Zalissia National Nature Park in the Brovary region is a former protected forest hunting reserve and state residence, and since 2009 a national park covering almost 15,000 hectares, over 80% of which is covered by pine-oak forests. For visitors, the "Forest Fairy Tale" eco-trail has been set up here: 5.3 km, about two and a half hours, easy difficulty level. It is designed for guided tour groups — adults, university students, schoolchildren — so visitors walk it with a park employee, and tours must be booked in advance.

Wet alder forest
Wet deciduous forest in the park. Photo: DiRudenko, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Five Stops

  • "Introduction" — entrance, why the park was created, and how to behave on the trail.
  • "Forest" — which trees grow here, how the forest regenerates, diseases and pests, birds of northern forests.
  • "Silviculture" — how trees are planted, main species, forest markers, Red Data Book plants and birds.
  • "Biotechnical Structures" — ungulates of the park, feeding stations and salt licks, demonstration area.
  • "Anthill" — ants as forest sanitarians, as well as frogs, lizards, and snakes of the park.

Information boards, directional signs, and resting spots are located along the trail. Nearby is the park's Museum of Nature, founded in 1964: three halls dedicated to the flora and fauna of Zalissia.

Lyubich River in the forest
Lyubich River. Photo: Sergij Pylypenko, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Wildlife of Zalissia

Almost 13,000 hectares of the park are fenced, so the chance of seeing fallow deer, roe deer, red deer, or sika deer here is very high. Beavers live in the marshes, while ducks, terns, gulls, and egrets inhabit Lake Velyke. The park counts 245 species of vertebrates and more than 800 plant species, including sundew and pasqueflower. Since 2022, the park has included the Velykivske Swamp in the old Desna floodplain, where the common crane and black stork nest. In the spring of 2026, fawns were born here, and two female elks gave birth to twins.

Remains of ramparts of an ancient hillfort
Ramparts of the hillfort near Litochky. Photo: Scunk, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Other Routes in the Park

For cyclists, the park offers the "Along the Roads of Zalissia" route — 28 km past the Museum of Nature, the biotechnical area, stables, a fire tower in the Fedorivka hamlet, the Starolitkivska road, and Lake Nyzhnye Male. The 37 km driving route "Pearl of Polissia" also includes an ancient hillfort of the Milograd culture from the Early Iron Age and Lake Verkhnye Velyke. In total, the park has nine designated rest areas.

How to Get There

The park administration is located in the village of Bohdanivka, Brovary District, about 40 km from Kyiv. The track on the map shows an approximate loop along forest roads starting from the main estate: the park does not publish the exact line of the trail; the tour guide will show it.

Note. In the spring of 2022, part of the park was under occupation, and in 2024, after shelling, the forest caught fire here. During martial law, restrictions apply to visiting forests in the Kyiv region, so be sure to call the park and arrange a tour before your trip. The route is described for a time when restrictions are lifted.