Spending a day in Vilnius, Lithuania

Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, was never on my radar. Of course I knew Lithuania was a country but I couldn’t have told you the capital or anything about the country at all, I couldn’t even point it out on a map. But I want to see the world, I want to have visited every country at least once, eventually, so when I was planning my multi city, multi country trip and knew I was starting in Riga, Latvia, I looked at where I could easily get a coach to next. Vilnius was the obvious choice. Spending a day in Vilnius was a bit stressful, as it turned out, because I’d not really planned properly and so hopefully this post will help you out if you’re visiting the city. I would’ve done so much better if I’d had a solid plan.

When you’re spending a day in Vilnius, start with some history

I think it’s important to find out a bit about the history of a city if you can. When I was in Berlin I did the Holocaust Museum and Topography of Terror, for example, even though neither were what you can call ‘fun’, but necessary. The Baltic States (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia) were illegally invaded by the Soviet Union in 1940 and didn’t become free again until 1991. Obviously this is so similar to what Russia are now trying to do to Ukraine and I knew I had to find out more whilst I was in the Baltics, so I chose to visit a museum based around that time when I was spending a day in Vilnius. Both Riga and Tallinn have similar museums, Riga’s was closed and I didn’t try to go to Tallinn’s because I’m very sure that the story is much the same for all three countries, in terms of how they were treated. I chose to visit the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights in Vilnius, situated in the former KGB building, where the Soviet Police used to be. You can see the former prison, and read about the history, what went on, how people were treated and so on. Particular lowlights (because let’s face it they’re not positive, are they!?) were the padded cells, the cells used to make people stay mostly under water, and the gas chamber. Grim, but important to see, I think.

I wouldn’t say I enjoyed the Museum, it’s not possible to enjoy seeing things like that but it was incredibly interesting and I’m glad I went. It was a thought provoking start to spending a day in Vilnius for sure. If you don’t fancy the Museum of Occupation and Freedom Fights but you want something else history based, there are many other history museums in Vilnius to choose from.

If you like street art, head to Open Gallery

Open Gallery is a free, outdoor art space open all the time and it’s full of colour. I only found out it existed whilst writing this post so didn’t get to see it-annoyingly, as it’s right up my street. Definitely head here for a short time if you love colour as much as I do.

Next, head to Cathedral Square

Cathedral Square was a space I nearly missed, and I’m so glad I didn’t. I ended up heading there at the very end of my time in the city but I would recommend you go sooner, because it was my favourite part of the city. The Cathedral and the Bell Tower are gorgeous buildings and the square itself has a huge amount of space, perfect for children to run around or people who have just discovered the joys of the electric scooters all over the city to whizz about for a bit. If you can find the Stebuklas Miracle Tile, stand on it and turn around clockwise three times whilst making a wish as legend has it your wish will come true. I spent a while there playing on a scooter and then went around the corner to Gediminas Tower on the scooter as well, passing the Lithuanian Hounds sculpture on my way.

Go and visit Gediminas Tower

Gediminas Tower, on a pretty steep hill above the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania, has amazing views of the city. With my fibromyalgia, there was no way I would’ve been able to walk up the hill but luckily there’s a funicular you can take, for 1 euro if you just want to go up the hill, 2 if you want to take it back down too. I spent about 15 minutes at the bottom of the tower looking at the view and taking photos, and there’s a museum in the tower too. I didn’t go inside this due to the time of day, but it sounded interesting and would’ve been a handy quick thing to see as I was there anyway.

Three Crosses Hill should be your next stop

Three Crosses Hill is another place to get aerial views of the city. There’s a monument with three white crosses at the top and you can see for miles, from a different perspective. It’s about a 15 minute walk to the bottom of the hill from Gediminas Tower, but a pretty steep walk up (I chose not to do this one for that reason, because my body wouldn’t have handled the climb) The photos from the top look worth it if you don’t have mobility issues though.

Uzupis is somewhere I’d highly recommend

The Republic of Uzupis is an independent part of the city just over the river from the old town. You can get your passport stamped when crossing the border or buy some of their currency at the Tourist Information shop, and then explore this quirky part of the city. If you’ve brave you can have a go on their swing under the bridge and see the Uzupis Mermaid whilst you’re there, or if you’re on a romantic trip with a partner you can add your love lock to their bridge. I spent quite a while wandering round this area, full of street art and unusual things to see, and if you have time you can search for The Angel of Uzupis in the main square, or the Uzupis Cat, which promises to take away the fear of anyone who touches its ears.

The lady working in the Tourist Information shop was super friendly and happy to tell me all about Uzopis, including that their very own currency can only be spent on their day, 1st April, and each note pays for 1 beer. I think thats really cool.

Wander the rest of the Old Town after spending a day in Vilnius

Just outside of Uzupis you hit the Old Town again. There’s many, many things to see in this medieval part of the city, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, but I’d recommend making sure you see the Gates of Dawn, Literati Street and a couple of the palaces and churches. It’s also nice to just walk around the streets and see what you discover, as there’s so much to see.

If you’re thinking of spending a day in Vilnius my top tip would be to plan your day before you go, as the city is quite big and confusing. I walked a lot more than I needed to as I’d not plotted out the things I wanted to see on a map, so learn from my mistake and do that. Wear comfy shoes and take snacks as I also found I didn’t come across cafes as often as I would in other cities, so on a hot day you’ll need to be prepared when you need a rest and a drink. Vilnius was definitely quieter than most capital cities when it comes to shops and cafes.

If you’re hoping to do Vilnius as part of a multi country trip, you’d be best flying into Vilnius, getting the bus to Riga then to Tallinn, and then maybe a ferry to Helsinki. Don’t do what I did and go from Riga down to Vilnius and then back through Riga to Tallinn, which causes more time on a bus and makes no sense!

Have you been to Vilnius before?