Exploring The 'New' Europe — Lithuania's Golden Triangle

Forbes

22-04-2025

The lakes and countryside of Trakai Historical National Park.
Tired of the old Europe? Why not try something totally new — like the 'Golden Triangle' of southern Lithuania — a region that includes the nation's two largest cities, mega-popular spa town, and stunning national park.
Whether you're in a tour group or exploring on your own with a rental car, the triangular route between the three destinations is around 150 miles (250 km) or roughly three and a half hours total driving time.
Lithuania's Golden Triangle offers something for just about anyone who digs European summer vacations: Historic buildings and churches, art and architecture, outdoor adventures, great bars and even Michelin-star restaurants.
For those who want to drive themselves, weeklong rentals at Vilnius Airport range from $160 for a Volkswagen Polo or other economy car and $190 for a Toyota Yarus compact SUV to around $500 for a BMW 5 Series or Audi Q5 luxury SUV.
The roads are superb, especially the multi-lane A1 motorway between Vilnius and Kaunas. And unleaded gas is currently running at just over $6 per gallon (Euro 1.45 per liter).
Here are some of the top things that everyone should do along the way:
Panoramic view of old and new Vilnius from the castle ramparts at the top of Gediminas' Hill.
With half a dozen major universities, tens of thousands of college students and a reputation for scholarship and erudite thinking that stretches back nearly 500 years, Vilnius is sometimes called the Athens of the North.
You're probably passing the baroque and renaissance buildings of Vilnius University in the old town on your way to the city's must-see places and activities.
Start by summiting Gediminas' Hill, where the castle walls and watch tower provide a bird's eye view of the sprawling city, the River Neris dividing the red-roofed old town from ultra-modern buildings on the north bank. You can hike the hill for free or ride the funicular for a small fee.
Hang out in the funky Užupis neighborhood, which tongue-in-cheekly declared itself an independent republic in 1997. Renowned for its oddball outdoor artworks, cool cafes and bohemian lifestyle, the district features a faux border patrol post that's actually a souvenir shop.
Browse the MO Museum of modern art, opened in 2018 inside a stunning contemporary structure that revolves around a swirling spiral staircase. In addition to its permanent collection, the museum is known for its edgy exhibitions, like a recent one that examined sexuality in Lithuania during Soviet days.
Take a time trip back to the USSR on a guided tour of the notorious Lukiškės Prison, where the tsar's henchmen and later the KGB incarcerated and tortured dissents and other political prisoners. Afterward catch live music or sip craft beer at the outdoor bar that now graces the main prison yard.
Stimulate your taste buds at the newly crowned Michelin star restaurants in the old town. At Nineteen18 (named after the year that Lithuania gained its independence from tsarist Russia), the 10-dish set menu comes with colorful explanations from owner/chef Andrius Kubilius about how he created the signature dishes.
MO Museum of modern art in Vilnius.
As the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania — one of Europe's largest and most powerful nations during the Late Middle Ages and early Renaissance — Kaunas is suffused with history.
With its stout bastions and menacing defense towers, Kaunas Castle is the epitome of a medieval citadel. During the warmer months, the castle amphitheater presents open-air plays, concerts, festivals, and other special events.
Stroll the Laisves Aleja and Vilniaus gatvė, two tree-lined avenues through the city center transformed into popular pedestrian-only zones. Flanked by numerous restaurants and cafes, the thoroughfares stretch between the domed 19th-century Church of St. Michael the Archangel and the elegant 16th-century Kaunas Town Hall. It's worth ducking down a side street to view the elaborate Gothic façade on the House of Perkūnas.
Kaunus boasts its own panoramic lookout point — the observation deck at the top of Aleksotas Hill on the Nemunas River from the old town. Once again, there's a choice of walking or riding the ancient funicular to the summit.
Perhaps more so than the capital, Kaunas was a fulcrum of modern art. Housed inside a classic Art Deco building, the M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum displays the work of its namesake abstract master as well as other modern painters, sculptors, musicians, photographers and folk artists. The Devil's Museum, a satellite of the main collection, has amassed more than 3,000 depictions of demons, evil spirits and incubus from around the world.
Lithuania's thriving spa scene ranges from ultra-modern to vintage Soviet-era sanitariums.
The second side of the Golden Triangle is an hour-long drive to Birštonas, an old spa town tucked into the Baltic woods. Among the half dozen wellness resorts is the upscale Vytautas Mineral Spa, which offers modern Scandinavian-style rooms and a barrage of health and beauty treatments from massages, facials to water aerobics and traditional peat mud wraps.
Once the private hunting estate of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania, the Birštonas Forest offers numerous hiking trails, including one that leads to the Birštonas Observation Tower. Those who conquer the 300 steps to the summit are rewarded with a bird's-eye-view of the Nemunas River as it snakes through heavily wooded Nemunas Loops Regional Park.
The third and final side of the triangle is a cruise along the A16 Highway through bucolic countryside to Vilnius. Yet there's the possibility of a final stop along the way — Trakai Historical National Park — which revolves around a majestic 14th-century island castle.
A long, wooden bridge takes visitors from the mainland to the castle, but you can also view the bastions on scenic boat trips that depart from Trakai village. The picturesque peninsular town is also home to one of Lithuania's most intriguing eating experiences, the cuisine of the ethnic minority Karaim people served at Restaurant Kybynlar.
If you're spending the night at one of Trakai's many boutique hotels or guest houses, be sure to rise early the next morning for a hot-air balloon flight over the lakes, woods and castle before the half-hour drive back to Vilnius.
Traditional meat pie at Restaurant Kybynlar in Trakai village.