Lithuania

Lithuania is easy to travel across, especially if you base yourself in Vilnius, Kaunas, or Klaipėda and make day trips from there. Intercity buses are usually the most practical option: they’re frequent, comfortable, and often cheaper than trains. A bus from Vilnius to Kaunas or Klaipėda is a straightforward way to move between the main cities, while trains are a good choice for some routes and can be a smoother ride when schedules line up. In towns and cities, public transport is affordable and useful, but many visitors also rely on rideshares or taxis for late-night returns. If you plan to explore the Curonian Spit, Trakai, or smaller villages, check ferry, bus, and seasonal schedules in advance. Buying an eSIM from Hello before you land makes navigation easier, especially for live timetables and maps. It’s also handy to keep Hello trip planning in one place so your transfers, museum visits, and hotel check-ins stay organized without juggling screenshots.

Lithuanian food is hearty, comforting, and better than many first-time visitors expect. Start with cepelinai, potato dumplings usually filled with meat or curd and served with sour cream and bacon sauce, then try kugelis if you want a baked potato dish that feels like a local Sunday meal. In colder months, bowls of beetroot soup such as šaltibarščiai are a bright, refreshing contrast to the heavier dishes, while rye bread, smoked fish, and mushroom dishes show up everywhere from casual cafés to rural guesthouses. For something sweet, look for šakotis, the tree-shaped cake often sold at celebrations and markets. In Vilnius, restaurants in the Old Town and Uzupis can be pricier, while lunch menus across the country are often a good-value way to sample local cooking. If you’re sharing plates and drinks with travel companions, Hello expense splitting can make it easy to divide the bill without awkward calculations. Track costs in euros with Hello budget tracking so you can keep an eye on daily spending while still leaving room for a few extra desserts.

Lithuania packs a lot into a small country, and the highlights are close enough for a varied short trip. Vilnius is the obvious starting point, with a beautiful Old Town, baroque churches, and the creative atmosphere of Užupis, a neighbourhood that feels part bohemian quarter, part open-air art project. Trakai makes an easy day trip and is famous for its island castle and lakeside setting; arrive early if you want quieter views and time for a karaim-style meal. Kaunas offers a different energy, with interwar architecture, riverfront walks, and a lively arts scene. If you want nature, head north to the Curonian Spit, where dunes, pine forests, and fishing villages create one of the country’s most memorable landscapes. For practical travel, it helps to use Hello trip planning to group city stops with nature days and opening hours, since some museums and coastal services run on seasonal schedules. With Hello eSIM ready before arrival, you can keep maps, ferry times, and reservations at hand without hunting for Wi-Fi.

Lithuania uses the euro, and card payments are widely accepted in cities, supermarkets, cafés, and even many small shops. Still, it’s smart to keep a little cash for rural bakeries, market stalls, or smaller transport services. Prices are generally lower than in much of Western Europe, but popular restaurants in central Vilnius or summer hotspots like the Curonian Spit can add up quickly, so a daily spending plan helps. Public toilets, museum lockers, and some old-town attractions may charge small fees, so it’s worth keeping a few euros handy. If you’re shopping for souvenirs, look for amber jewellery, linen goods, smoked fish, or locally made honey rather than mass-produced trinkets. Opening hours can be shorter outside major cities, especially on Sundays or holidays, so double-check before you go. An eSIM from Hello is useful for last-minute opening-time searches, taxi bookings, and translation on the go, while Hello budget tracking helps you see where your money is going in euros. If you’re travelling with others, splitting shared purchases through Hello expense splitting keeps the trip feel easy and fair.