Cat Kav'iarnia

Cherkasy · 65 mi / 105 km

CatCafe is a cat cafe on Baidy Vyshnevetskoho Street in central Cherkasy, open since 2015 and one of the longest-running cat cafes in Ukraine. More than ten cats live in the cafe and move freely around the room, with climbing shelves, houses and beds where they can rest away from guests. The cats are rescues looking for homes, and more than 90 have been adopted from the cafe so far. The menu is built around coffee, tea, cakes, desserts and ice cream rather than full meals, and treats for the cats are sold on site, since guests may not feed them their own food. Board games are available, and the cafe is popular with families and school groups, for whom it arranges group visits. It also runs occasional workshops and is open every day.

• Adoptable cats

Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast · 67 mi / 108 km

PURR Cat Cafe is a cat cafe on Universytetskyi Avenue in Kryvyi Rih's Saksahanskyi District, in the 97th kvartal area. It is split into two zones: a separate room where the cats live and guests can drink coffee and play with them, and a cat-free area for eating in peace. The resident cats are rescues, and staff can tell visitors about each one and its health. Entry to the cat room comes with a minimum order per adult rather than an hourly fee. The menu covers coffee, seasonal drinks such as pumpkin latte, cold drinks, desserts and sandwiches, and cat treats can be bought to give to the cats. Children are admitted to the cat room from age 6, as some of the cats are shy or stressed. The cafe also holds workshops and sells gift certificates, and it is open every day.

Zaporizhzhia · 140 mi / 225 km

MeowCafe is a small time cafe with rescued cats on Viacheslava Zaitseva Street (formerly Lermontova Street) in Zaporizhzhia, near the city circus and the Tsyrk tram and bus stop. A young local couple opened it in early 2024 with help from a state grant. Most of the cats were evacuated by soldiers and volunteers from frontline villages in Zaporizhzhia Oblast or found injured, among them two sisters who lost their sight and cats hurt in shelling. About nine cats live here, all vaccinated and with veterinary passports, and several are available for adoption to new homes. Visitors pay by the hour and have tea and coffee, board games and game consoles at their disposal. The cafe also hosts interactive events and exhibitions of creative work. Photos are allowed without flash, and on weekends the cafe takes a one-hour midday break so the cats can rest.

• Adoptable cats

Kyiv · 151 mi / 242 km

LEO cafe is a coffee shop with resident cats on Yuriia Lytvynskoho Street in Darnytskyi District, on the left bank of Kyiv. Owner Lesia Srebrodolska opened it in late 2022 as a cat-themed cafe named after her own cat, and it became a cat cafe after she took in Luna, a stray found outside in winter. Ginger Leo, rescued in Kyiv Oblast, and others followed. The cats have veterinary passports and see a regular vet. They roam freely among the tables, and house rules on the wall ask guests not to wake the cats or disturb them while they eat. There is no entry fee; visitors order from a menu of coffee, cakes, cheesecakes, mochi, salads, bowls, burgers and panini. Some of the cats are rehomed through the cafe, which works with local animal volunteers. Board games are available, and children are welcome.

• Adoptable cats

Kyiv · 155 mi / 249 km

Hatul Madan is a shelter for cats and dogs affected by the war, with a cat cafe space at its premises on Volodymyrska Street in Kyiv. The volunteer group behind it has been evacuating animals from frontline areas and occupied territories since 2022, then treating, vaccinating and sterilising them before finding them new homes; more than 350 animals have been brought out of combat zones and over 200 cats rehomed. In the cat cafe room visitors can sit with the shelter cats, play with them, take photos, work on a laptop with sockets at hand or play board games. Entry is free, and coffee and light snacks are offered for a donation of the visitor's choosing, which goes to the animals. All the cats are looking for homes, and people who cannot adopt can sponsor a cat as a curator and visit it. The space is open every day.

• Adoptable cats

Kyiv · 156 mi / 251 km

The Cat Therapy Centre of the Khochukota charity (formerly Koto-Yarmarok) is a home for rescued cats on Vozdvyzhenska Street in the Vozdvyzhenka quarter of Podil. Opened in 2019, it houses dozens of cats, around forty of them listed for adoption at any time, which the foundation treats and rehomes in Kyiv. The centre is not a cafe and has no drop-in hours: the public visits during weekly one-hour cat therapy sessions, usually on Sunday afternoons, which are booked online in advance because places are limited. Sessions are free, and visitors are asked to bring gifts such as wet food, treats or parasite treatments from the foundation's wish list. The foundation also runs pilates sessions with the cats and a quest, and anyone who falls for a cat can apply to adopt it.

• Adoptable cats