Tour Guide-Interpreter
As Artem Vasiuta is currently defending our country against russian aggression as a member of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, guided tours are temporarily suspended.
Tour languages: Українська, English
Member of
the Odesa Guides Association
+380 93 887 6873
Viber, Telegram, WhatsApp
“Shalom! My name is Artem, and I am a professional tour guide in the city of Odesa.
On my Instagram blog, I share my love for Odesa and my knowledge of the city. And during my tours, I tell the story of the city in depth, yet in a simple and accessible way.
I know very well how to connect with each guest — my extensive experience as a tour guide and my education in psychology help me with this. I have a wide range of tour themes in my repertoire, so you can always choose something that suits your interests. I offer walking tours and car tours.”
“Ukrainian Odesa”
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 2.5 hours.
Українська, English
For many years, the Ukrainian chapters of Odesa’s history were silenced. Today, the average Ukrainian knows that Odesa is part of Ukraine, but can recall few historical facts to support this statement. Does this sound familiar? Then I invite you to explore the Ukrainian chapters of Odesa’s history!
What will we explore on the tour?
We will talk about when and how Ukrainians first appeared in these lands,
About Ukrainian cultural figures: Lesya Ukrainka, Ivan Franko, Maria Zankovetska, Marko Kropyvnytskyi, and many others.
I will show you where the UPA safe house was located during the occupation of Odesa.
We will talk about architects, scholars, philanthropists, and politicians of Ukrainian origin.
And these are just some of the fascinating stories you will discover on this tour!
Sightseeing Tour of Odesa Historic Centre
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 2.5 hours.
Українська, English
A city whose land was inhabited by people as early as 2,500 years ago has such a multifaceted history that it cannot be described in a few paragraphs of a guidebook. Famous names, magnificent buildings, funny and fascinating Odesa stories — all this is worth exploring on a walk through the city with a professional tour guide.
We will visit the most famous Odesa must-see sights — see Soborna Square, the Passage, Deribasivska Street, the Opera House, European Square, part of Primorskyi Boulevard, the Teshchyn Bridge, and the Vorontsov Palace. I will also be sure to show you details that people usually overlook — Odesa’s narrowest street, cat monuments, murals, and courtyards. I especially recommend booking this tour if you are visiting Odesa for the first time or have never taken a guided tour of Odesa before.
““Catacombs: 14 metres beneath Moldavanka””
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 1.5 hours.
Українська, English
The underground labyrinths beneath Odesa have such an ancient and diverse history that it almost feels unfair that they are known mainly because of the partisan units that operated there during the Romanian occupation…
What will we talk about and what will we see?
We will see a section of the longest catacomb network in Europe;
We will learn who extracted shell rock (coquina stone) beneath Odesa, when and why;
We will read fascinating inscriptions more than a century old on the walls of the underground passages;
We will see a well with underground water and learn about the local belief associated with it;
We will hear stories about Odesa smuggling and Masonic secrets.
“Trading Odesa: From a Provincial Bazaar to a Global Brand”
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 2.5 hours.
Українська, English
Odesa’s famous bazaars, its largest commercial port and fleet, and its distinctly Odesa entrepreneurial spirit are familiar to everyone without exception. But are you familiar with the global brands that originated in Odesa, as well as the stories of bankruptcy and unprecedented success?
During the tour, we will learn: On which areas of the port maritime trade was conducted as early as the time of Ottoman Khadjibey; What Odesa merchants did to make sure they never traded at a loss; Where the city’s first commercial court was located; How Odesa survived the loss of 90% of its merchant fleet during the Crimean War; What on Odesa’s coat of arms symbolises the commercial power of the Southern Palmyra; What was sold in the nineteenth-century shopping centres — at Palais Royal, the Wagner House, and several passages in Odesa; Who was the main ambassador for Arthur Anatra’s sports equipment brand; How Fanconi, the owner of the famous café at the corner of Katerynynska and Lanzheronivska streets, went bankrupt; Confectionery and alcohol: where people in Odesa bought sweets and alcohol, and what remains of those brands today;
And this is only a small part of the stories you will hear!
“Odesa Beer Traditions”
(Tour with a Tasting)
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 2.5 hours.
Українська, English
Friends, I invite you to join my original tour, “Odesa Beer Traditions”, featuring a tasting of the best beers available in Odesa.
You will learn: How beer brewing began in Odesa; What beer restaurants were and what they looked like; How delicious beer was brewed in a city where drinking water was scarce; Which breweries still exist today; Which famous personalities enjoyed drinking beer in Odesa; And, most importantly, where the best places in the city are today to enjoy this beverage. For the tasting, we will offer varieties of the finest European beers from leading European breweries and/or craft beers from local Odesa breweries. If you wish, the tasting can be excluded from the tour.
Important: the cost of the beverages is not included in the tour price.
“Courtyards beyond Deribasivska Street: Non-Touristy Odesa”
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 2.5 hours.
Українська, English
What are Odesa courtyards like? Cosy, colourful, with laundry hanging on lines and cats in the yards, noisy children’s games, and grandmothers who know far too much about everyone… But still… Above all, they are unique! You definitely will not find two identical courtyards and entrance halls in Odesa.
I invite you to explore the most interesting ones with me!
My route passes through the part of the historic centre of Odesa that is known as non-touristy Odesa. The route includes Lev Tolstoy Street, Nizhynska Street, Spyridonivska Street, Novoselskoho Street, and the surrounding blocks.
What will we see:
Through courtyards — “wells”; Ancient wooden gates; Narrow wrought-iron staircases and wide marble staircases; The place where an old pharmacy advertisement dating back more than a century was recently discovered beneath several layers of plaster; The courtyard where Serhii Koroliov, the father of Soviet space exploration from the Zhytomyr region, once climbed grapevines;
And, of course, we will hear many more stories about the owners of these buildings and the people who lived in them. Book this tour and immerse yourself in Odesa to the fullest.
““Secrets of Legendary Moldavanka”
Tour type: walking tour.
Duration: 2.5 hours.
Українська, English
What kind of Moldavanka do we know? A criminal neighbourhood in Odesa, where every courtyard had its own Mishka Yaponchik and people were constantly settling scores? A district where, from the very beginning, there was supposedly nothing but gangs, shootouts, and neglect?
But there is much more to Moldavanka than gangsters!
Friends, for two months my colleagues and I followed the route, read research papers and memoirs, and discovered that Moldavanka is a VERY multifaceted neighbourhood!
This is where Babel settled his famous characters — Benya and Dvoyra Krik, Monya the Artillerist, and Lyubka Kozak; This is where the very same dovecotes described in his stories can be found; At the very same time when Mishka Yaponchik lived, there were numerous educational institutions and cinemas here; Rodion Malinovsky spent a considerable part of his adolescence here — yes, the famous marshal was once just an ordinary street kid from Moldavanka; These are the same Odesa courtyards where Mykhailo Zhvanetsky and Ilya Ilf were born; And this is Moldavanka, which was originally a fairly prosperous neighbourhood! On this tour, you will definitely feel the spirit of Odesa in places far removed from the usual tourist routes… But what can I say — you have to see it for yourself!