Upland.

Olyka

Olyka was first mentioned in the Hypatian Codex under the year 1149, and it received town status in 2025. For over 400 years, the town belonged to the Radziwiłł family. The Olyka Castle of 1558 is one of the first bastion-type castles in Ukraine. Nearby is the Collegiate Church of the Holy Trinity from 1635–1640 in the style of the Roman Il Gesù church, featuring the Radziwiłł family crypt, as well as the Lutsk Gate, the last surviving fragment of the town fortifications.

Collegiate Church of the Holy Trinity in Olyka
Collegiate Church of the Holy Trinity in Olyka. Photo: Denis Vitchenko, CC BY-SA 4.0

Berestechko

One of the smallest towns in Ukraine. First mentioned in 1445 as the village of Berestky. Here, the Holy Trinity Cathedral is worth a visit. Nearby, already in Rivne Oblast, is the Cossack Graves memorial at the site of the Battle of Berestechko in 1651.

Horokhiv

The town has been known since 1450 and received Magdeburg rights in 1600. The town castle once housed a collection of ancient sculptures. Today, a district history museum operates here, and tourist driving routes to Berestechko pass through Horokhiv.

Kivertsi and Tsuman Pushcha

Kivertsi grew up around a railway station laid down in the 1870s. Today, it is the gateway to the Tsuman Pushcha National Nature Park—a large forest massif north of Lutsk where you can walk along hiking and cycling trails.

Also worth seeing

  • Zhydychyn Monastery — an ancient cloister on the banks of the Styr River near Lutsk.
  • Museum of Volyn Agriculture History — an open-air museum in Rokyni.
  • Vorotniv and Kormyn nature reserves, and the Horyn Slopes natural landmark.

Olyka on video

How to get there

All the towns of the raion are connected by buses to the Lutsk Bus Station. Kivertsi is a railway hub, through which trains run to Kovel, Rivne and Kyiv.