A Digital Nomad Guide to Vilnius

Lithuania Visa for Vilnius

Visa requirements can change at any time. Before making travel plans, check with the nearest Lithuanian embassy or consulate.

Citizens with passports from the following countries can freely enter Lithuania: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Holland, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland.

Passport citizens of the following countries can travel to Lithuania, and can stay in the Schengen area for a maximum of 90 days in any 180-day period: Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Brazil, Brunei , Canada, Chile, Vatican City, South Korea, Costa Rica, Croatia, El Salvador, United Arab Emirates, United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Macao, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco , Montenegro, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Panama, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Uruguay, Venezuela.

Visitors with passports from other countries, or travelers who wish to stay for longer periods or work in Lithuania, should go to the embassy or consulate of Lithuania in the country in which they are located to obtain an appropriate visa.

Culture and Food in Vilnius

The food is one of the things I love about Vilnius. This is a city where it’s possible to eat traditional Lithuanian cuisine that dates back centuries as well as modern dishes created with blow torches and tweezers. Some Vilnius restaurants honor the city’s past Jewish and Soviet cultures while others blaze forward by serving vegetarian, middle eastern and even Indian food.

National cuisine of Lithuania consists of meat and potatoes in all possible and impossible variations. For starters, try potato pancakes or Zemaiciu pancakes. Wash it over with local beer or non-alcoholic fermented bread drink called gira. And of course, taste some coffee. It’s not a local drink, but somehow Lithuania has achieved a close-to-perfect art of it. 

If you are looking for traditional Lithuanian food in Vilnius, go to Etno Dvaras (Pilies g. 16). It is one of the best and cheapest restaurants in the city. It is not the greatest for vegetarians and vegans, however. Their traditional dishes are the first dishes to have been certified by the Lithuanian Culinary Heritage Fund. Meat, herring, and potatoes seem to be the favorite ingredients here and they offer different regional specialties. 

Bistro 18 (Stiklių g. 18) is one of the nicer, more upmarket restaurants in Vilnius without being too exclusive or expensive. It’s a French-style bistro offering a more intimate dining option with several small dining rooms and a lovely interior.

Gaspar’s Restaurant (Pylimo g. 23-3) has made quite an impression among locals and expats. Nowadays, it is one of the top restaurants in Lithuania’s capital. Its menu includes halloumi salad, creamy polenta, duck, and much more. 

Chef Martynas Praškevičius serves a range of beautiful sharable dishes in at Džiaugsmas (Vilniaus g. 28), a bistro and natural wine bar. The menu changes on a daily basis based on items available at Tymo Market in Vilnius’ Old Town. Diners looking for a full experience can opt for the restaurant’s tasting menu priced at 60 EUR.

Grey (Pilies g. 2) has a sun-drenched room and eclectic menu with updated Lithuanian classics and colorful cocktails. Here you will find global dishes like nachos and kebabs, but also a local tastes section on the menu. If you want to try something new I recommend the cold pink soup served with potatoes, meat-filled zeppelin topped with sour cream and deep-fried potato pancakes layered with smoked salmon and curd cream.

Vilnius Nightlife

Vilnius never sleeps, so join the party. Once the sun goes down, the stage for nightlife is set. Be it a pub-crawl, dancing until dawn or just a chill night out on the town, Vilnius is a city buzzing with people, chatter and fun.

If you are looking for a bar, go for a walk to Vilniaus street. Here you will find Gringo Pub (Vilniaus str.31) with an informal atmosphere reminiscent of an English pub. If you like watching live sports, this is your place. 

Alchemikas (Islandijos 1) has some of the best cocktails in town. The bartenders are professional mixologists ready to delight you with exotic flavor combinations. 

King and Mouse (Trakų 2) is a whiskey bar. You can take part in a tasting event or just ask the bartender for something new. The bar also has its own whiskey that you can’t get anywhere else. 

Alaus Biblioteka (Trakų g. 4), with a name that means “Beer Library”, you can expect book shelves and beer shelves. There are a dozen beers on tap and about 300 bottles from all over the world. 

SkyBar (Konstitucijos 20), at the Radisson Blu hotel, offers great cocktails and the best views of any bar in Vilnius on the 22nd floor. 

If you want to dance, check Loftas (Švitrigailos 29). Loftas opens up the season with the only urban music festival in the Baltics in September with some of the freshest electronic and indie sounds. It is situated in an old factory but still has a modern club vibe. 

In Opium Club (Islandijos 4) you can dance house and techno music. It attracts different contemporary performers from all over the world each week, so have a look at the line-up. 

Bardakas (Vilniaus 22) they have a great selection of food for brunch as they run until afternoon. Here the crowd is welcoming and the cocktails are on point. 

With three halls, two bars of sheer class, and some excellent DJs, Pabo Latino (Trakų g. 3) is another option. On some nights there are lessons on how to dance Latino-style, but late on weekend nights the music is as electro as it is Latino.

Salento Night Club, in the Old Town, brings an Italian and Spanish disco-bar feel to Vilnius. Tuesday is Erasmus night, the biggest student party in town, Thursday is for indie rock, and expect cool DJs at weekends.

Club Tamsta is where the best live music concert happens. The music changes every night, and if you are looking for something that is diverse and can meet your expectations, then this is the place. There are live bands from different parts of the world playing at the club every day.

There is dozen of options to expend your night in Vilnius, enjoy the night!

Things to do in Vilnius

Vilnius is a relatively small city and touring its historic center can take just one afternoon, but getting to know all its important monuments while enjoying the process takes at least three days. They say that it is one of the most beautiful cities in the Baltic. The network of small streets and alleys in the historic center of the capital of Lithuania forms the largest baroque old town in Eastern Europe, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. To walk through the center of Vilnius is to take a trip to the old Italian cities where the baroque was born. Theater, ballet and music are also fundamental pillars of the cultural scene of the Lithuanian city.

A good place to start touring Vilnius is the Cathedral Square, which serves as the nerve center of the city and where the Cathedral of Saint Stanislaus and Saint Vladislav is located, guarded by the Bell Tower that form the most photographed picture of Vilnius. Behind the cathedral is the beautiful Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania and the statue of Grand Duke Gediminas, who is considered the founder of Vilnius and Trakai.

From here you can go up to the Castle and the Tower of Gediminas through the Serikiskiu park. From the top of the hill you can admire a large part of the old town of Vilnius protected by a lush forest. On the other side, you will see the so-called new Vilnius which is a modern neighborhood full of skyscrapers and contemporary buildings. You can go down the hill via the funicular that will drop you off at the National Museum of Lithuania. The building is guarded by the monument to Mindaugas, the first Grand Duke of Lithuania, the work of the Lithuanian sculptor Regimantas Midvikis.

Having returned to the same starting point, you can now head to Vilnius University, a wonderful architectural complex in which the Baroque style predominates. It was created by the Jesuits in 1579 and is the oldest university in eastern Europe. It is made up of a set of buildings concentrated around various courtyards, all white, among which the church of San Juan Bautista stands out.

Very close to the University is the Presidential Palace, a classic building that was the official residence of the city’s bishops and, under the Soviet Empire, the home of the Governor General of Lithuania. Tsar Alexander I, the French King Louis XVIII and the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who always declared himself a great lover of Vilnius, passed through this beautiful place.

The historic center of Vilnius is divided into two streets. On the one hand, there is Pilies street that from the Plaza de la Catedral runs from north to south through the old part of the city until it reaches the beautiful Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Pilies Street is the most touristy in the city. There you will find many restaurants, bars and gift shops. The extension of Pilies street ends at the Puerta del Amanecer, the only gate of the city wall that remains, where you can see the painting of a virgin to whom believers attribute miracles.

The other street is Gedimino Prospektas that also starts from the Cathedral Square to Neris river. There are the most expensive shops in the city and some of its most prominent administrative buildings such as the Lithuanian Parliament and the Post Office building. Nearby you can find the Genocide Museum, also called the KGB Museum, because the former and feared Soviet organization had its headquarters here.

Vilnius also has a large number of churches to visit all located in its historic center. Among those that you will see, there are two that stand out the most. The first is the Gothic church of Santa Ana which was built with more than 33 different types of bricks. The church served as a refuge for French troops. Nearby are the churches of San Francisco and San Bernardino. However, the second one that you cannot miss is the Church of San Pedro y San Pablo, the most beautiful in the city. It is a baroque apotheosis from the 17th century in which more than 2.000 figures are found inside.

Finally, the Republic of Uzupis is a neighborhood of the city where artists and bohemians reside who have adapted it to their liking. They say it’s a mix between Parisian Montmartre and Copenhagen’s Christiania neighborhood. This neighborhood declared itself independent as The Republic of Uzupis on April 1, 1997. They have their own Constitution, president, currency, flag, an army made up of 20 people, seven bridges and two churches. The sovereignty of this Republic is not recognized by any government and it is not clear if it is intended to be serious or humorous. However, the neighborhood is declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Some of the great times to visit Uzupis can be 1st of April (the independence day of Uzupis) and St Patrick’s Day, when the river of Vilnele is dyed green.

Best Time to Visit Vilnius

Average temperatures in Vilnius vary drastically. Considering humidity, temperatures feel cold for about half of the year and otherwise nice with a chance of rain or snow throughout most of the year. 

The hottest months are July, August, and then June. The warmest time of year is generally late July where highs are regularly around 25,3 °C with temperatures rarely dropping below 14,1 °C at night.

The months with the lowest chance of significant precipitation in Vilnius are April, March, and then September. By contrast, it’s most likely to rain or snow in mid-June.

Weather stations report large amounts of snow likely to be deepest around April, especially close to early April. The best time to ski is often around mid-December when fresh powder is deepest. 

Vilnius has some extremely humid months. The least humid month is April (57.1%), and the most humid month is November (89.8%).

Spring goes from March to May. During these months humidity and temperatures combine to make this season feel moderately cold. Highs range from 20,8°C and 2°C with far warmer temperatures in the later months. Spring is also the slowest for tourism.

Summer goes from June to August and it has comfortably cool weather with high temperatures. This is when you have fewer chances of rain and more sunshine. It is the busiest season for tourism in Vilnius, so lodging and other accommodations may cost more than usual. 

Fall goes from September to November. The temperature ranges from 19 °C to 1,6 °C, which will feel chilly given the humidity and wind. It rains or snows a significant amount. 

Winter (December through February) is far too cold. The average high during this season is between 2 °C and -3,9°C. These times of year are the second busiest with tourists.

Vilnius for Families

If you have small children, there are lots of kindergarten options on offer, and instruction is available in a number of languages.

The majority of pre-school educational institutions in Vilnius are municipally funded. Pre-school (nursery and kindergarten) education in public and municipality kindergartens receives partial public funding amounting to 4 hours per day or 20 hours per week. To register a child in a pre-school institution, you should first fill out an application. You can usually fill out an application online or submit your application in person to the kindergarten.

Private kindergartens will accept admissions all year round, so you’ll not need to wait to enroll for the new semester in September. Every kindergarten has its own rules regarding how long it is open each day. To qualify, you need to provide a declaration of residence proving that at least one parent is a resident of the municipality. The municipality provides a € 100/month per child subsidy for families that choose to send their child to a private kindergarten. Prices range from € 170 – € 1600/month.

Education is compulsory in Lithuania for children from 7 to 16 years of age. Municipal schools are free of charge, while the price of private schools may vary. School enrollment is a straightforward process but you need to be aware of the steps involved, which may vary from school to school.

You can also find international schools in several languages.

Living in Vilnius

Vilnius Transportation

Vilnius prides itself on being compact and easily navigable, so shorter distances can be covered on foot fairly quickly.

The last two years have seen a huge jump in people using electric scooters to get to work. And these days you don’t even need to have your own, as you’ll find that Citybee and Bolt both offer electric scooter sharing options on their apps.

If public transport is your thing, the city offers a fully integrated bus and trolley bus network. There is available E-Ticket (Electronic ticket, “Vilniečio kortelė”). Vilniečio kortelė is credited with an appropriate amount of money and/or the selected public transport tickets. With a valid ticket in the card, properly activated on board of public vehicle, if necessary, it is possible to change the public transport for free and for unlimited number of journeys. A 30 minutes ticket 0,65 EUR and a 60 minutes ticket 0,90 EUR. You can also buy a one (5 EUR), three (8 EUR) or ten days ticket (15 EUR). There is always an option to buy ticket from the driver of public vehicle that costs 1 EUR. This ticket is valid till the last stop of the route.

One of the first things you need to do when you get to Vilnius is to install the Trafi app on your phone. This all in one app will give you live traffic and public transport updates and info, helping you choose the fastest way to your destination every time. From public transport, car (integrated platforms like “City Bee” and “Spark”) and bike sharing, to taxis, Trafi covers everything, and you can even use it to buy tickets for public transport.

For those that prefer the convenience of a cab, Vilnius has a lot of dependable and reasonably priced taxi options available. From the global giant Uber to more local providers Bolt and E-taxi, you’ll find there’s a number of apps available that you can use to hail a cab 24/7. 

And if driving is your thing but you are not so keen on buying a car, you’ll find Citybee and Spark apps, two awesome car sharing apps. Citybee and Spark are car sharing apps designed to give you maximum convenience with minimum impact on the environment. All you need to do is download the app, and it’ll tell you where to go to pick up your car, then you just drive and leave it at your destination. Citybee has a lot of cool car models to choose from. Spark meanwhile, offers only electric sustainable cars.

Fitness and Health

Vilnius has a high amount of indoor gyms to work out your body. 

Lemon Gym Europa is located in a shopping mall near the city center. It is one of the most popular places to work out in the city, as it offers a lot of equipment for all goals and interests. The stretching zone offers convenient equipment for warmup and cooldown. The zone with power trainers offers heavy barbells, weights and racks, and you can also find more weights as well as resistance machines in the free weight zone. The cardio zone offers elliptical trainers, rowers and bikes, while the large functional area has tons of open space, a turf, TRX, kettlebells and power ropes.

Other gyms to consider are: Lemon Gym right next to the Opera House, Lemon Gym Antakalnis, Gym Plius, and Viva Gym, among others.

Vilnius People

Lithuanians are fond of nature and have a strong feeling of a shared culture that begins as early as primary school, where folk music, national traditions, and holidays play an important role. Among those who remember life under the Soviet regime, pride in surviving a period of repression and difficulty is a focal point of the national culture.

The official language is Lithuanian, one of two remaining languages in the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages. Lithuanian is spoken by nearly everyone in the country except for a few Russians and Poles in Vilnius and in the extreme east and south. It is a language with many words to describe a single idea. There is an abundance of nature words, probably because the people are so fond of the outdoors. 

Lithuania is mainly Roman Catholic (90 percent), with some Lutherans and a few members of other churches. The Jewish population, was almost completely erased between 1941 and 1944.

Families usually have close ties with parents and immediate relatives, and much of everyday life focuses on this relationship. Lithuanians often use the term “acquaintance” and grant the title of “friend” only to someone who is very close and like a member of the family.

They are a reserved people with respect for tradition. They generally will not go out of their way to greet someone they do not know; people on public conveyances do not look directly at someone else unless they are friends and generally give up their seats to their elders.

People often bring a small gift of candy or flowers when they visit someone. Hosts are generous and do anything they can to make a guest comfortable.

Men always shake the hands of male friends when they meet in a café or on the street but never inside a door. This is one of many superstitions, which include not whistling indoors for fear of calling little devils and not sitting at the corner of a table if one wishes to marry soon.

Hugging is not common here and accepted only between very, very close friends – even that not always. Kissing on good-byes is absolutely not happening and may freak people out, with exception of people related to you.

Lithuanians are not aggressive and most of the times not rude at all, they just natural or indifferent to you if they don’t know you. If you happen to meet them more personally, Lithuanians change. They start joking, smiling to you and may even tell them stories of their life. There is when you will start feeling they are amazing people.

Vilnius Insurance and Medical Care

Lithuania has an excellent modern state healthcare system. All employers must register employees to the scheme, and their family members will then automatically be covered. Disadvantaged groups, such as the elderly and the long-term sick, do not have to contribute but are still covered. Healthcare, including emergency treatment, is free at the point of delivery, with the standard system of GP referrals for non-urgent cases. European citizens carrying the EHIC card can get free access to healthcare in Lithuania on production of their card and their passport.

The general standard of healthcare facilities in Lithuania is improving as the government prioritizes funding for health. Naturally, the private healthcare facilities, especially those aimed at the medical tourist market, are even better.

Doctors train for six years and have to undertake at least one year’s internship before they are fully qualified and can specialize. Many medical staff, especially doctors, have trained overseas in the US or Western Europe.

Private healthcare is rare for Lithuanians, with few locals able to afford the cost; however, private clinics for medical tourists are a growing industry in the country. These clinics have to be of the very highest standard to compete with multi-lingual staff. 

Cosmetic surgery is the most popular treatment for visitors to Lithuania, with many also making the trip for low cost dental work (around 80% of Lithuanian dentists are in private practice).

Make sure you are fully covered by reading our full Digital Nomad Travel Insurance guide.

Jobs in Vilnius

Lithuania is a relatively new country that got independent from the Soviet Union in the 90’s. After, Lithuania change its economy, in 2004 became a member of the European Union and adopt the Euro single currency.

Most opportunities for foreigners are in the IT and telecommunications sector. Many western companies have offices in Lithuania, since labor costs and taxes are well below Western European standards. 

Getting a job for a non-EU foreigner is fairly easier in Lithuania than in Europe, when it comes to skilled jobs. Many jobs will not require any knowledge of the Lithuanian language. If you are an EU citizen you don’t need a work permit to start a new job in Lithuania. If you are a Non-EU Citizens, you will need a residence permit for work, which is most often arranged by your employer. Its relatively easy to get a job as a non-EU foreigner if you have language or IT skills. 

The best sites to start looking for a job are: cvonline.lt with many offers in English available, en.cvbankas.lt, European Job Mobility Portal, CV.LT (one of the Lithuanian job portals with the highest number of offers), cvmarket.it, LinkedIn, jobs.workinlithuania.lt and startupcv.lt.

Check out our Digital Nomads Jobs Postings to find the best jobs available for Digital Nomads.