Vilnius

Vilnius is the biggest city and the capital of Lithuania, one of the Baltic states in northern Europe. Vilnius is not only the capital, but truly the heart of Lithuania. It is modern, has astonishing architecture, beautiful landscapes and wonderful people of varied ethnicities. Vilnius Historic Center is even in the list of UNESCO protected sites.

I you ever decide to visit Vilnius, I suggest to take a free tour, it‘s going everyday and starts at 12PM in Vilnius Town Hall (Didžioji st. 31). If you‘re giving yourself a tour, here places you would like to visit and things to know about Vilnius.

Places to visit:

So, definetely the Old Town, Cathedral, Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania (you should visit it if you‘re into history), Gediminas mountain and castle, Bernardinai gardens, St. Anne‘s and Bernardinai churches, Užupis Republic, and all of these place are nearby, so you can walk to reach them. You should also hit St. Peter andd Povilas church, which, in 2016, was anounced as one of the most beautiful Catholic churce. Three Cross Mountain, Vilnius University museum (which has the tower with one of the best views of the city, entrance is 2Eur, totally worth it), and Lukiškės square is near the city center. Other places worth visiting, but a bit further from centeris Verkiai park, VU botanical gardens, ŠMC (Modern art center, Wednesdays from 5PM the antrance is free).

Night life, events, festivals:

Depending on what you like most of the people can find their favorite place in Vilnius. „Būsi trečias“ and „Šnekutis“ ir my favorite breweries. Piano bar, Berlin, Studio 9, Wine Box is also good clubs/pubs/wine houses to spend a good evening. Loftas has parties, concerts and some events most of the weekends. In May Vilnius Old Town is organising Street Music Day (GMD, more of a weekend) and if you‘re visiting in summer, then „Vasaros terasa“ is a perfect place to spend th evening, they have concerts almost everyday, tickets are 2-3 Eur. Also in June we have Culture Night, which brings all city to live, it‘s colourful, lound and entertaining. And on first days of September there is „Loftas fest“, which is the annual city festival in Vilnius area.

The best time to visit:

In my opinion – sumer, its warm, everything is green, you can really feel and enjoy nature in the city. The city in not that crowded, since a lot of people are on vacations, but it‘s still buzzing, you have events everywhere.

Transportation:

Vilnius is not a big city, you can walk to the most of the famous places by foot if you want to save money, but there‘s plenty of buses, trolleybuses and mini-vans, that will take you to your destination. 1 way ticket is 1Eur (can buy it from the driver and need to mark it), taxi is a bit too expensive to travel with in Lithuania.

Prices:

Couchsurfing is quite popular in Lithuania, so you can always try it. The prices of the hostels boggle from 8 to 30Eur per night. You can find quality in both price and food, just look. If you want to try Lithuanian food you should go to some of this places: „Bernelių užeiga“, „Agotos gryčia“, „Būsi Trečias“ (serves not only good bwwer but also lithuanian food, the best place ever), „Forto dvaras“. Good food, friendly prices (around 5-10 Eur per meal, depens how much do you like to eat).

Laura Babaityte