Vilniusis the capital and largest city of Lithuania. It lies on the bank of the Neris river and has approximately 580,020 inhabitants (2020). Vilnius is in the southeast part of Lithuania and is the second largest city in the Baltic states. Vilnius is the seat of the national government of Lithuania and the Vilnius District Municipality.

Vilnius International Airport, Rodunios kelias 10a (3.7 miles south of the city center). The largest civil airport in Lithuania. There are flights to most major airports in the northern half of Europe and a few destinations nearby former CIS countries and some regular and charter flights to Mediterranean destinations. Over half of the destinations are served by either budget or charter airlines. There are a few different options to get from the airport to the city center such as bus, train or taxi.

By Bus: The bus ride to the center takes 15 minutes and buses depart from the airport every 10 to 15 minutes. Single one time tickets can be purchased from the driver for about €1. Alternatively a Vilniecio kortele can be bought for about €1.50 at the Narvesen kiosk in the airport which provides the ability to buy time-based tickets. Also, the tourist-oriented Vilnius City Card can be bought at the Vilnius Tourist Information Center in the airport. Only one piece of hand luggage the size of a single seat is allowed. For larger luggage, an extra ticket should be bought from the driver (about €1).

-Bus #1 goes from the airport (Lithuanian: Oro uostas) to the central bus/train station (`Stotis`).

-Bus #2 goes from the airport to the bus/train station, passing the football stadium at Liepkalnis street.

-Bus #88 goes from the airport to the City Business Center (Konstitucijos avenue, Europa square), travelling through the Old Town first.

-Night minibus #88N goes hourly 11:30pm - 5:30am same route.

-Bus #3G goes to the north through the center (Lukiškes square) and business centre (Konstitucijos avenue), continuing on to the Fabijoniškes sleeping district in the north, near the beginning of the A2 highway towards Riga (within the city limits the highway is called Ukmerge street). The bus number`s trailing letter `G` on a green background stands for `Greitasis` which means `Express bus`. It stops at all relevant stops in the center, while skipping some regular stops before and after the center.

By train: Lietuvos Geležinkeliai operates trains from the airport to the main train station for about €0.72. Tickets are bought in the train from the conductor. The train ride takes 7 minutes, but trains depart every 60 minutes . For very large luggage an additional ticket for around €0.22 should be bought.

By taxi: It may be somewhat cheaper to book a taxi online before arrival or by phone once you have arrived rather than using the taxis waiting at the airport. Prices for trips within the city limits should be in the range of €5 to €30.

Vilnius railway station is the station just south of downtown, next to the bus terminal and a small shopping mall with cafes, it is also not far from the Old Town of Vilnius. You can reach Russia, Ukraine, Latvia, and Poland leaving from Vilnius by train.

If you come to Vilnius by train you can easily find and visit Vilnius Tourist Information Center at the Railway Station. There you will receive useful information about how to spend your free time, about places of interest in the city, also a free map of the center of Vilnius and the Old Town.

For timetable and the destinations, please visit: www.litrail.lt

From the train station, you can easily catch a taxi, walk or take a bus to your final destination.

Vilnius has an extensive network of public buses. They reach even the most remote areas of the city as well as low-rise suburbs. The timetables to some areas may be scarce, but they are never rarer than once in two hours and usually at least one bus an hour. On the most popular routes, there is one bus every 10 or 15 minutes.

Trolleybuses generally travel on the busiest routes and their timetables are more frequent. During the morning and evening rush hours, there may be a trolleybus every couple minutes on certain routes. Even if you don‘t know the schedules, it is fair to expect a trolleybus to come to a stop in next 10 minutes at the latest. This is not so with buses as many bus routes are thinly served. Therefore if you have no interest in checking schedules in advance, choose trolleybuses.

The city is efficiently served by buses and trolleybuses from 5am to midnight; Sunday services are less frequent. Single-trip tickets cost about €1 when bought from the driver. You can get an electronic ticket for around €1.50, single journeys cost about €0.65 or you can buy 24-/72-hour passes for €5/8 (www.vilniusticket.lt). Public transport is free if you have a Vilnius City Card (sold in tourist information centers).

Quicker minibuses shadow most routes. They pick up/drop off passengers anywhere en route (not just at official bus stops) and can be flagged down on the street. Tickets cost about €1 from the driver.

Note that much of the Old Town is closed to traffic, meaning that very few buses and trolleybuses service this part of town. For destinations within the Old Town, you`ll normally have to walk.

Traveling by taxi is not recommended as taxi drivers are known to cheat people, especially (but not only) foreigners. They inflate prices as much as 10 times. Uber is available.

A regular cab may cost anywhere from €5 to €15 if you need to get from the perameters of the city to the center, while the shortest trips will cost you about €4. Somewhat higher priced and higher class taxi companies are Jazzexpress, Smarttaxi, and municipality-owned Vilnius veža. Every car is relatively new and equipped with a card reader so you can pay for the trip using your debit or credit card.

The easiest way to book a taxi is with the eTAKSI app for smartphones, a service similar to Uber/Lyft. You can also use Bolt (formerly Taxify) or Yandex. Taxi. Ordering a taxi by phone is also an option. Street taxis charge as much as twice the price of taxis called by phone or app. Good practice is to dial the number written on the vehicle you see, tell the dispatcher the address you`re at, and you will most likely get the same vehicle for a lower price.

All taxi cars must have a yellow license plate starting with the letter `T` with an additional 5 numbers and a `Taxi` sign on the roof. A detailed price list alongside the driver`s taxi-operator license must be placed on the panel right in front of the passenger seat next to the driver.

When paying for the taxi service it is expected to leave a €0.50-1 tip for the driver.

Although the Old Town is one of the largest in Europe, it can easily be explored on foot.

Travelling by car is not advised during rush hours (7:00 am - 9:00am and 4:30pm - 6:30pm) to and from the city center due to traffic jams. Parking fees can vary from €0.30/hr to €1.80/hr in the old town.

Car rental: There are several well known foreign car rental companies and several domestic companies in Vilnius. It is advised to book online from an English language website such as Car Rental or Neo Rent. Cheaper options available are: JARR autoservisas, Drive.lt.

City-Bee operates a car sharing network where you can rent a car by the hour. There is no contract or monthly fee, you pay for the service only when you use the car, and there are no parking expenses when you are not using it. There are 13 pick-up points throughout the city, mostly in the centre and some relevant points in northern districts.

Car parking is free in most of Vilnius but has to be paid for in the Old Town, New Town, Žverynas, and southern Šnipiškes (except for the residential yards, some of which are not blocked for non-residents). The prices are lower than in most foreign and neighboring capitals.

In the city center you often find bike lanes; however, that doesn`t mean they are well respected. The only `real` bicycle path leads along the River Neris north to Verkiai Nature park and the `Green lakes`.

Daytrip: If you go north to the `Green lakes` and have a good map you can ride up to the `Europos parkas` outdoor exhibition of contemporary art, then continue on to the Geographical center of Europe.

Bicycle trails: Five reasonable bicycle routes within the city limits and Green Lakes area are available in the bilingual leaflet Bicycle Routes in the City of Vilnius. Development of bicycle path connections and improvement of the existing network is scheduled to be completed in 2020.

Bicycle rental: Vilnius downtown has an automated bicycle rent system where a short rent is free (if you join the system). Look for orange bicycle racks. Cyclocity Vilnius is the name of this self-service bike rental system that currently offers 36 stations in central locations operating annually during May-September. Every station has at least 9 bike stands. The stations require a Cyclocity Vilnius Card (obtained at Tourist Information Centers), Vilnius Citizen Card (the Vilniecio kortele - public transport card), or a 3-day ticket card. Service: First 30 minutes: free, second 30 minutes: €0.39, 3rd 30 minutes: €1.39, fourth 30 minutes and over: €3.39.

Other bike rental companies offer daily rentals starting at about €4; first hour, each following: €1, day: €9.

Vilnius is a relatively safe city; however, crimes do occur. Use typical common sense.

Try and walk with confidence and never look lost. If you have traveled by train to visit a nightclub or other venue, take taxis to and from your venue, and upon return to the railway station remain in the ticket hall, which is patrolled by security guards.

Avoid the area around the central train station which is particularly dodgy and frequented by prostitutes and their clients.

It is recommended not to enter South Vilnius suburbs, including Naujininkai and Kirtimai, especially at night, as well as some parts of Šnipiškes which are located any deeper than its business district.

The 148 train to Moscow is a noted target and many have reported having their baggage stolen. The police are also not very helpful.

The currency of Vilnius is the Euro, US dollars are not accepted. In Vilnius there are plenty of ATMs in and around the city to withdraw cash. Citadele Bankas, Lithuania`s Amex representative, exchanges currency. ATMs are very common throughout the city and most shops accept major credit cards.

July and August: Festivals of music and dance enliven long, leisurely summer days.

October and November: Jazz, crafts and theatre festivals create a buzz against a backdrop of autumn colors.

December: Bitter winter temperatures make cafes all the cozier while Christmas markets add extra sparkle.

If you`re in search of sunshine, then summer is peak tourist time! May – August is a great time because before May some of the tourist sights are not open yet. This is also when the weather is most comfortable. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 19°F to 74°F and is rarely below 1°F or above 84°F.

Lithuanian is the official language spoken in Vilnius. However, English is the most popular foreign language and is spoken by about 80% of the country`s youth. English is primarily used in locations frequented by foreign tourists, such as hotels, museums and other tourist attractions. We suggest you get a good English-Lithuanian guidebook and familiarize yourself with common phrases such as hello, goodbye, excuse me and numbers 1-10.

Vilnius has an incredible up and coming food scene and there are a number of fantastic restaurants in the city.

Many Lithuanian dishes are traditionally heavy and hearty, with staples including root vegetables and meats. Some popular meals include deep-fried bread served with garlic (kepta duona), cold borscht (saltibarsciai), potato pancakes, and hand pies filled with various combinations of meats, vegetables, cheese curds, or berries.

The meal most strongly associated with the Lithuanian nation is the Cepelinai, named after Graff von Zeppelin because these potato dumplings are similar in form to airship he invented. A more Lithuanian name for the meal is "didžkukuliai". Foreigners sometimes find the meal hard for their stomachs but it is very popular among Lithuanians. It is also one of the cheapest meals of its size you may get in Lithuanian restaurants. Making cepelinai yourself would take hours, however.

Lithuanians eat their major meals at midday (11:30am - 1:30pm). This meal may be translated as `dinner` even though it is earlier than Western dinner. Breakfast is light (e.g. self-made sandwich). Supper may be both light and elaborate.

Vilnius is famous for its amber, wool ware and flax ware. Most of these goods can be found in booths and road side stalls along the Pilies st. Also it might be worth visiting smaller souvenir shops.

Vilnius isn`t exactly a shopping mecca, but plenty of tourists find that shopping in the old town is enjoyable and interesting. While many of the large shopping centers outside of town are the most popular spots for shopping, Old Town Vilnius is full of boutiques, souvenir shops, clothing sellers, bookstores, and more.

Gediminas Prospect is one of the best areas of the Old Town for heavy-duty shopping. High-end shops, department stores, and boutiques can be found on this main drag, and souvenir shops, wine shops, bookstores, and restaurants. Clothing stores such as Zara, Mango, and United Colors of Benetton are located here. You can also wander into many of the boutiques selling specific items, including amber jewelry and Lithuanian-made products.

Pilies Street (named for Gediminas Castle, or Pilis) is one of the best sources for souvenirs from Lithuania, including wooden crafts, amber jewelry, linen, and ceramics. Lelija, a Lithuanian clothing store, also maintains an outlet here. You can also browse any of the many stalls that set up shop along Pilies; you`ll find rough-cut amber nuggets, hand-knitted accessories, woolen socks, and paintings.

Didzoji Gatve, `The Big Street,` is home to the Town Hall, and is also a major shopping thoroughfare. Designer boutiques attract the wealthiest visitors, their leather goods and expensive outerwear displayed in pristine windows. Walk towards the Gate of Dawn, where the street turns into Ausros Vartu Gatve and you`ll find still more souvenirs shops.

Traku Gatve, or Trakai Street, is interesting for its single-item boutiques. Here, you`ll find a sock store, a glove shop, a couple of ladies` underwear shops, interior design boutiques, retailers selling different types of teas and oils, and jewelry shops. Two of the most popular stores on this street are the Humana outlet - one of the many second-hand Humana outlets in the city - and designer shoe outlets, which sell good European shoe brands at discount prices.

Vokieciu Gatve, a wide boulevard connecting to Traku Gatve, is lined with restaurants, cafes, bars, and shops, including those selling lingerie, clothing, jewelry, and accessories. You can follow Vokieciu into Vilniaus Street, another prominent artery, which runs directly into Gediminas Prospect for more clothing shops, wine shops, specialty boutiques, and of course more restaurants and cafes.

One of the best aspects of shopping in Old Town Vilnius is the opportunity to see the city. Along the way, you will see plenty of sights, be tempted by alluring side-streets, and find yourself marveling at the architecture and medieval charm that Vilnius is able to maintain even while its modern shops and cafes attract everyday visitors.

Commercial Shopping Centers: If you can’t find what you’re looking for at any of the above locations, Vilnius`shopping centers are another option for fashion, food, and gifts. The larger ones require public transportation to reach, but locals, visitors, and students all recommend them for their entertainment venues, eateries, and the variety of shops. Akropolis wins hands-down in the contest for the most popular shopping center, located about 20 minutes outside of the Old Town by car (or 40 minutes by bus). But more modest malls such as Europa and Panorama can be worthwhile, too.

Note: Value-added tax (VAT) rate is currently 21% in Lithuania for standard goods. Certain goods and services are subject to reduced VAT rates of 9% (e.g., most books, periodicals and passenger transportation services), 5% (e.g., certain pharmaceutical and medical goods, assistance provided to the handicapped) and 0% (e.g., international transportation).