Souvenir Bazaar by the Ski Jumps, Vorokhta

The souvenir bazaar in Vorokhta is one of the busiest little trading spots in the mountain Hutsul region. Rows of wooden stalls stand beside the Avanhard sports complex with its famous ski jumps, so almost everyone who comes to watch the jumpers or ride the chairlift wanders through. There is a second trading place too — the market near the railway station: every Friday it hosts a big market day, and on other days a few stalls sell treats to travellers hurrying for the train. Together they give a good sense of what Vorokhta lives on and what it can make.

Why go

Vorokhta is an old resort on the Prut, surrounded by the Chornohora and Gorgany ranges, and the bazaar is simply part of a walk around the village. In half an hour you can choose gifts for family and colleagues, taste Hutsul cheeses, ask sellers where they picked their mushrooms or berries and buy local snacks for the road. If you arrive on a Friday, you will see a real mountain market: the square by the station fills with people from the surrounding villages selling home produce, seedlings, household goods and clothes. The souvenir rows by the ski jumps are open daily, and in summer and winter they stay busy until evening.

What to buy and taste

• Hutsul cheeses — salty and sweet, hard and soft, smoked cheese “horses” and plaits, bryndza.
• Forest produce: pickled and dried mushrooms, bilberry and lingonberry jams, forest honey.
• Berry liqueurs and tinctures, herbal teas and blends.
• Woollen goods: socks, mittens, sleeveless jackets, sheepskins and lizhnyk blankets.
• Wooden souvenirs: carved plates with views of Vorokhta and its viaduct, spoons, toy hatchets, wooden toys and magnets.
• Sweets — Carpathian candies, fruit pastila and nougat, plus handmade soap.

A bit of history

Vorokhta grew up as a logging village, and at the end of the 19th century, when the railway was laid over the pass and the stone viaducts were built, it became a fashionable resort. Ever since, visitors have gone home with gifts from the mountains: Hutsuls sold bryndza, mushrooms, woollens and carvings to holidaymakers. Today's bazaar carries on that tradition, although factory-made souvenirs sit next to the work of local makers, so choose carefully and ask who made the item.

Practical information

Where: Vorokhta, Danyla Halytskoho Street — the souvenir rows by the Avanhard complex (ski jumps); the station market is near Vorokhta railway station.

When: the souvenir stalls open daily during the day, until evening in high season. The big market day by the station is Friday. Individual sellers keep their own hours, and in bad weather some stalls may be closed.

Prices: depend on the item and the season; polite bargaining is fine. Most sellers take cash, and more and more accept cards.

Getting there

Vorokhta lies on the H-09 road between Yaremche and the Yablunytsia Pass: about 30 km from Yaremche and roughly 100 km from Ivano-Frankivsk. Local trains and overnight trains from Kyiv, Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk stop at Vorokhta station, and buses and minibuses run here too. From the station to the ski jumps it is a short walk along Danyla Halytskoho Street.

At a glance

• Address: Vorokhta
• Opening hours: Daily during the day; big market day by the station on Fridays
• Season: All year, busiest in summer and winter

Photos: i.ytimg.com.