Lithuania

Lithuania is a country located in Eastern Europe. The capital city is Vilnius. Lithuania has an estimated population of 3,369,600.

Other major cities are Kaunas, Klaipeda, Siauliai and Panevezys. Famous resort cities are Palanga, Nida as well as Druskininkai. Ignalina is Lithuanian skiing resort in the winter.

In 2004 Lithuania joined the European Union. Since 2008 Lithuania belongs to the Schengen area, so there are no borders and no passport controls with neighbouring EU countries (Latvia and Poland) and coming in from a EU-airport into the airports of Vilnius, Kaunas and Palanga. Passport controls and customs remain at the border to the other two neighbouring countries – Belarus and Russia (Kaliningrad district). Besides this Lithuania has a 93km coastline of the Baltic sea in the West.

Like in the other Baltic countries, there is a large and friendly hospitality exchange community. Couchsurfing is steadily growing and currently has around 1.000 members. Of these there are about 700 in Vilnius, 170 in Kaunas, 40 in Klaipeda and some more in various other places.

Regions

Regional differences of Lithuanian culture reflect complicated historical development of our country. Since the 13th century five ethnographic areas, or regions, have historically formed in the current territory of Lithuania:

Aukštaitija - literally Highlands, northeastern and eastern region

Žemaitija - Samogitia, literally Lowlands, north-western region

Dzūkija or Dainava - south-eastern region

Sūduva or Suvalkija - southern and south-western region

Lithuania Minor - sea-coast region

These ethnographic regions even today differ by dialects, ways of life and behaviour styles, while until the turn of the last century there were pronounced differences in dress and homestead styles as well as village planning.

Lithuania is justly proud of its unfailing treasures of folklore: colourful clothing, meandering songs, an abundance of tales and stories, sonorous dialects and voluble language. This ethnographic heritage is nourished by ethnographic and folklore companies and barn theatres. Recent years have witnessed the revival of ethnographic crafts and culinary traditions. Folk craft fairs and live craft days are organized during many events and festivals.

Cities

• Vilnius is the capitol of Lithuania and has various tourist sights. Also known for it's many Baroque churches.
• Kaunas is one of the old capitals and is the point where the Neris joins the Nemunas river.
• Klaipeda is the biggest coastal city and port in Lithuania and is the gate to the famous Curonian Spit.
• Siauliai is the city near the Hill of Crosses and famous for its basketball team.
• Panevezys is the fifth largest city in Lithuania and hosts a cathedral and a narrow goauge train station, which does not run frequently anymore.
• Trakai is the ancient capital of Lithuania and in the middle of 5 lakes - A must see!
• Kedainiai was the center of the Reformation in Lithuania.

The tower of the University of Vilnius

Transportation

Buses

Cheap and convenient bus routes from, to, and within Lithuania are operated by many carriers, among them:

• Eurolines Lietuva / Baltics
• Toks
• Kautra

Trains

The railway system is not as well developed as bus system, though there are some popular train routes. The railway company is Lietuvos geležinkeliai (Lithuanian Railways). Information about routes can be found on its website, but the English version might not work properly all the time. In order to find out timetables for national and international trains in English search Bahn.de website.

Air transportation

There are three main airports in Lithuania with various connections to Europe and the former Soviet Union and beyond.

• Vilnius International Airport
• Kaunas Airport
• Palanga Airport

Many visitors also use the Riga International Airport and take a bus to Vilnius or Kaunas from there. This might be sometimes a cheaper alternative.

The map shows distances from Vilnius to various European cities in kilometer

Distances

Main distances between main cities are:

Vilnius-Kaunas 100km

Vilnius-Klaipeda 308km

Vilnius-Panevezys 139km

Kaunas-Klaipeda 208km

Klaipeda-Siauliai 157km

Siauliai-Panevezys 78km

Other basic information

Image:EU visa lists.png

Travel Information for foreigners

Lithuania is part of the Schengen treaty and therefore at the border to European Union countries will be no border control as well as on flights coming in from these directions.

Language

Lithuanian is the only official language and spoken by 83,6% as a mother tongue. However many young people speak English especially in the age group below 30 years. In the capital Vilnius, in Klaipeda and Kaunas are mayn ethnic Russians minorities, so Russian remains a language that you cna hear on the street. Most Lithuanians also understand Russian as Lithuania was part of the Soviet Union. Especially in Vilnius you will be able to find many ethnic Poles and hear them talk Polish. Among Couchsurfers there are currently 894 Lithuanian speakers (90.4%), 809 English speakers (81.8%), 618 Russian speakers (62.5%), 287 German speakers (29%), 193 French speakers (19.4%) and 171 Spanish speakers (17.3%). When ordering in restaurants you should prefer English to Russian in general, as the Lithuanians are patriotic and do have a negative feeling towards Russian and it will be usually recognized as more polite.

Currency

The only official currency is Litas (LTL). 1 Lita is approximately 30 Eurocents, 1 Euro is 3.45 Litas, 1 US-Dollar is 2.35 Litas. Most shops, stores, cafes, bars, bus or train ticket offices, taxis and so on only accept Litas. But you can find various currency exchanges at the bus and train station as well as the airport. But it is usually better to change at banks, as they do not charge a lot for the change. ATMs are almost everywhere and some even give out Euros or US-Dollars if you need them. Traveller cheques are not very well-accepted and usually have to be traded in at banks. Lithuania aims to join the Euro-zone in a few years.

Climate

Lithuania has a 4 season climate.

Winter is mainly from January to February. Usually the land is covered with snow during these months but right now the winters are very mild and do not get below 15 degrees Celsius. Spring is from March to May, though in May usually the summer starts. The summer months are from June to August. It can be very warm, up to 35 degrees during the hot weeks. Autumn is from September to November and it can be pretty rainy in October and sometimes there is already snow in November. The best time to visit Lithuania, as Lithuanians will advice you, is summertime. The high season starts in May and ends in September. However it is also especially nice in spring, mainly in April and in early autumn in October as there might be fewer tourists crowding the streets and nature.

Demographics

There are 3,4 million inhabitants in Lithuania. By ethnicity over 83% are Lithuanians, 6% Polish, 5% Russians. There also Belorussians, Jews and Tartars. The international community mainly in Vilnius is growing due to teh prosperign Lithuanian economy.

Religion

The majority of citizens are Christians Roman Catholics (79%). Around 5% are Russian Orthodox. You can find many Orthodox churches throughout the whole city. Furtehrmore around 2% are Protestants. 10% claim to be non-religious. Besides this you can find very small communities of Jews and Muslims. Muslims in Lithuania mainly belong to the Ethnic group of the Tartars that has settled in Lithuania already in medieval times.

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