Volodymyr District lies in the west of Volyn, along the border with Poland along the Western Bug. The area is over 2.5 thousand square kilometres, with 11 hromadas and about 173 thousand residents. The modern district was formed in 2020 from the former Volodymyr-Volynskyi, Ivanychi, Lokachi, and part of Turiisk districts. The centre is Volodymyr, one of the oldest cities in Ukraine, and the largest city is Novovolynsk.
The Land of the Principality of Volodymyr
According to legend, Volodymyr the Great founded the city near the ancient hillfort of Volyn and named it after himself. The first prince here was Volodymyr's son Vsevolod, in the year 988. In the 12th century, the Principality of Volodymyr became one of the strongest in Kyivan Rus, and under Roman Mstyslavych, it became the centre of the Galicia-Volyn state.
Zymne
Zymne Monastery, a few kilometres from Volodymyr, is considered one of the oldest in Ukraine — according to legend, it was founded by Volodymyr the Great. The monastery was first mentioned in 1062. In the 15th century, Prince Fedir Chortoryiskyi rebuilt it into a brick fortress with walls and towers.
Novovolynsk
The youngest city in the district — it has held city status since 1957. It grew on the lands of several ancient villages around coal mines, the first of which began operating in 1950. In Nyzhynychi, which is now within the city limits, the Kysil family had a castle, and Adam Kysil built a church and a monastery in the 17th century. Buses can be found in the article bus schedule in Novovolynsk.
Ustyluh and Nature
Ustyluh on the Western Bug is a border town where the composer Igor Stravinsky lived in the summer; today it is home to his museum. Along the Luha River, the "Luha" nature reserve has been created — a nesting place for the Eurasian curlew. It is also worth seeing the "Mochyska" nature reserve and the glacial Lake Nevydymka.
Zymne on Video
How to Get There
From Lutsk to Volodymyr — via the N22 highway, about an hour. A railway connects Volodymyr with Kovel.
