Without Their Own Airports: How Ukrainians Have Restructured Tourist Routes Through Moldova, Poland, and Romania

Over the years of full-scale war, Ukrainian travelers have effectively mastered a new vacation scenario — trips without using domestic airports. According to Irina Mosulezna, Head of Join UP! Ukraine, in an exclusive comment for Wave RBC.UA, the standard solution has become flying out through the airports of neighboring countries, primarily Moldova, Poland, and Romania. A stable infrastructure for cross-border tourism is forming, where the choice of departure point is determined not so much by distance, but by a combination of logistical factors.

Chisinau — The Main Hub for Ukrainian Tourists

According to internal statistics from Join UP!, the leader in the number of Ukrainian passengers last year was the Chisinau airport, which was used by more than 237,000 tourists. Mosulezna explains this popularity primarily through logistics: for residents of central, southern, and eastern regions of Ukraine, as well as partially Kyiv, the road to Moldova turns out to be shorter and more predictable than a long route across the entire country to the Polish border. "The advantage of Chisinau airport is relatively convenient logistics and usually faster border crossing compared to some other directions," she noted.

Rzeszów and Polish Airports for Western Regions

In second place in popularity is the Polish airport of Rzeszów, which was used by more than 50,000 Ukrainian travelers during the same period. For residents of western regions — in particular Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk — Polish airports remain a convenient option due to their proximity to the border. At the same time, Ukrainians do not limit themselves to just Rzeszów: the list of popular destinations includes the airports of Warsaw, Katowice, and other Polish cities.

Romania and Other Regional Directions

The list of departure points also includes Bucharest and a number of other major and regional airports of neighboring countries. Thus, Ukrainian tourists have formed an extensive network of alternative routes, allowing them to bypass closed or inconvenient domestic air hubs. However, there is no single universal route: the specific choice depends on the region of residence, the chosen tour, the cost of the trip, the date of departure, transfer opportunities, and the current situation at the border.

How the Approach to Route Selection Has Changed

According to Mosulezna's assessment, the general approach of Ukrainian tourists has qualitatively changed over the last few years. If the key criterion used to be the distance to the airport, today travelers compare several parameters simultaneously: travel time, route predictability, and the total cost of the trip. This is why the leadership of Chisinau, despite the fact that it is not the nearest airport for all regions, is explained not by geography, but by a combination of logistical advantages and the stability of border crossing.