Lithuania through the eyes of a flying bird
Climb at least one tower to the viewing platform where you can look down on an area which you have never visited before. One of the most beautiful and popular towers in Lithuania is Kirkilai tower in Biržai district. A walking trail is being constructed next to sinkhole lakes in the area around the tower. In the second half of summer, we recommend climbing the new observation tower in Birštonas, which also has a viewing platform – it is the highest in Lithuania.
Wade through marshes without wetting your feet
There are over 200 walking paths in Lithuania. Your summer challenge could be to cope with the longest path over a marsh – the 8 km Mūša’s swamp educational trail in Joniškis district. The shortest educational trail in Lithuania is also over a marsh – the 121 metre Amalva trail which has recently been installed in Marijampolė district.
Homestead in the country not only for wedding parties
The number of Lithuanians who choose to stay in rural tourism homesteads is growing by 10% annually (last year, 325,000 local tourists spent at least one night in a homestead). Those who travel around Lithuania will find not only traditional entertainment but also unexpected experiences, for instance, tasting traditional Samogitian dishes (Plungė district), nocturnal canoe trips (Ignalina district), learning more about Baltic rituals (Kaišiadorys district), observing dragon-flies (Šilutė district), etc.
Weird museums
If traditional museums make you yawn, then you will enjoy the most unexpected museums in Lithuania which are on the lists of the weirdest European museums. For instance, the museum of hammers (Vilkaviškis district), the museum of sticks (Kelmė district), the House of Frogs (Šakiai district), the museum of pharmacies (Mažeikiai district), the museum of fossils (Akmenė district), an underground printing house (Kaunas district) or the museum of the blind in the catacombs of Kaunas St.Michael the Archangel Church.
A stay in an unusual place
Those who rush home after a short day trip are making a mistake. A stay away from home can enrich your travel with great experiences, especially if you look for interesting places – for example, you can spend a night in a castle (Jurbarkas district), in a monastery (Kaunas district), a house in a tree (Anykščiai district), a hotel on water (Ukmergė district) or on hay (Varėna district).
Active tourism for adrenalin fans
Those who are looking for an adrenalin rush will be delighted to try a new active tourism activity. Which would you prefer night wakeboarding in Trakai or a night canoe trip in Klaipėda? Take a walking-tour along the loops of the River Nemunas river, or the seaside? Or listen to owls in Neris Regional Park? Or observe the bats in Kaunas Lagoon Regional Park?
Discovering cities
Weekend breaks in other European cities are great, but why not try a weekend break in one of Lithuania’s cities? This year, numerous events are planned in Rokiškis, which is Lithuania’s capital of culture. You can take a walk in Ukmergė following the singing doves which, as they say, fulfil your dreams. You can visit Marijampolė, the capital of Suvalkija, and look for graffiti which equal any of those in New York.
GASTRONOMIC trip around Lithuania
“Travel and Taste” is now a favourite activity of local tourists. Lithuanian tastes are immense –from Kibinai (Karaite traditional pastry) stuffed with snail meat (Zarasai district) to monks’ kvass (bread beverage) with bilberries or strawberries (Kelmė district), to the revived cuisine of noblemen (Šakiai district) with cucumber jam or ice-cream with nettles.
Food festivals
Asparagus festival (Ukmergė district), Bilberry festival (Kaunas district), Herb collection championship (Švenčionys), Honey harvesting festival (Ignalina district), spit cake baking championship (Kaišiadorys)... Summer fiestas for gourmets may well become the perfect reason for a weekend trip.
Treatment for body and soul
We all know how relaxing a massage or sauna is. Very few people, however, know that you can try a massage with the amber or poppies (Panevėžys). Or you can take a beer, herb or milk bath (Kupiškis district). You can even try apitherapy (bee therapy) (Plungė district).
Is this still Lithuania?
You will be amazed at the places you will discover on your travel through Lithuania’s different regions. For instance, Akmenė’s quarries are called the Canyons of Mars for a reason – the relief of the location looks like an uninhabited planet. The swamp of Aukštumala (Šilutė district) looks like savannah. By the way, did you know that the US television channel HBO shot the TV series “Chernobyl” in Ignalina’s nuclear power plant? The power plant welcomes visitors.
Tourist in his own city
Sometimes you do not need to leave your city to experience something new. Take Vilnius, for example. You can explore new routes using a map designed for children with different tasks or you can take part in a tour through the residential areas, the marketplace, etc. In Kaunas, tours of buildings with inter-war architecture or even private flats are very popular. Klaipėda offers dance tours to churches or tours that follow the path of Queen Louise.
Revived manors
Every manor in Lithuania tells its own story and each welcomes guests differently. For instance, you can learn how to play croquet in Rokiškis Manor, how to dance aristocratic dances – in Gelgaudiškis Manor (Šakiai district), ride a horse or attend an afternoon lecture in Akmenėliai Manor, have fun at the festival of first president Smetona – Užugiris Manor (Ukmergė district), look for treasure in Biržuvėnai Manor (Telšiai district).
Family trip
There are also plenty of trips suitable for families with children in Lithuania. It may take more than a summer to visit the Park of Labyrinths (Anykščiai) or the Park of Dinosaurs (Klaipėda district), the alpaca farm (Trakai district) or the Village of Owls (Vilnius district), Pippi’s villa (Jonava) or the Valley of Rabbits (Utena district).
