Having recently returned from Odessa, I thought I'd post a mini-datasheet as its own thread, since the most current Ukraine thread seems to meander around a bunch of cities. There also didn't seem to be much current information on Odessa specifically.
I'm calling this Winter Edition because we went in the end of September, and all the beach clubs on Arkadia had closed for the season by then, and the tourist numbers were definitely down a lot compared to summer. Odessa might be an entirely different place in summer -- I wasn't there to experience it.
Introduction
An important caveat: I was there with some friends for less than 5 days (a long weekend, basically), and gaming was not our primary purpose. We were more there to party. So our experience may be a lot different from others, but we also accomplished our main goal, which was to meet up and just have a good time.
Logistics
Getting There
Odessa is a city of over 1 million, but they have a crappy airport with no gates or jetbridges. Nevertheless, you can get flights there via Kiev, Moscow, Vienna, and various German cities, among others. They're building a new airport nextdoor, so things will improve soon. The taxi mafia is in full effect at the airport, so either arrange something ahead of time, or hone your bargaining skills. Hungry? As you walk out the airport, look past the parking lot and to your right, and you'll see a Georgian (the country, not the state -- no grits here!) restaurant with pretty good sashlik (meat kebabs). It's in a free-standing building, not to be confused with the hot dog kiosk on the right, but slightly closer to the airport building.
Getting Connected
Get a local SIM card from Life, as most younger people seem to use them and it's either free or really cheap to call others who are also on Life. I think you also get like 40-50 free SMSes per day on top of that. I got a 100 UAH card and never got even close to using it all up.
Getting Around
You'll probably spend all your time in the center. Deribasovskaya Street is the main pedestrian street. Depending on the situation, you may be able to walk pretty much everywhere. If not, like many FSU countries, every car is a taxi if you hold your hand out. For the "proper" taxis, they still don't have a meter but instead the driver calls the dispatch office to let them know where you're going, and is told the fixed price over the phone. Just be aware that's normal -- not many countries I've been to do pricing that way.
Accommodation
We used Odessa Apartments, which was professional and easy to work with. I'm sure there are cheaper options, but this was not an issue for us, especially given the length of our trip.
My advice is focus closely on location. Ideally, get a place on Deribasovskaya Street or near it, as you'll probably spend a lot of time in the vicinity.
Day Locations
Deribasovskaya Street - The main pedestrian road, with all kinds of cafes and shopping options located along it. It's got a mix of both locals and tourists.
McDonalds on Deribasovskaya Street - If you are arranging to meet someone, they will likely suggest you meet in front of there. It seems like just about all arranged meetings in the entire city of Odessa occur there. The city would descend into further chaos if this McDonalds closed, as no one would know where to meet!
The Steps - I don't really get the hype about this tourist landmark, but it is kind of nice to walk around some of the surrounding area. Others apparently agree with me, as you'll find plenty of people walking around here, as well as at the...
Opera House - Looks nice on the outside, though I've heard the quality of performances on the inside is average. As you face it, look to the left and there's a nice smaller park. My friend number-closed a girl or two just hanging around there.
Eating
We were there just to have fun, so most evenings started with a sumptuous and lengthy dinner Ukrainian-style, with an ice cold bottle of vodka to get us through our meal, and Ukrainian bacon (fat) and pickles to chase down each shot.
Ukraina Lusinka on Deribasovskaya corner of Ekaterinskaya. Try their own premium house vodka, and if you must chase, have "mors" (homemade fruit juice).
Bernardazzi on Bunina 15. In a building that used to house Odessa's stock exchange, and becomes an eating place or party place every night. We hit it on a night when they served a proper dinner but also had a live jazz singer. Our applause increased as the night progressed and the vodka bottle emptied, and I think the singer received a few marriage proposals from our table by the end of the night. Decent food.
Kompot on Deribasovskaya 20. Sort of a cafe that also serves food. Food is overpriced, but a good place to meet someone and have a drink, and great location.
Mall Basement I forgot the details, but in the mall around the corner from McDonalds, there's a cafeteria-like place in the basement level. Great for hangover food as they have plenty of the usual FSU-style hangover food like seljanka soup and pelmeenis (dumplings).
Night Venues
We heard from various people that the larger nightclubs draw a mix of P4P and sleazy tourists, so we mostly skipped those. All the venues below (perhaps with the exception of Steklo) are generally walking distance from Deribasovskaya.
Granat on Ekaterinskaya 1. This is a slightly high-end lounge place. Decent music, and serves food also. Everyone is usually sitting in booths which makes it hard to open, but the trick is to go to the bathroom a lot. The bathrooms are unisex and in a corridor that is quiet, so easy to open people waiting in line.
Schkaff on Grecheskaya 32 (street before Bunini). This is a basement bar. Drinks are cheap, and it has a long bar and few tables, making it easy to mingle. Squat toilets (not kidding!). Met a number of expats here, but not quite an expat bar.
Exit on Bunina 24. This is an unmarked basement bar -- look for a green exit sign. It may be only in Russian, so that's "Vihod". Friendly crowd, cheap drinks. Has a bunch of rooms to it, all underground.
Captain Morgan on Zhukovsko 30. This is more like a club instead of a bar. I was pretty drunk by the time we made it here, and apparently found out that only women are allowed to dance on the tables. Anyway, our impressions were this felt a bit like some P4P and also too many tourists of the sleazy persuasion. Would not revisit.
Paladium I didn't visit this one, but some of my friends did. It's a nightclub like Morgan, but with better looking talent but also sleazier. Skip.
Trueman on Pushkinskaya 35. Our favorite place for sure. A live music venue, with a bar on the main floor, and the band upstairs. The bar level is quiet enough to easily talk, and the bathroom line is a great place to meet people (as is outside if you smoke or need to take a leak.. is public urination legal in Ukraine? -- you get a wristband so you can go in and out). Upstairs, a good band will draw just the right crowd, and the dance floor will be mostly females. Between sets from the band, the music is lowered so you can easily talk upstairs also. Both nights we were there, the bands played popular American rock songs, so it's also easy to sing along and dance with the crowd. Here's a video of some events there, and also their website. If I remember correctly, this is the same place Roosh himself visited on the night he met the Ukrainian girl he wrote about in many installments, and he may have even met her here?
Steklo on Staroportofrankovskaya 59. This is a true wild card, which may have potential, but we visited it on a weeknight when it was closed. It's basically a small bar located across the street from the maritime university (it's Odessa after all) campus. We met some friendly people outside, who said it's usually open and better. Most people have not heard of this place, but I think it may be a great place to meet students, on the right night.
Impressions
There is definitely a contingent of Americans there who are on the bride hunt. Usually, these are guys aged 50+, who just seem slight "off" socially. You'll know them when you see them. Nice enough to talk to, but not recommended as wings. Also these are the same types that will tell you that all Ukrainian women are just after your money, are scammers, etc. We didn't have the same experience, and met some genuinely nice and friendly people.
Odessa is popular among Turks, but Turks do not appear popular among Odessans (but not for lack of trying on the Turks' side!). If you look Turkish but are not, be sure to emphasize this. Cowboy hat and boots perhaps?
The language barrier wasn't as much of an issue as I expected (I speak Russian somewhat; my friends did not). At most of the hipster/etc places, people are educated and most spoke sufficient English.
I know some have said no to peacocking in FSU, but I experimented with various levels and it worked surprisingly well. Our last night, I went full-on Mystery-style peacocking. I guess wearing garments with flashing LED lights is a new thing in Odessa, as I got plenty of attention and am likely in many photos on various social websites by now. It's certainly DHV in a room when people are coming up to you and asking to have their photo taken with you.
Peacocking or not, all of us went out dressed pretty well, which generally meant a stylish jacket/blazer, though not full suit.
Overall, a good time in a typical FSU city. I probably won't be going back again, but that's only because there are so many other cities in the world on my list, and I have yet to find the secret to eternal youth. I think anyone with moderate game, a decent wardrobe, and at least two weeks in Odessa could be quite successful if they focused on their goals.
I'm calling this Winter Edition because we went in the end of September, and all the beach clubs on Arkadia had closed for the season by then, and the tourist numbers were definitely down a lot compared to summer. Odessa might be an entirely different place in summer -- I wasn't there to experience it.
Introduction
An important caveat: I was there with some friends for less than 5 days (a long weekend, basically), and gaming was not our primary purpose. We were more there to party. So our experience may be a lot different from others, but we also accomplished our main goal, which was to meet up and just have a good time.
Logistics
Getting There
Odessa is a city of over 1 million, but they have a crappy airport with no gates or jetbridges. Nevertheless, you can get flights there via Kiev, Moscow, Vienna, and various German cities, among others. They're building a new airport nextdoor, so things will improve soon. The taxi mafia is in full effect at the airport, so either arrange something ahead of time, or hone your bargaining skills. Hungry? As you walk out the airport, look past the parking lot and to your right, and you'll see a Georgian (the country, not the state -- no grits here!) restaurant with pretty good sashlik (meat kebabs). It's in a free-standing building, not to be confused with the hot dog kiosk on the right, but slightly closer to the airport building.
Getting Connected
Get a local SIM card from Life, as most younger people seem to use them and it's either free or really cheap to call others who are also on Life. I think you also get like 40-50 free SMSes per day on top of that. I got a 100 UAH card and never got even close to using it all up.
Getting Around
You'll probably spend all your time in the center. Deribasovskaya Street is the main pedestrian street. Depending on the situation, you may be able to walk pretty much everywhere. If not, like many FSU countries, every car is a taxi if you hold your hand out. For the "proper" taxis, they still don't have a meter but instead the driver calls the dispatch office to let them know where you're going, and is told the fixed price over the phone. Just be aware that's normal -- not many countries I've been to do pricing that way.
Accommodation
We used Odessa Apartments, which was professional and easy to work with. I'm sure there are cheaper options, but this was not an issue for us, especially given the length of our trip.
My advice is focus closely on location. Ideally, get a place on Deribasovskaya Street or near it, as you'll probably spend a lot of time in the vicinity.
Day Locations
Deribasovskaya Street - The main pedestrian road, with all kinds of cafes and shopping options located along it. It's got a mix of both locals and tourists.
McDonalds on Deribasovskaya Street - If you are arranging to meet someone, they will likely suggest you meet in front of there. It seems like just about all arranged meetings in the entire city of Odessa occur there. The city would descend into further chaos if this McDonalds closed, as no one would know where to meet!
The Steps - I don't really get the hype about this tourist landmark, but it is kind of nice to walk around some of the surrounding area. Others apparently agree with me, as you'll find plenty of people walking around here, as well as at the...
Opera House - Looks nice on the outside, though I've heard the quality of performances on the inside is average. As you face it, look to the left and there's a nice smaller park. My friend number-closed a girl or two just hanging around there.
Eating
We were there just to have fun, so most evenings started with a sumptuous and lengthy dinner Ukrainian-style, with an ice cold bottle of vodka to get us through our meal, and Ukrainian bacon (fat) and pickles to chase down each shot.
Ukraina Lusinka on Deribasovskaya corner of Ekaterinskaya. Try their own premium house vodka, and if you must chase, have "mors" (homemade fruit juice).
Bernardazzi on Bunina 15. In a building that used to house Odessa's stock exchange, and becomes an eating place or party place every night. We hit it on a night when they served a proper dinner but also had a live jazz singer. Our applause increased as the night progressed and the vodka bottle emptied, and I think the singer received a few marriage proposals from our table by the end of the night. Decent food.
Kompot on Deribasovskaya 20. Sort of a cafe that also serves food. Food is overpriced, but a good place to meet someone and have a drink, and great location.
Mall Basement I forgot the details, but in the mall around the corner from McDonalds, there's a cafeteria-like place in the basement level. Great for hangover food as they have plenty of the usual FSU-style hangover food like seljanka soup and pelmeenis (dumplings).
Night Venues
We heard from various people that the larger nightclubs draw a mix of P4P and sleazy tourists, so we mostly skipped those. All the venues below (perhaps with the exception of Steklo) are generally walking distance from Deribasovskaya.
Granat on Ekaterinskaya 1. This is a slightly high-end lounge place. Decent music, and serves food also. Everyone is usually sitting in booths which makes it hard to open, but the trick is to go to the bathroom a lot. The bathrooms are unisex and in a corridor that is quiet, so easy to open people waiting in line.
Schkaff on Grecheskaya 32 (street before Bunini). This is a basement bar. Drinks are cheap, and it has a long bar and few tables, making it easy to mingle. Squat toilets (not kidding!). Met a number of expats here, but not quite an expat bar.
Exit on Bunina 24. This is an unmarked basement bar -- look for a green exit sign. It may be only in Russian, so that's "Vihod". Friendly crowd, cheap drinks. Has a bunch of rooms to it, all underground.
Captain Morgan on Zhukovsko 30. This is more like a club instead of a bar. I was pretty drunk by the time we made it here, and apparently found out that only women are allowed to dance on the tables. Anyway, our impressions were this felt a bit like some P4P and also too many tourists of the sleazy persuasion. Would not revisit.
Paladium I didn't visit this one, but some of my friends did. It's a nightclub like Morgan, but with better looking talent but also sleazier. Skip.
Trueman on Pushkinskaya 35. Our favorite place for sure. A live music venue, with a bar on the main floor, and the band upstairs. The bar level is quiet enough to easily talk, and the bathroom line is a great place to meet people (as is outside if you smoke or need to take a leak.. is public urination legal in Ukraine? -- you get a wristband so you can go in and out). Upstairs, a good band will draw just the right crowd, and the dance floor will be mostly females. Between sets from the band, the music is lowered so you can easily talk upstairs also. Both nights we were there, the bands played popular American rock songs, so it's also easy to sing along and dance with the crowd. Here's a video of some events there, and also their website. If I remember correctly, this is the same place Roosh himself visited on the night he met the Ukrainian girl he wrote about in many installments, and he may have even met her here?
Steklo on Staroportofrankovskaya 59. This is a true wild card, which may have potential, but we visited it on a weeknight when it was closed. It's basically a small bar located across the street from the maritime university (it's Odessa after all) campus. We met some friendly people outside, who said it's usually open and better. Most people have not heard of this place, but I think it may be a great place to meet students, on the right night.
Impressions
There is definitely a contingent of Americans there who are on the bride hunt. Usually, these are guys aged 50+, who just seem slight "off" socially. You'll know them when you see them. Nice enough to talk to, but not recommended as wings. Also these are the same types that will tell you that all Ukrainian women are just after your money, are scammers, etc. We didn't have the same experience, and met some genuinely nice and friendly people.
Odessa is popular among Turks, but Turks do not appear popular among Odessans (but not for lack of trying on the Turks' side!). If you look Turkish but are not, be sure to emphasize this. Cowboy hat and boots perhaps?
The language barrier wasn't as much of an issue as I expected (I speak Russian somewhat; my friends did not). At most of the hipster/etc places, people are educated and most spoke sufficient English.
I know some have said no to peacocking in FSU, but I experimented with various levels and it worked surprisingly well. Our last night, I went full-on Mystery-style peacocking. I guess wearing garments with flashing LED lights is a new thing in Odessa, as I got plenty of attention and am likely in many photos on various social websites by now. It's certainly DHV in a room when people are coming up to you and asking to have their photo taken with you.
Peacocking or not, all of us went out dressed pretty well, which generally meant a stylish jacket/blazer, though not full suit.
Overall, a good time in a typical FSU city. I probably won't be going back again, but that's only because there are so many other cities in the world on my list, and I have yet to find the secret to eternal youth. I think anyone with moderate game, a decent wardrobe, and at least two weeks in Odessa could be quite successful if they focused on their goals.
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