Ski Resort "Bukovel" (Polyanytsia)

Everyone knows that Bukovel provides high-class relaxation. That's true! But the main thing to pay attention to at Bukovel Ski Resort is the prices for accommodation in hotels and the private sector in Polyanytsia. You must take care of your lodging in Bukovel, and the central booking portal will help you choose a cottage in Bukovel in winter (for New Year or Christmas) or in summer near Lake Molodosti.

Bukovel is a leading Ukrainian ski resort located at the foot of Mount Bukovel at an altitude of 920 meters above sea level, practically in the territory of the village of Polyanytsia of the Yaremche City Council. The highest point of the resort is Mount Dovha at 1372 m. The season lasts from late November to mid/late April. It is only 30 km to Yaremche and 100 km to Ivano-Frankivsk.

In 2012, the Bukovel tourist complex (Polyanytsia) was recognized as the fastest-growing ski resort in the world.

A bit of history about the resort

In 2000, the Austrian company "Plan-Alp" and the Canadian company Ecosign were involved in researching the territory and creating a master plan.

In 2001, the initial works for launching the first cable car of the complex were completed - a lift with a length of 691 m on the northern slope of Mount Bukovel. Simultaneously, options for placing a chairlift on the northwestern slope of Mount Bukovel were developed. In September-October 2002, a chairlift on the northwestern slope of Mount Bukovel with a length of 1000 m was implemented.

In 2003, the opening of track 2A and a two-seater lift took place.

In 2004, track 7A with a button lift started operating, and active preparations began for creating a large-scale ski arena.

In the 2003/2004 season, 48,000 people rested in the territory of the Bukovel Ski Resort, in 2004/2005 - 206,000. In the 2006/2007 season, approximately 400,000 guests visited. In the 2008/2009 season, about 850,000 unique tourists visited the resort. In the 2010/2011 season, the resort recorded 1.2 million daily visits. 8-10% of the total number of guests are foreign tourists.

Infrastructure

The resort is a town that offers a range of conditions for sports, business, recreation, and wellness:

• 60 km of prepared tracks. 100% equipped with snow cannons
• 63 ski tracks of all difficulty levels: easy (beginners-blue), medium (intermediate-red), difficult (professionals-black).
• The length of the descents (tracks) ranges from 300 to 2350 m, totaling more than 65 km of tracks. All are equipped with "snow cannons" and interconnected.
• 16 lifts with a capacity of 34,700 people/hour (chairlifts, button lifts, multi-lifts): 11 four-seater, 1 three-seater, 1 two-seater, 1 button lift, 2 multi-lifts (for beginners, children).
• Ski school (including a specialized children's one)
• Equipment rental points in Bukovel provide ski equipment, tubes, snowboards, snowmobiles, and other equipment:
  rental No. 1.1, No. 1.2, and No. 1.3 parking No. 1, first floor, located near lift 1R.
  rental No. 2 – opposite the hotel "Shelter".
  rentals No. 3.1, No. 3.2, No. 3.3, No. 3.4 – parking No. 2, on the 5th floor of parking.
  rental No. 4 – near the medical center, residential area No. 2.
  rental No. 5 – near the hut "Filvarok", residential area No. 2.
  rental No. 6 – near the lower station of the 4-seater lift No. 14.
  rentals No. 7, No. 8 – near the 4-seater lift No. 7.
  rental No. 11 – near the lower station of the 4-seater lift No. 15.
  rental No. 10, near the lower station of lift No. 5.
  rental at the Radisson Blu Resort hotel.
• Snowpark
• Bike park
• Six comfortable hotel complexes - accommodation capacity - 1500 beds
• About 12,000 beds of various categories in the region around the resort
• 4-star and 5-star separate villas-chalets with private garages, pools, saunas, and personal ski-out
• Jeep tours on super jeeps, rental of Wrangler jeeps
• Lake with an ecological heating system and a well-equipped beach area
• Bike park, bike rental
• Sports grounds
• Horseback riding
• Hiking trails
• Climbing wall
• Gazebo rentals
• Excursions around the region
• Extreme park
• Quad tours
• Paintball / Airsoft
• Bowling
• Billiards
• Children's club and entertainment center
• Carving school
• Snowbike
• Dog sledding
• Snow tubing
• Snowpark
• Rental of ATVs, snowmobiles, "Segway" scooters
• Big-Airbag
• Paid covered parking for 1,000 cars is located near lift No. 7.
• Free covered parking for 2,000 cars is located near lift No. 1 at the entrance to the "Bukovel" tourist complex.

In autumn 2015, Bukovel became the venue for the highest altitude triathlon competitions for the first time. This sporting event did not end there — in June 2016, another triathlon was held at the resort, which gathered twice as many athletes, media representatives, and simply those eager to watch the competitions. Bukovel plans to become the sports capital of Ukraine.

In summer 2014, Bukovel opened the largest artificial lake in the country: an area of 6.8 hectares, dimensions of 750×140 m, a beach length of 2 km, a depth of up to 15 m. The lake became the most ambitious project of the resort, costing nearly 150 million UAH. The shores of the lake were equipped with sun loungers, beach recreation areas, and cafes. On the lake itself, a full range of water entertainment was launched: water skiing, wakeboarding, kayaking, catamarans, jet skis, aquabounce, water slide, diving school.

For the safety of vacationers, experienced instructors work on all attractions, accredited lifeguards are present on the beach, and swimming and water entertainment areas are separated.

Since 2008, Bukovel has begun to develop as a health and balneological center. Currently, the resort has a center equipped with modern diagnostic and medical equipment. It specializes in helping people with musculoskeletal problems, gastrointestinal tract issues, and urinary tract problems.

On the territory of the resort, there is a free pump room that serves natural mineral water, the beneficial properties of which are confirmed by the Odessa Institute of Balneology and Resortology. The water has been tested and certified. In addition, the resort is known for its Bukovel baths, which operate on the basis of mineral water and herbal infusions.

Tracks and lifts

Bukovel is located on five mountains: Dovha (1372 m), Bukovel (1127 m), Bulchynokha (1455 m), Babyn Pohar (1180 m), Chorna Kleva (1241 m). Thanks to this, the resort has more than 53 km of tracks of all difficulty levels. The tracks run on specially prepared slopes with a grassy base. All are equipped with snow cannons and protected from direct sunlight. The tracks are prepared for skiing using special snow-blowing and snow-compacting equipment. The lighting of three slopes allows skiing even in the evening.

During the season, the resort operates 16 modern lifts with a total capacity of 34,700 people/hour. At the same time, up to 15,000 people can comfortably ski on the slopes of the resort.

Number of tracks: 63
Length of tracks: from 300 to 2353 m.
Classification of tracks: blue, red, black.
Height difference: from 40 to 285 m.
There are sports tracks for giant slalom and mogul (No. 1B)
16 lifts: 11 — four-seater, 1 — two-seater (No. 2), 1 — three-seater, 1— button (No. 6), multi-lifts: 2.

Bukovel Ski and Snowboard School

The school was founded in 2001 by the managers of the "Bukovel" ski resort and trainers in skiing and snowboarding. The school's activities are aimed at teaching people of all ages, preparing professional athletes, promoting a healthy lifestyle, and skiing sports.

The school is the main organizer of competitions in skiing and snowboarding for children, amateurs, athletes, and instructors - more than 30 competitions in the winter season. In the summer, the school organizes the children's sports and health camp "Bukovel", which operates on the territory of the resort, and also conducts various entertainment events for visitors to the "Bukovel" tourist complex. The school is also the organizer of large-scale charitable social projects ("Get on Skis", "Sports Section", "Happy Children"), aimed at promoting skiing among children, young athletes, and students of boarding schools.

The school's permanent partners include: the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, the Ski Sports Federation of Ukraine, the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine.
All instructors of the school have undergone training according to international standards for training ski and snowboard instructors — ISIA.

Bike Park

Located on the territory of the Bukovel tourist complex. The park is equipped with tracks for various mountain biking disciplines (mountain biking MTB): Cross-Country, DownHill.
The length of the tracks for bike rides is 46.7 km, the length of the tracks for speed descents is 4.7 km. The Bike Park offers 10 routes of varying difficulty and length — from scenic routes to DownHill and SuperD. During the season, the park is visited by more than 6,000 tourists. The bike park is the organizer and main location for many bike competitions, including the annual Bukovel Grand Bike Fest, the National DownHill Championship of Ukraine, Bukovel DH.

"Bukovel Sport Weekends"

In 2016, Bukovel became the venue for four sports competitions: Bukovel Sprint Triathlon Cup, Bukovel Mountain UltraSwim, Bukovel Triathlon Olympic Cup, and Bukovel Endurance UltraTrail. The concept of sports weekends immediately appealed to Ukrainian athletes - they choose the toughest distances and the highest altitude competitions.

Bukovel plans to become the sports capital of Ukraine. To this end, the resort has increased the number of competitions and the choice of distances.

Under the slogan "Train and Compete in Bukovel", in 2017 Bukovel Sport Weekends will include the following competitions:

• 20/05 - Bukovel Cycling Race
• 27/05 - Bukovel Sprint Triathlon Cup
• 11-13/08 - Bukovel 160 km UltraTrail
• 2/09 - Bukovel Mountain UltraSwim
• 9/09 - Bukovel Olympic Triathlon Cup
• 16-17 - Bukovel Endurance 55 km Trail
• 30/09 - Bukovel 1/2 Iron Triathlon

"VODA club"

This is a unique complex that offers a variety of entertainment and services. In summer, the complex accommodates up to 1,500 visitors who relax on sun loungers by the lake, in an inflatable water park, in a relaxation area, and by a large pool. Also, besides daytime relaxation, guests can enjoy nighttime shows and performances by artists from a unique stage on the water.

In winter, a relaxation area accommodating up to 200 people operates. Guests are offered a whole range of services: Roman steam room, Mediterranean sauna, and Finnish sauna with adjustable humidity, made of Canadian cedar, which has healing power and a natural wonderful aroma. In addition, to improve immunity and relieve a number of ailments, one can visit a salt cave.

International Children's Center "Artek-Bukovel"

In 2014, thanks to the efforts of the team of Artek workers and the company "Resort Management Group" with the assistance of the Bukovel tourist complex and the Department of Education, Science, Family, Youth, and Sports of the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional State Administration, the International Children's Center "Artek-Bukovel" was created.

The first shift of the camp began on June 16, 2014. In 2014, "Artek-Bukovel" hosted 1,500 children for one shift, and more than 10,000 for the entire summer. In winter, during the 2014-2015 season, the International Children's Center "Artek-Bukovel" held its first winter shift and transitioned to year-round operation.

Plans for the resort

The resort is actively developing — work is constantly underway to expand the infrastructure and lay new ski tracks, most of the buildings have been constructed in recent years. The master plan for the development of Bukovel envisages the installation of 26 large lifts with a total capacity of 57,000 people per hour and the construction of tracks covering a total area of 379 hectares, which will comfortably accommodate 19,500 tourists at the same time. After the completion of the fifth and final stage of construction, the resort will have 118 kilometers of ski tracks, allowing it to enter the ranks of the 50 largest ski resorts in the world.

The overall plan also includes the creation of 13,200 sleeping places in hotels on the resort's territory, 13,380 places in houses located in close proximity to the slopes, 3,650 places in cottages, and 3,160 places in residential buildings for resort staff (a total of 33,390 sleeping places). For this resort, with a total capacity of more than 20,000 people, 2,500 parking spaces are also planned in daytime parking lots (including 2,000 spaces in two large parking structures).

• Railway branch;
• Cable car Yaremche-Bukovel;
• Economy-class hotel complex for students with dance halls and a water park;
• Covered parking for 3,000 cars;
• Ice palace;
• New tracks;
• Half-pipe;
• Olympic Games.

Transport

The nearest railway station is Tatariv (about 15 kilometers away).

The following trains stop at the station:

Passenger: 605/606 Lviv-Rakhiv-Lviv, 357/358 "Hutsulshchyna" Kyiv-Rakhiv-Kyiv (via Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Kolomyia), an additional train Kyiv-Rakhiv (via Shepetivka, Lviv), which is appointed during peak passenger traffic on holidays and in winter.

Suburban: Ivano-Frankivsk-Rakhiv, Kolomyia-Rakhiv, Kolomyia-Vorokhta.

Attention. There is no ticket office at the Tatariv station. When boarding a suburban train, you can buy a ticket on the train. For traveling on passenger trains, where a specific seat reservation is required, you can buy a ticket in advance or online. Ticket offices are also available at the Yaremche and Vorokhta stations.

Buses: Yaremche-Bukovel, Vorokhta-Bukovel (rarely), Kolomyia-Bukovel, direct buses to several regional centers of Ukraine. Almost all local route buses go through Tatariv. In Tatariv, you can transfer to buses to Yablunytsia, Vorokhta, Mukacheve.