MINI GUIDE
Weekend in Vilnius
COMPILED BY LORNA PARKES, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM MARK BAKER. PHOTOGRAPHS: ANGEL VILLALBA/GETTY, MARYIA BAHUTSKAYA/ALAMY, FRANS SELLIES/GETTY IMAGES, SCPHOTOS/ALAMYVilnius essentials The know-how
FURTHER READING
Lonely Planet’s
Estonia, Latvia
& Lithuania
(US$24.99)
dedicates a
chapter to
Vilnius, with
detailed maps and
recommendations;
the chapter can also be
downloaded individually
(US$4.95) at lonelyplanet.
com. The Last Girl (US$9.95;
Dean Street Press for Kindle)
by Stephan Collishaw is a
spellbinding historical novel
set in Vilnius, split between
WWII and the 1990s. Fans of
Lithuanian cuisine should try
The Art of Lithuanian
Cooking, by Maria Gieysztor
de Gorgey (US$16;
Hippocrene Books).FOLK ART WORKSHOPS
Lithuania has a long history
of folk art and the tradition is
thriving in the capital, where you
can seek out beautiful textiles,
ornaments and dolls (such as
that pictured below).
Senųjų Amatų Dirbtuvės
Weaving, paper-making, book-
binding, leather-working and
metalworking are lovingly
displayed in this fantastic
little shop (seniejiamatai.lt).
Black Ceramics Centre
This workshop is dedicated to
preserving and teaching the
ancient art of black ceramics
(ceramics.w3.lt).
Jonas Bugailiškis A Lithuanian
artist turning out all manner of
weird and beautiful sculptures,
ornate crosses and musical
instruments (bugailiskis.com).
Sauluva Handicrafts in amber,
metal, ceramics, textiles and
other materials. Great
for unusual toys
(sauluva.lt).TRANSPORT
The most direct is on Finnair via
Helsinki from Singapore (from
US$846; finnair.com). The airport
lies four miles south of central
Vilnius: trains run to the central
station every 30 mins (10 mins;
6am–9.30pm; US$0.60). Taxis
from the airport typically cost
around US$10–US$15. Buses and
trolleybuses run across the city
and single tickets cost 80p from
the driver; US$0.60 if you have a
Vilniecio Kortelė (an electronic
ticket sold at kiosks; US$1.50;
vilniustransport.lt). Note that
much of the Old Town is
pedestrianised and completely
closed to traffic.The Romeo and Juliet room
at the Shakespeare hotelActivities Drinking Sights Eating SleepingWHERE TO STAY
On a picturesque lane in
the Old Town, Bernardinu is
a charming family-owned b&b
in an 18th-century townhouse.
The building has been sensitively
renovated, with old timber
ceilings (bernardinuhouse.com;
Bernardinų Gatvė 5; from US$43).Narutis is a classy pad housed
in a red-brick townhouse that has
served as a hotel since the 16th
century. Breakfast and dinner are
served in a vaulted Gothic cellar,
and free apples given out at
reception (narutis.com; Pilies
Gatvė 24; from US$98).
Rooms are named after great
cultural figures at Shakespeare,
a high-end boutique hotel inside
a former printing house. Tastefully
eclectic décor and switched-on
staff give it true distinction
(shakespeare.lt; Bernardinų
Gatvė 8; from US$117).