Ocean Plaza

Exit the metro at Lybidska, turn right and walk through the tunnel and Ocean Plaza is straight in front of you. It opened in 2012 and it's the second largest mall in Kyiv after Dream Town, covering around 165,000 square metres across seven floors with 400 shops, more than 30 restaurants and 1,700 parking spaces.

Have a look at the outside before you go in. The glass is shaped to suggest ocean waves, which is where the name comes from, and every panel has LED lighting behind it that runs colour effects and animated advertising after dark. It's a better building at night than during the day.

What to See Inside

The aquarium is the reason to come here even if you have no shopping to do. It holds over 1,000 species, weighs 350 tons and is the biggest in Eastern Europe, and it's a reliable way to keep children occupied for half an hour. There's also a cinema, where you can sometimes catch an English language film in Kyiv - it was the first place in the city to show a film in 7D.

Beyond that it's a shopping centre, and a big one. The mix runs from ordinary high street brands to more expensive shops, and there are enough cafes and restaurants that you can break up a couple of hours without leaving the building, though Dogs & Tails, two stops north on the blue line, is a better dinner than anything in here. Prices are marked in the shops and restaurants, and staff are used to dealing with people who don't speak Ukrainian, though English is patchy.

It's easy to lose a few hours in here without meaning to, which is either the appeal or the warning depending on why you came. If you're short on time in Kyiv, this is a rainy afternoon rather than a highlight.