This Country Might Be The Best Hidden Gem In Europe (Lithuania)

In this video, I’ll go over what you need to know about Lithuania and look at where to visit in the country. While much of what I go over is travel tips that will help you make the best of your time in Lithuania without breaking the bank, I’ll also discuss what is important to know before visiting this European hidden gem.

You may not hear many people talking about Lithuania, but it’s a place you definitely want to add to your bucket list. Even if you only can make time for a short trip to Vilnius, you won’t regret it! Lithuania is also cheaper than most European countries and has lots of unique things to offer. I make a point of going over all the great food that you can find in Lithuania, too, so don’t miss that part!

I’ve traveled to Lithuania dozens of times and lived there for two summers, so I’ve got tons of experience with the country to draw from. Summer is the popular time to visit this Baltic country, but in this video I’ll show you why you might want to consider visiting during the other seasons too. My most recent trip to Lithuania was during winter, so a lot of the footage you’ll see was taken during this time.

After watching this video, there’s a good chance that you’ll want to travel to Lithuania in the future if it’s not already in your plans. So do be warned and I hope you enjoy!

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00:00 Intro
00:50 What to know about Lithuania
01:44 Lithuanian superstitions
02:28 Lithuanian food
06:54 Getting to and around Lithuania
08:03 Today’s Lithuania (important history)
08:41 Vilnius
10:48 Beyond Vilnius
14:11 Places to stay and when to plan
15:28 Free things
15:48 Outro

#travel #lithuania #travelguide #budgettravel

Labas I’m David G and today I’m in Vilnius, Lithuania Lithuania is a pretty small country and  it may often be overlooked by travelers but it’s a great place to visit although Lithuania is small in  both population and size you’ll   find a rich culture with amazing places to visit

And importantly Lithuania is  a budget friendly destination and throughout this video I’ll make  a point of showing you how to get   the best value for your money when traveling here so first I’ll be going over some  important things to know about Lithuania

And then later in the video I’ll  give you an idea of which parts   of the country you might want  to visit and what to do there if you’ve never been to Lithuania then I  highly recommend watching the whole video but if you’re already familiar with Lithuania  you’ll likely find this video useful too

I’ve included a ton of travel tips  and firsthand experience that I   gathered during dozens of trips to Lithuania I even lived here for two summers so let’s dive right into  what to know about Lithuania the most popular time to visit  Lithuania is definitely summer

But you can see that I’m here in the  dead of winter and it’s also nice the name of Lithuania in Lithuanian is   Lietuva which literally means  place where it rains a lot so it’s going to be precipitating all  year round no matter when you visit

All that means is that you should come prepared you know wear a rain jacket all that kind of stuff or if you come in the winter  have good winter clothes so really whatever time of year  you decide to visit Lithuania in  

My opinion at least it’s probably  going to be a good time to do it Lithuania is the biggest of the three Baltic  states and it’s a member of the European Union Lithuania joined the EU in  2004 and later adopted the   Euro which is used by most countries in the EU now

But unlike most members of the EU Lithuania’s National Pastime is basketball basketball is a source of  national pride in Lithuania and people often take it  pretty seriously so beware another thing that’s sometimes taken pretty  seriously in Lithuania is superstition some Lithuanian superstitions may be  familiar to you like knocking on wood

But one superstition that was a  complete surprise to me when I   first encountered it in Lithuania is that  giving flowers in even numbers is bad luck so you’ll basically only find flowers  being sold in odd numbers in Lithuania and then each year the first time  you hear a cuckoo bird in the spring

You’re supposed to pull out your wallet  and shake it so that the coins can be   heard this is believed to ring in a  year of economic prosperity by some and then the first time you  see a stork in the spring

If it’s flying that means you’ll have  the chance to travel a lot that year but if it’s sitting in its nest it means  you’ll be stuck at home most of the time of course these all are just  superstitions but keeping them   in mind will help you understand  Lithuania a little bit better

Another thing that’s taken pretty  seriously in Lithuania is its cuisine and while food may not be the only reason to  visit Lithuania it’s definitely a good reason bread for free Lithuania has an array of unique dishes to try and   you can basically find them all  in the capital city of Vilnius

The most well-known dish in modern  day Lithuania has to be cepelinai which translates to English  literally as “zeppelins” but since you won’t really  find these much outside of   Lithuania let’s just stick to the Lithuanian name Cepelinai are oval-shaped with a special kind of  

Potato puree as the outer part and  either meat or cheese curds inside and yes they really look kind  of like a blimp or zeppelin generally they’re eaten with sour cream  or a gravy likee sauce known as spirguciai but you can eat them with both  if you’re feeling really hungry

Cepelinai can be eaten year round but just  keep in mind that they’re really really filling another great hearty option are bulvine blyne  which we call potato pancakes or latkes in English in addition to basketball another Lithuanian  National Pastime is mushroom foraging

And you can often find bulvine blyne served  with fresh boletus mushroom sauce on top foraging season is usually during  the fall in Lithuania and it’s a   very interesting time to visit the country it’s amazing the amount of tasty mushrooms that  lithuanians are able to find in their forests don’t eat those ones

But if you choose to visit in  summer which is the most popular   time to visit then saltibarsciai  or cold borscht is a must have even though the color may remind you a little  bit of Pepto Bismol don’t let that scare you away it’s pretty darn good and it’s  really refreshing on hot day

S but just keep in mind that it’s a a seasonal  dish and you’ll only find it during the summer there are plenty of restaurants all around  Lithuania serving these dishes and more and Lithuania also loves its sweets  and has a huge variety of them Nomeda is a popular candy bar with apple filling  

And I always end up eating way too  many of them when I’m in Lithuania and then sakotis is a rich tree-shaped cake it’s eggy and sweet and you’ll  find it everywhere around the   country and then my personal favorite is surelis

It’s kind of like a candy bar made out  of Lithuanian cheese curds or varske and comes in a ton of different flavors  and is always coated in chocolate Lithuanian sweets may be a little different  than what you’re used to but give them a try and I’m sure you’ll find something you like

And when you eat in Lithuania  you usually have to drink too and drinking in Lithuania often involves beer,  mead, or even harder stuff known as degtine just don’t try to buy it in the  grocery store after 8:00 p.m. but don’t worry if you don’t drink alcohol  there are plenty of other options too

But still be warned that there’s likely to  be alcohol available almost anywhere you go one kind of strange non-alcoholic drink that I’ve   come to enjoy in Lithuania  is Vytautas mineral water it’s like a salty mineral water with bubbles   and based on that information it  probably doesn’t sound that good

At least it didn’t to me but then I gave it a try and it  actually turned out to be pretty good and if you prefer to save money  on food and drink while traveling   in Lithuania then being familiar with  the grocery stores is pretty important Lithuanian grocery stores  are pretty good and they’re  

Likely cheaper than what you’re used to back home a few common chains are Maxima  and Iki and bigger locations will   usually have a hot food bar where you  can find most of the national dishes many grocery stores also feature large deli  

Areas and the smoked fish that  you’ll find there is a must try the kingdom of smoked fish the first time I set foot in Lithuania  7 years ago something felt familiar the reason for this hit me when I was  eating what’s known as kugelis in Lithuania

Kugelis is nearly the same thing as the common  dish known as kugel in the United States see before World War II and  the Holocaust Vilnius was   often referred to as the Jerusalem of the  north due to its large Jewish population

In fact my Litvak or Jewish Lithuanian roots  are a huge reason for my interest in the country that and my beautiful wife is from here! there is still a smaller Jewish  community in Vilnius and around Lithuania and tons of the food eaten in Lithuania  today is similar to or the same as the  

Recipes that you’ll find in Jewish delis in the US for a lot of you traveling to Lithuania   particularly from the US or  Canada this could be a plus I mean Lithuania doesn’t just have good kugel you’ll find great pickles herring borscht smoked fish and a bunch of other Jewish American staples

But if you’re not a huge fan of deli food  there are plenty more options for you the Lithuanian diet kind of has a  reputation of being heavy on meat dairy and fish but if you’re a vegetarian or have other  dietary restrictions I’ve increasingly  

Noticed that grocery stores and restaurants  make an effort to provide options for everyone so Lithuania is pretty much  guaranteed to meet your dining   needs and probably surprise you with a  few dishes you wouldn’t have expected but even though food is important and we  could go on for another few hours about it

Let’s take a step back and take a look  at getting to and around Lithuania most travelers to Lithuania enter via Vilnius   Airport and Vilnius is also  a great base for your trip from within Europe you can usually  find cheap flights to Vilnius I’ve bought dozens of Air Baltic  tickets for under 50 euros

And traveling from North America  or other long-haul places you’ll   usually want to account for at least  $600 for round-trip tickets in economy once you arrive getting from Vilnius Airport   to the city or to other cities in  Lithuania is pretty straightforward there’s a train and express buses to the city

But taxis and ride share apps like  Uber or Bolt are also pretty reasonable in Vilnius it’s still usually cheaper to take  public transport if you’re traveling alone but I’ve taken Bolt from the  airport for Less than 5 euros before renting a car also isn’t too  expensive most of the time

Prices usually start around 15 euros a day driving in Lithuania but public transport really is quite good in  most of the country and it’s also pretty cheap so if you’re not planning to visit remote  areas or travel as a part of a larger group

Public transport is usually going to be the most  budget friendly way to get where you want to go I’ll talk a bit more about  getting around the country   once we get into the part where we  go over where to visit in Lithuania

But before we look at what other  great stuff this country has to offer let’s take a moment to look at what  made today’s Lithuania what it is Lithuania is not just an ex-soviet country yes Lithuania was a part of  the Soviet Union until 1990

But during the long Soviet occupation  of Lithuania lithuanians constantly   fought to keep their culture  alive including their language on August 23rd 1989 lithuanians stood together   with latvians and estonians  to protest the Soviet regime this was known as the Baltic way and  the protest took place by forming a  

Human chain across the entirety  of all three Baltic countries not long after the Baltic way  Lithuania regained its independence so now that we’ve got a lot of the  important stuff about Lithuania out   of the way let’s look at where to  go and what to do once you’re there

Vilnius is the capital city of Lithuania and  it’s a nice combination of the international   vibe that you’d expect from a  capital city and Lithuanian culture and by the way in English people often will say   Vilnius which is fine in English but  in Lithuanian it’s pronounced Vilnius

Regardless people will understand what you’re  talking about using either pronunciation and speaking of English you’ll find that most  younger people here do speak good English while the older generation often  learned Russian as a second language but of course speaking a little bit  of Lithuanian is the best way to go

The Lithuanian language is one  of the oldest languages in Europe it’s not the easiest language to learn but even  just learning a few words will get you pretty far labas means hello aciu means thank you and iki is a great way to say goodbye

Speaking even just a little bit of  Lithuanian is usually appreciated   especially given the history  of Russian language and other   languages kind of becoming dominant  languages at different points in time in Vilnius the Oldtown is a great place to stay  and there’s more than enough to do for a few days

The Gediminas castle tower overlooks the city and  going up the hill to take in the views is a must entrance to the tower just costs  a couple euros and down the hill   from the tower you’ll find the  main square of Vilnius Old Town Katedros Aikste or Cathedral Square in English

From there you can have a nice walk  around the pedestrian friendly old   town and there’s really a ton of history to  take in while walking around old town Vilnius you can either join a guided tour  or walk around at your own pace

I’ve done both but the tour might might  be better if you’re on a tight schedule otherwise there’s a fair amount of  information on signs around the city and you can get a free touristic map or mark  the sites you want to see in Google Maps there are lots of nice restaurants

Plenty of good hotels and an array of cool local businesses to check out one stop that I’d highly recommend including  in your plans is the neighborhood of Uzepis Uzepis is a self-proclaimed republic in the middle  of old town Vilnius with its own constitution

It’s probably my favorite place to walk  around in Vilnius but go see for yourself Vilnius also has lots of nature right in the city Vingo parkas or Vingis park is  a local favorite for a short   stroll and Pavylnis Regional Park is  another nice place to go for a walk

It’s bigger and has a more rural feeling  but it’s still within the city limits but Vilnius is really just  the tip of the iceberg when   it comes to what you can see and do in Lithuania if you’re limited on time by all means  go visit Vilnius and it will be great

But if you have more than  a few days there are tons   of places worth visiting all around the country one of the easiest day trips from  Vilnius is to the town of Trakai Trakai is home to a pristine Island  castle that’s really worth a visit

And around the island short boat  tours on the lake are pretty popular the Trakai Castle is one of those places  you have to visit when you’re in Lithuania at least if you have the time and  the entrance price is 10 euros

If you don’t want to pay to enter then  I’d still visit the town of Trakai but   probably the 10 euros is going to be  worth it so definitely consider that if you go you must try the  local specialty kibinai too

They’re a kind of dough pie stuffed with  lamb or beef and the dish has its roots   with the local Karaite people that have  lived in the area for hundreds of years Trakai is also a great choice for a day trip   because it’s just the short train  ride or drive away from Vilnius

But if you have time for more than just  a day trip from Vilnius then the coastal   town of Klaipeda could be a great place to visit Klaipeda is Lithuania’s third largest city and its   location on the Baltic Sea makes it  a nice place to visit from Vilnius

You can take a bus or train or drive and it will   take you a little bit under  4 hours to get to Klaipeda in the city itself there’s a small old town that’s   definitely worth visiting and there  are beaches within the city limits that area along the Baltic Sea also happens to be  

A great place to walk along  the beach in search of amber it does take some luck and  focused searching to find amber but if you don’t find any yourself you can  easily buy it in stores all around the country

And prices for amber in Lithuania tend to be  much lower than you’d find outside of Lithuania Klaipeda also has a nice selection of  restaurants including a luxury dining   experience at the boat restaurant Meridianas when I spent a summer studying Lithuanian at   Klaipeda University I often went to  Meridianas for their lunch special

But the coronian spit is just the short Ferry  right away and you’ll find a lot more to do there there are pine forests up and down the spit and   at the end of the Lithuanian part  you’ll find the Cozy town of Nida right next to Nida there are massive sand dunes

And the town itself is known for its amazing  smoked fish and its local artist population you could also take a direct bus all the way to   Nida from Vilnius but I’d recommend  to stop in Klaipeda at least once

And then going up the coast the opposite way  of Nida there’s the beach town of Palanga in summer Palanga gets packed and it can seem  like the whole country is there on some weekends and though a trip to Klaipeda and the  surrounding area could be worth it in winter

It’s during summer that you’ll  really experience it at its best and that’s not to mention that  the Baltic Sea is quite cold so if you have hopes of spending  relaxing days on the beach then   summer is going to be the best time to go for you

And then Lithuania’s second biggest city is Kaunas Kaunas may not be that well-known  internationally but it’s definitely worth a visit there’s a nice old town to explore and  the city is home to a medieval castle nearby you also find the town of Rumsiskes which  

Is home to one of the largest open a  ethnographic museums in all of Europe if you’ve got a half day to spare  I think it’s really worth a visit and then one other activity that  you should really consider on   a trip to Lithuania as adding a  spa day or two to your itinerary

In fact I’m sitting in a spa  hotel right now talking to you   there are two well-known spa towns in Lithuania Druskininkai and Birstonas both are known for   having a nice selection of spa  hotels with reasonable prices I’m here in Birstonas myself  and I really recommend it

In between spa sessions there’s a nice  old town to explore and you can take in   views of the landscape from a nearby lookout tower made it to the top! Birstonas is conveniently located  near both Kaunas and Vilnius too I’m staying at the Royal Spa  residence and it costs about  

€95 a night for two people including  breakfast and unlimited Spa access this is the renovated room so it’s pretty  nice and pretty new and it comes with a   balcony but do not smoke on the balcony  or you’ll have to pay a fine of 60 euros

It’s probably already clear  that Lithuania is not that   expensive of a country to visit at least  compared to other countries in Europe a decent place to stay will cost  you around like 50 euros a night   but if you want something a little nicer  then it’s probably going to be around 100

There are both cheaper options and pricier more   luxurious options in both  Birstonas and Druskininkai and in the end the best choice of spa hotel will   just depend on your needs and the  availability on your travel dates do make sure to plan and book well ahead  though because both towns can get booked up

Especially on national holidays and weekends planning ahead is also a a really good idea  for travel to Lithuania though you may find   last-minute availability at low prices in  the off-season during peak travel times it’s really important to book ahead this goes for hotels and flights

And for rental cars and popular  bus and train routes you’ll also   want to book at least a month out where possible I’ve also found that some local businesses  may offer better pricing over the phone so if you can call Lithuanian  numbers it’s worth a try

Skype offers free trials so if you’re  struggling to find a good way to call   a Lithuanian number from abroad that might be it and on the topic of free things I’ve  got a whole array of free videos to   help you get the best prices on flights  hotels and save on other travel costs

You can watch all these videos right  now for free if you haven’t yet so even if you just need a little more insight   for getting the best hotel rates or  flight fares for a trip to Lithuania

I’ve designed these videos to quickly give you  the information that you need to do just that well that’s all for this video thank  you so much for watching and I   hope just maybe that I convince you to  consider a trip to Lithuania next time!