Things to do in Klaipėda County

Explore the Curonian Spit National Park in Lithuania's Klaipeda. Cycle along the seaside cycle route, making stops at the Hill of Witches in Juodkrantė, a secluded beach, the amber gallery in Nida, and more. Choose to do the tour in a group with other travelers, or alone as a private tour. Begin by meeting your guide at the bike rental shop and pick up your bike. Grab a free bottle of water and get going. Hop on a ferry to Smiltynė and join the seaside cycle route’s asphalt bike path, which goes along the Curonian Spit to Nida. Enjoy views of the Baltic Sea and the Curonian Lagoon. Take a break on a golden beach and go for a swim in the sea. See if you can find any amber washed ashore. Hop back on your bike and head to Juodkrantė, where you can buy lunch (not included in the price). Visit the Hill of Witches, which houses a hundred wooden sculptures of Lithuanian legends. Pass by 2 small settlements, a wooden footpath to the “dead” dunes and the highest dune of the Curonian Spit. Arrive in Nida, a former fishermen’s village. Visit Mizgiris Amber Gallery (free entrance) and Museum (entry tickets not included), go for a walk on the dune or relax with a Lithuanian beer. In the evening, hop on a boat and sail back from Nida to Klaipeda, with a short stopover in Juodkrantė. Enjoy a beautiful sunset over the impressive sand dunes on the way.

A unique combination of wind, water and sand has been shaping this narrow strip of land since the beginning of time. Today it is known as the Curonian Spit and it is a UNESCO world heritage site. There is plenty to see here: the migrating dunes, the wildlife, the old fishermen villages and,  last but not the least, the Pervalka Lighthouse. The combination of the spectacular nature, cultural and historical heritage and a truly unforgettable cedar canoe paddling experience makes this tour one of a kind. You will begin with a picturesque ferry transfer to the Curonian Spit. You will travel from Klaipeda to the village of Pervalka, passing Juodkrante with its peaceful embankments. After a short briefing, you will proceed to Pervalka Lighthouse. You will paddle along the shore, enjoying picturesque views of the dunes, the Curonian Lagoon and of course, the main landmark of this trip, the Pervalka Lighthouse. After a short photo opportunity at the lighthouse (no need to risk your own equipment, your guide will take pictures with his camera and a drone) you will paddle towards the dunes. Here you will sit back, have a glass of wine, a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy the view. On your way back you will make two stops, first, at the famous heron and cormorant colony, one of the largest colonies of these birds in Europe, second, in Juodkrante village (formerly known as Schwarzort).

During this day tour you will be able to explore the most interesting sites located in the surrounds of Vilnius. After pick-up from your hotel, the tour will start at Paneriai memorial park, where thousands of Jews from Wilna were killed. The Paneriai or Ponary massacre was a mass murder of up to 100,000 people by German SD, SS and Lithuanian Nazi collaborators, during World War II. The murders took place between July 1941 and August 1944 near the railway station of Ponary, now known as Paneriai, a suburb of what is today Vilnius, Lithuania. After the tour in the park, the group will head to the second capital of Lithuania, where today you can see the most beautiful castle in Europe, Trakai Castle, located on an island in the lake. Here you can have the lunch in a traditional Karaim restaurant, or take a boat trip around the lake. After Trakai, the group will head to one of the largest ethnographic open-air museums in Europe that stretches across an area of 195ha. The museum was established on the picturesque shores of Kaunas Lagoon in Rumšiškės in 1966. The exhibitions at the museum are intended to introduce the ethnographic regions of Lithuania, i.e. Dzūkija (Dainava), Aukštaitija (Highlands), Suvalkija (Sudovia), Žemaitija (Samogitia) and Lithuania Minor, as they looked at the end of the 18th century and the first half of the 20th century. After this visit the tour will head back to your accomodation in Vilnius.

You will be collected from the meeting point in the Old Town of Klaipeda. A quick transfer to the upper reaches of Dane River and you will be ready to paddle. You will begin with a briefing, introduction to canoe paddling and you'll practice some basic canoe strokes. Led by a guide you will paddle towards the Old Town of Klaipeda, exploring the old embankments, mid-century Memel fortifications and finally the Old Town with its Prussian architecture. This is a short, guided tour, so you'll be informed about a lot of interesting facts about the history of this almost 800-year-old town, and of course, you will have the opportunity to take some pictures of you paddling this stylish cedar strip canoe.

Discover the beauty of the largest and deepest Zemaitija lake, famous for its natural, cultural and scenic value. You will be guided through these crystal clear waters, so that you can truly enjoy something what is called the "Wet Wet Experience" - a combination of leisure paddling and a gourmet picnic. You will be taken on a well-known path of the Plateliai archipelago but in a unique, entertaining and memorable way.  Begin your adventure at a quiet and safe lagoon, where paddlers will master their basic canoeing skills with the help of an instructor. You will learn basic strokes, how to handle a canoe and of course safety rules. After, you will paddle to the center of the lake through the picturesque archipelago, where the guide can take some photos of you paddling and of course a couple of them will taken from air with the help of a drone. You'll then navigate to the Castle Island. A castle that used to belong to Lithuanian Dukes stood there in 15th century. After exploring this site, you'll head to another deserted island to have this all favorite picnic basket lunch. Simply sit back, have a glass of wine, coffee or tea and enjoy the view. Once you're finished, head back enjoying the peaceful and mind-blowing sunset.

Start with an early morning pick-up from your centrally located Vilnius hotel and drive to the Lithuanian seaside for 4-hours. There, you will experience the haunting atmosphere in the cormorants colony, have a look at the characters of the famous Lithuanian sagas and fairy tales on the mysterious Hill of Witches and walk on beautiful moving sand dunes, probably the largest in Europe. You will also have time to explore the cultural center of Curonian Spit - Nida village. See sand dunes with rare flora, littoral forest with centuries old trees and hand planted hill pines, white sand beaches, as well as urban infrastructure, streets, embankments, the Old Town with the architecture typical of this region and the scent of freshly smoked fish will make an indelible impression on you. In the evening, drive back to Vilnius.

Palanga is a city where the days and the nights are busy full of tourists, many concerts and other entertainments. Palanga deserves its status as “the capital of summer entertainment” as one of the country's leading resorts. However, Palanga is not only interesting in the summer. Hotels and spas are open all year round with organized traditional events. (February Smelt Festival - April St George's Day - May resort festival and street music day - September "1000 tables" celebration) Explore one of the most beautiful seaside resorts starting from the Amber Museum*, which was founded in 1963. Formerly the Tiškeviciai Manor house, it contains more than 29,000 exhibited pieces. Amber Museum has one of Europe's largest collection of inclusions- the largest protected Ginara block and Solar Stone weighing 3.5kg~. Experts claim it is worth approximately 1.5 million litas. Botanical Park is one of the most beautiful and richest estate parks surrounding the Amber Museum and Birute’s forest area. This is one of the most visited places in Palanga, where vacationers stop to enjoy seasonal flowers and springing fountains. The park is also rich with sculptures. Birute’s hill is the highest dune on the beach in Palanga. J.Basanavicius street is almost 500 meters long and it ends at the shore of the Baltic Sea where you can see the Palanga Bridge. The street is as a symbol of Palanga, constantly cleaned, restored and highly treasured. There are many souvenir shops, cafes, bars, night clubs and recreational areas on Basanavicius street. At the end of this tour, visit and see the demonstration workshop of amber processing located in Amber craftsmen guild. There, you can see the amber processing technology from a simple piece of amber up to the full production of the product, which you will be able to try for yourself. You'll also be able to save on amber souvenirs.

This late evening visit will give you a great opportunity to admire the beauty of illuminated buildings and embankments in the quiet atmosphere of a Dane river! We shall explore embankments of the oldest city in Lithuania paddling a canoe lighten by a real torch. We will begin with a briefing, introduction to canoe paddling and will practice some basic canoe strokes. Led by a guide you will paddle towards the Old Town of Klaipeda, exploring the old embankments, mid-century Memel fortifications and finally the old town with its Prussian architecture.

The shallow waters of the Curonian Lagoon share the confluence of the Nemunas and the Minija Rivers, a shelter for millions of birds that migrate through these territories every season. On this trip, you will visit the hard to reach spots that are only accessible by canoe. Thus, paddlers will admire the beauty and grace of the resting birds and undoubtedly the most spectacular panorama of the Nemunas River delta. The adventure begins in the small fisherman's village Minge, located at the very end of the Minija River. You will start with a briefing, and an introduction to canoe paddling and you'll also practice some basic canoe strokes in the local marina. Then, you will paddle to the first stop for approximately forty minutes. After a short coffee break with snacks, you will be ready to enter the shallow waters of the Curonian Lagoon. The local feathered inhabitants will probably be aware of your arrival long before you will see them, so get ready to bog down into bulrush and water lilies. Depending on the season, you may see red-necked grebe, bittern, white-tailed eagle, Montagu’s Harrier, cormorants, swans and many more. There are 170 different species of birds here in total, and if you are lucky enough, you might see the most gracious of them all. You will also get some pictures taken from a drone. On our way back, depending on the tide and the weather, we will visit the Uostadvaris Lighthouse built in 1876 or/and the Cape Vente ornithological station with its modern exhibition and a great observation tower.

Discover the untouched beauty of the Curonian Spit in Lithuania from Vilnius. Appreciate the view as your drive toward Klaipeda, board a small ferry, and marvel at the nature of the Curonian Spit. Scale the dead dunes of the Hill of Witches in Juodkrante and admire the village of Nida. Enjoy hotel pickup in Vilnius in the morning, and begin your journey to the Curonian Spit. After a 3-hour drive, arrive at Klaipeda and board the 10-minutes ferry to the Curonian Spit. Find yourself in a completely different world, covered in pine trees and surrounded by the Baltic Sea and Curonian Lagoon. Take a deep breath in and admire the rareness of untouched scenery. Visit the Hill of Witches in Juodkrante, climb the dead dunes, and find yourself in Nida, a small resort village, littered with original Lithuanian fishing houses. Take the option to board a small boat and tour the Curonian Lagoon, or explore the Thomas Mann summerhouse. Return back to Vilnius in the late evening.