Kherson, Ukraine Cruise Port

Kherson, Ukraine is a sprawling metropolis and port city along the Black Sea and Dnieper River. With its centralized location and proximity to a major waterway, it acted as major industrial center for the USSR at the height of its prominence. Factories were built to produce various goods from electric-powered machinery to confectionery products. Kherson continued the practice of shipbuilding and repairs during the Cold War era, and this remains a prominent industry to this day. As the administrative center for Kherson Oblast, a province in southern Ukraine, the city oversees the distribution of the oblast’s agricultural production throughout the entire country. This urban capital is also a city of regional (oblast) significance which is a designation specific to the Ukraine that highlights primary, industrial cities as separate districts within their greater regions. Kherson is a beautiful city with stunning architecture in its modernized buildings as well as within its ancient churches and other historic sites.

• Built in the late 1700s, St. Catherine’s Cathedral is one of the first churches constructed during the Russia Empire and after the Russo-Turkish War. This tall, columned house of worship is a fantastic monument to the country’s Orthodox faith.
   
• Fabrika is a commons area that can be found in central Kherson. Located in the historic cotton fabric hub, this center has many shops and restaurants and offers many activities for children.
   
• Park Slavy or Park of Glory is a spacious, walking park with a number of statues and monuments to the soviet era that are hauntingly beautiful and historically intriguing.
   
• If you’re headed to the gorgeous riverside, be on the lookout for the Shipbuilder’s Monument. A long, rectangular column depicts shipbuilders from the Czarist and Soviet eras.