In Depth Lithuanian Experience in 9 Days
- Cities of Vilnius and Kaunas uncovering history and culture
- Visit 2 national and 3 regional parks and 2 UNESCO heritage sites!
- Authentic castles of Trakai and Panemune
- Authentic food of Karaims and homemade food
- Visit Rumsiskes one of the largest open air museums in Europe
- Picturesque villages and nature of the Curonian lagoon
- Curonian spit with its sand dunes and broad horizons
- Hill of Crosses
- Climb the lighthouse!
- Walk in a swamp
There is no need to choose between Lithuanian cities, history and natural beauty. Discover the fascinating diversity of Lithuania in 9 days and meet heartwarming locals.
Let us escort you around all the best places and sights that we love in Lithuania. We loaded the trip with as many authentic experiences as we could think of to make sure this will not be another standard tour for tourists. Expect to see cities and feel the countryside, breathe fresh air by the sea and see broad horizons from the sand dunes. Get couple days at your leisure in the magic land of water and birds - stay with locals and try homemade local food and specialties. This is all of Lithuania ready to take Your senses, memories and load Your luggage with good feelings.
This tour includes a guide/tour leader during the whole trip and transportation by a minivan or a car.
Day 1. Hello and welcome to Vilnius
Arrival to Vilnius.
Optional airport transfer. Let’s meet for a welcome drink and chat about your tour and we will make sure to recommend some best spots. Free evening for a nice stroll around the city.
Overnight in Vilnius 3* hotel.
Day 2. From Vilnius to a countryside and back
In the morning you will have a walking tour in Vilnius Old Town. Vilnius is known for its more than 1.200 medieval buildings and 48 churches. Walking tour includes visiting the Old Town with Vilnius Cathedral, Gediminas Tower, St. Anne’s Church, Old University, the Gates of Dawn, Uzupis district which is known as the independent republic of Vilnius city.
After the sightseeing, the guide will lead you to the famous and oldest Vilnius food market – Hales market where you will have an opportunity to meet local food producers and sellers, ask them questions and bring home the real flavour of Lithuania. You will visit 4 or 5 different places and try the best taste of Lithuanian handcrafted cheese, rustic meat products, pastry and drinks. Keep in mind, all products are created according to authentic recipes and tastes cherished by Lithuanian farmers. An experience takes around 1-1,5 hours.
In the afternoon we will drive to Trakai town - historic, picturesque place with a castle in the middle of the lake. Locals take a day trip there and we invite you for one as well. See Trakai Castle, lakes and beautiful views around. For lunch (OPTIONAL) try out special Karaim dish ‘kibinai’ which is only typical for Trakai town because it is a home for the oldest ethnic group of Karaims living to this day in Lithuania. Trakai trip takes around 4-5 hours including lunch break.
Overnight in Vilnius 3* hotel
Day 3. Aukstaitija National Park
You should pack your luggage and take with you as you will not return to Vilnius on this day.
In the morning you will be picked from Vilnius and will drive to Asveja regional park where you will visit Dubingiai town that lies on Asveja shore, the longest lake in Lithuania. You will see Dubingiai castle that is now just the ruins, but used to be one of the most important and luxurious residence in whole Grand Duchy of Lithuania and belonged to Radvilos the most influential noble family in Lithuania.
Later you will pass by Labanoras forest, which is one of the biggest forests in Lithuania. You will climb up the viewtower to witness the endless forest from a birds eye view.
In the afternoon you will visit Ancient beekeeping museum. The museum that presents the history of beekeeping in Lithuania not only displays a wide diversity of ancient hives and beekeeping utensils, but also offers to taste the Radziwill (Radvila) family dessert, make a pure wax candle or even submerge into honey aromatherapy! You will learn how bees were defended from bears, see the mythological sculptures of the god and the goddess of bees, and visit an ancient barn to become acquainted with plants that are the source of honey to bees.
In the evening you will arrive to Kaunas, second biggest city in Lithuania which you will explore during the next few days.
Overnight in Kaunas.
Day 4. Dive into the folk tradition of Lithuanian countryside and discover the beauty of Kaunas
Kaunas city, situated in the center of Lithuania, is famous for modernist interwar architecture, intriguing history and natural beauty. Morning city tour will reveal to us how it felt to be in independent Lithuania between two World Wars, and how this vibrant city lives today.
After lunch we will visit Rumsiskes village which is one of the largest open air museums in Europe where you can see a smaller version of 18-19th century Lithuania where traditional houses from all ethnographic regions were built in one place.
On the way back to the city you will visit one more gem - a fascinating baroque pearl Pazaislis Monastery. The Pazaislis monastery is one of the most mesmerising examples of late baroque in North-Eastern Europe, contributing to the history of Kaunas for over 350 years. People have been praying here for peace and the prosperity of Lithuania since 1664 when the chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania – Kristupas Zygimantas Pacas – gave the Pažaislis manor to the Camaldolese monks.
Overnight in Kaunas 3* hotel.
Day 5. Castle by the river and remote feel of the Curonian lagoon.
Drive a beautiful road by the river Nemunas that has a lot of castles and stop in Panemune Castle on the way. Following the biggest Lithuanian river Nemunas you will pass by it’s remote villages and towns which lies between the many rivers and channels.
On this day you will also visit a fascinating 3 km long walking trail in the Aukstumala bog (it the weather conditions allow). In the late afternoon you will arrive to Rusne, the biggest island of Lithuania where you will be welcomed by our lovely local host with a hearty homemade dinner. Enjoy the evening at the homestead or go explore the tiny town of Rusne.
Overnight in Rusne homestay. Please note, that in a homestay the bathroom may be shared between a few rooms.
Day 6. All the way along Curonian lagoon
In the morning you will depart Rusne and go for a picturesque trip along the villages of the Curonian lagoon.
The first stop is the westernmost part of Lithuania called Vente Cape. Millions of birds are crossing the Vente Cape every day, and it is a resting place for many birds during the migration period in autumn. The Vente Ornithological Station is one of the first bird migration stations in Europe.
Another gem of the day will be UNESCO heritage site - Curonian spit peninsula. Prepare for picturesque sand dunes, forests and tiny resort towns that used to be fishermen villages as we will explore the narrow sandy peninsula on the other side of the lagoon. We will show you the full authenticity of this tiny, yet our favorite place of the land. We will make sure you will taste local smoked fish (OPTIONAL). And to make your trip more memorable – take some photos from breathtaking Parnidis dune before getting back to Klaipeda for the evening.
Later you will head to Palanga – our biggest summer resort on the Baltic sea coast that was popular already in the 19th century among our nobles who were enjoying their time here. Definitely a highlight of the day will be a visit to Palanga Amber Museum where we will take time to admire the museum’s extensive botanical gardens at the restored 19th-century Tiskeviciai Palace. Since the Baltic Sea coast has been a source of Eurasian amber trade since prehistoric times, there is an impressive collection of 28,000 pieces on display containing inclusions of insects, spiders, or plants.
An evening is free to enjoy a walk through the lively streets of Palanga or have a dip in the Baltic sea.
Overnight in Palanga 3-4* hotel.
Day 8. Zemaitija National park and Hill of Crosses on the way back.
This will be another day filled up with memorable views.
In the first part of the day you will visit Zemaitija National park which lies around the fabled Lake Plateliai, which is the deepest, largest and most picturesque lake in Samogitia. The wonderful nature, rich history and distinctive cultural property reveal the uniqueness of the ethnographic region of Samogitia.
The area is famous not only for its nature sights, but also for the former Soviet Missile base which is turned into Cold War museum now. If you want to broaden your history knowledge, then you can choose this tour as an OPTIONAL add on for this day. Former Cold War Nuclear Missile base is the only museum of such kind in Europe. You will have a guided tour in the museum and get a unique chance to see the shaft where the Soviets kept missiles with nuclear warheads ready to launch and start another world war.
In the afternoon we are heading back to Vilnius, but on this long drive we will stop at the Hill of Crosses, one of the most holy sites of Catholic Lithuania. The exact number of crosses is unknown, but estimates put it at about 100.000. Some say it’s the most spiritually touching place to be in all Lithuania. Experience it yourself.
Evening in Vilnius, which you already know.
Overnight in Vilnius 3* hotel.
Day 9. See you next time!
- Your hotel.
- Your hotel.
- 7 nights at centrally located hotels
- 7x breakfast
- 1 night at the local homestead
- 1 homemade breakfast
- 1 unique local dinner at a homestead
- Transportation during the tour in a comfortable car or minivan.
- Ecological fee.
- Ferry tickets to Curonian lagoon.
- Sightseeing with a local guide in English to all sites mentioned.
- Walking trail in Aukstumala bog (subject to availability due to weather conditions).
- Entrance tickets: Trakai castle, Rumsiskes Open Air Museum, Panemune castle, Palanga Amber museum, Hill of Crosses.
- Vilnius and Kaunas, Palanga city tax.
- Plane ticket to and from Lithuania
- Airport transfers
- Personal travel insurance
- Gratuities
- Other food and drinks not mentioned
- Transfer from Vilnius airport to centrally located hotel - car 1-2 persons - 35 EUR per car
- Transfer from Vilnius airport to centrally located hotel - minivan 1-6 persons - 55 EUR per car
- Transfer to Vilnius airport from centrally located hotel - car 1-2 persons - 35 EUR per car
- Transfer to Vilnius airport from centrally located hotel - minivan 1-6 persons - 55 EUR per car
- Traditional Karaim lunch in Trakai - 25 EUR per person
- Fine dining in Vilnius 6 course Lithuanian historical dinner - 45 EUR per person
- Local beer tasting in Vilnius - 30 EUR per person
- Optional smoked fish lunch at the Curonian Spit - 25 EUR per person
- Optional visit to Cold War Missile base in Plokstine - 20 EUR per person
- More than 60 days before tour start date – 10% of tour price will be charged .10% is non-refundable, as this represents our direct cost of booking and preparing your tour.
- 59-35 days before tour start date – 25% of tour price will be charged. 25% is non-refundable, as this represents our direct cost of canceling any arrangements made for your tour.
- 34-22 days before tour start date – 75% of tour price will be charged. 75% is non-refundable, as this represents our direct cost of canceling any arrangements made for your tour.
- 21-0 days before tour start day – 100% of tour price will be charged. 100% is non-refundable, as this represents our direct cost of canceling any arrangements made for your tour.
