What you need to know when traveling in the Baltics. Tour travel through the Baltic states three countries

– two countries and five cities.

Day 1. Moscow – Riga – Jurmala

I decided to start my journey from, where I arrived by train (5 thousand rubles). I love traveling with this particular type of transport, I like to look out the window and watch cities, forests and fields flashing by one after another. I got into the compartment late in the evening, and the next morning I found myself in one of the most beautiful cities Baltic states.

I lived in a hostel for two nights in Riga Seaqulls Garret Hostel(60 EUR for two for two nights). I’ll say about the hostel that it was not the best choice - the beds creaked, there was shouting outside the door, and at night there was terrible snoring. Then I still had little experience + greed is my second nature. Now I'm trying to fight this quality for the sake of comfort.

In general, you won’t be able to relax in a hostel, unless, of course, you first stock up on earplugs. But the main thing is cheap and clean bed.

Having left my things, I decided to postpone the exploration of the city until tomorrow, and on the first day of my trip to go to the famous resort city, which hosts the “New Wave”, “Jurmalina” and other festivals. It's terribly interesting! We all think that Jurmala is the whole city, but no. This is one collective name for the entire coast, where such settlements as Dubulti, Bulduri, Lielupi and, God forgive me, Stirnurags are located. But I went to Majori.

How did I get to Jurmala? Jurmala is located just 20 kilometers from Riga. The easiest way is by train, which leaves every 15-20 minutes from central station towards Sloka or Tukums.

I spent the rest of the evening in Riga, in the restaurant with cows “1221”, which is located on “Blumenstraße” - Flower Street.

Day 2. Riga

Riga is the real one medieval Europe, is an ancient city on the cold Baltic coast. She is like a rich merchant's wife who guards her treasures. The city seems to have frozen and does not want to change anything. This trip was like traveling back in time for me.

I've been walking around all day narrow streets city, ate in best restaurants, traveled around sightseeing tours and followed the “must visit” plan that I wrote about.

Day 3. Trakai – Kaunas – Vilnius

Early in the morning I left Riga for a new country for me - Lithuania. I got there on a luxury bus, one might say a five-star bus with all the amenities. I was the only one who had an entire chair with lunch on it. Before my eyes hung a TV filled with films and music for every color and taste. And for all this I had to pay only about 1,200 rubles.

It’s only a three-hour drive to Lithuania, but this move was like a whole journey for me. Green fields, grazing cows and Lithuanian-Latvian villages flashed through the window. And it was so good! Look for bus tickets from Riga to Vilnius.

Upon arrival, I immediately checked into the hostel Jimmy Jumps House(30 EUR). A cozy, inexpensive youth hostel where you can make yourself a delicious breakfast with waffles in the morning.

Trakai is another reason to come to Lithuania for the weekend. This is a great idea for a trip, let's say, for the May holidays. When people talk about the Baltic country, the first thing that comes to mind is Trakai, a place that should be included in the “must see” list.

Trakai harmoniously combines an orange-colored castle; mirror surface of water; boats painted in the Lithuanian flag with fishermen sitting in them; whimsical courtyards with ladybugs, hand-painted glass bottles. This is all complemented by sunny weather, spring mood and red tulips that grow everywhere here.

This is a wonderful place, harmoniously combining a castle, mirror-like surface of water, boats painted with the Lithuanian flag and quaint courtyards with ladybugs, glass bottles, hand-painted with acrylic. This is all complemented by sunny weather, spring mood and red tulips that grow everywhere here.

Not far from Vilnius there is a wonderful town of Kaunas, not yet trampled and untouched by crowds of tourists, which is definitely worth a look if you are in Lithuania.

Returning to Vilnius, happy as an elephant, I quickly fell asleep. The next day promised to be fine and rich in pleasant impressions from walking around Vilnius.

Day 4. Vilnius

After exploring the city, it turned out that this is an amazing place to relax on May holidays. You’re even surprised how so many interesting things fit in such a very small town.

We went to the Prie Katedros brewery, where we tried local beer, climbed Castle Hill, walked around the Old Town, and looked at all the painted houses in Užupis.

We took the Vilnius-Moscow train back home (we paid 7 thousand per person for a compartment).

This Baltic route turned out to be complete and eventful; we tasted a lot and saw even more. For four days on the road, 38 thousand were spent for two, including travel, accommodation, food and a couple of souvenirs.

Don't let the rising exchange rate scare you. If you plan your trip well, the trip will cost you several times less. I was once again convinced of this during my last trip to the Baltic countries, and now I’m sharing my advice with you.

1. Buses between Riga, Vilnius and Tallinn for 3 euros
The capitals of the Baltic countries are connected by a bunch of bus routes with great service (toilet, heating, Wi-Fi and even free monitors).

The carrier SimpleExpress throws out 5 promotional tickets for each flight exactly six months before departure. Travel Vilnius-Tallinn, Vilnius-Riga, Riga-Tallinn and back for only 3 euros.
There are also regular promotions in the bus companies LuxExpress, Ecolines, and Eurolines.
Discounts can reach 70% and a ticket for international route costs around 5 euros.

2. Discounts on railways and buses.

In Lithuanian railways There is a -15% discount when purchasing a round trip ticket. Remind the cashier about this. In Latvia, train fares on weekdays are a quarter cheaper work time. It is better to travel between Estonian cities by SuperBus. A ticket costs 2 euros (cunning people indicate the price in Eureka, but there is no escape from paying for the reservation).

3. Don’t overpay for travel in cities.

The cost of public transport for our money is crazy. For example, in Riga, a ticket when purchased from the driver costs as much as 2 euros! However, the same ticket from the machine will cost you 1.15 euros. If you will use transport more than 4 times in 24 hours (from the date the ticket was punched), then it is more advisable to buy a pass for 5 euros.

In Tallinn and Vilnius, for multiple trips you should buy a special plastic card. They cost 2 and 1.5 euros respectively. In the capital of Estonia it can be returned (but only at the customer service center); Lithuanians do not return money.

4. Take free cards in tourist centers.

Every tourist information center offers a free paper map of a city, region or entire country. As a rule, they are located in the main squares of cities, train stations and airports. Don’t hesitate to ask tourist center employees about events taking place in the city, free museums and where to eat inexpensively but deliciously.

5. Business lunches, canteens and fast food.

On weekdays at lunchtime (usually from 11 to 15), many restaurants offer set lunches (or business lunches) at a significant discount. For example, in the center of Tallinn at the Karja Kelder restaurant, soup with minced meat (that’s how it was presented to us) and the main dish (pictured) cost us only 3.7 euros.
There are still Soviet canteens in Vilnius. Lithuanian they will be Valgykla.
If the goal is to satisfy your hunger, then in Riga fast foods you can buy a complex: a burger, fries and cola for 2.65 euros.

6. Where is the best place to refuel?

The cheapest gasoline among the three Baltic countries is in Estonia. A liter of 95 costs a little more than a euro. You will have to pay the most in Latvia. The difference in fuel prices between states is within 10 cents.

7. Without money for the museum and parliament.

There are a number interesting museums, where entry is absolutely free or the fee is purely symbolic. For example, these are money museums at banks in Estonia and Lithuania. It's not boring here - it's very modern and interactive. You can even print your own money or treat yourself to candy with the bank's symbols.

Also in the Baltic countries there is a great opportunity to visit local parliaments. You can sign up for an excursion to the Lithuanian Seimas or the Estonian Parliament in advance.

Tallinn's art museums have so-called "One-Europe Environments". Once a quarter, admission on Wednesdays is 1 euro. Check the museum's website before your trip!

Some museums offer free entry with a press ID. And it doesn’t matter whether it’s “Zhmerinsky Rabochiy” or “Forbes Ukraine”. For example, in the interesting Tallinn Maritime Museum. Employees of other museums (including ours) also have a similar benefit.

8. Shopping from catalogs in supermarkets.

The lowest supermarkets in Lithuania. We are absolutely crazy about their chocolate cheesecakes! Price from 0.2 euro cents. Citrus fruits - like ours. Before entering the supermarket, take with you a brochure with promotional prices. Sometimes the discount can reach 50%. Of course, anything cheaper is not worth taking, but this is how we bought ourselves delicious Riga sprats or a double Snickers with coffee at the IKI supermarket for 1 euro.

9. Book accommodation earlier.

We booked a hotel in Riga a couple of months in advance. In addition to the discount for early booking used a promotional code on the hotel website. Won more than 10 euros. My friend used Airbnb service. Had a private room in Tallinn for 9 euros.

It doesn’t matter whether you are an experienced traveler or this is your first time in Europe, you are quite capable of organizing a trip to Riga on your own. Without dwelling on the advantages of the city, which we have written about more than once, we will present five stages of planning a trip on your own.

Planning time for a trip to Riga

Riga is a very popular city among tourists; more than a million guests visit it every year, and the mayor’s office plans to increase this figure to 1.5 million tourists per year. And this is with a population of 700 thousand inhabitants, that is, there are 1.5 tourists per Riga resident.

But still, we hasten to reassure you, even during the peak periods, tourists disperse throughout Riga and Jurmala in such a way that for Muscovites the city may seem deserted.

The best period to visit Riga is from May to August, as well as during Christmas and New Year holidays. If you are planning a trip at this time, make sure to reserve your hotel and transport tickets 2-3 months in advance.

If you prefer a calm atmosphere, then we recommend coming in the second half of April, or from September to mid-October.

The tourist flow is subsiding, but the weather often gives warm sunny days. Plus, hotels at this time reduce prices for accommodation, so you can save up to 30-50% of the summer room rate. Below we will share the secret of how to book a hotel in Riga at the most profit.

Applying for an entry visa to Latvia

Latvia is a member of the Schengen zone, which means that if you have a Schengen visa in your passport, then you can skip this point - the road to Riga is open to you.

If you don’t have a visa, you will have to apply for one.

We described this process in sufficient detail on our website in the ““ section, here you can read about necessary documents, the procedure for filling out the questionnaire and.

Book a hotel in Riga

Yes, let's start with the hotel.

There are several reasons for this - you can get to Riga by various means of transport, the number of flights per day alone reaches five (Aeroflot, Transaero, Utair and Airbaltic). But there is also a train, a bus, a personal car, finally. There are also a lot of hotels in Riga (about 200), however, in high season occupancy reaches 100%. Finally, you can refuse a hotel reservation, but plane tickets are problematic.

With booking, everything is very simple; without further ado, you just need to go to one of the on-line hotel booking services.

The risk at this stage is minimal, because no one prohibits it later.

We are planning how we will get to Riga

We have already reviewed the most economical ways to travel, which you can read by following this link ().

In our understanding, the best solution is an airplane. At completely reasonable prices, you don’t waste a night on the train (with the obligatory rise at three in the morning for customs control), don’t waste your nerves crossing the border by car, and don’t sit on a bus for fifteen hours.

Getting ready and dreaming about the trip

The troubles are behind us, it's time to plan your trip. First, we look for guides to Riga on the Internet.

It doesn’t work, there are websites, but how can I download it to my phone? If you don’t want to buy books, then carry them with you around the city?

Well, it’s a completely reasonable desire, which we are meeting halfway - on our website you can download (and freely) four parts of the guide to Riga -

There are no copyright violations - the guide was prepared by the site and we give you all rights to use and distribute it! (just don’t change anything in the text) The fourth part is coming out soon - “Riga - the pearl of Art Nouveau”. We can promise that it will not be the last.

Finally, we have available advice on where and how to pay for parking... oh, it’s not good to praise yourself, so we’ll stop here and want to wish you a great unforgettable vacation in the very beautiful city Baltics!

Are you planning to go to Europe with your family or company, but ticket prices are skyrocketing? Don’t rush to get upset - consider auto tourism. It has many advantages.

Firstly, by car you can move along any trajectory and are not limited in time. Secondly, if there are at least two of you, the gasoline will come out much more cheaper tickets(Accordingly, the more of you there are, the more profitable!). And thirdly, you don't have to worry about overweight luggage.

And if you are still in doubt, read below real story about how we went to travel around the Baltics.

For the first time, we decided to start small and go for a few days to the Baltic states - Latvia and Estonia. Here it must be said that we only had cars with studded tires, and not all EU countries allow you to drive on such tires - check this point when planning your route.

To travel to Europe by car you will need...

1. Reliable car.

2. Green card for a car (like our MTPL) - costs about 2,500 rubles, can be issued in advance, at any insurance company in your city, or immediately before leaving the Russian Federation. As you approach the border, you will now and then come across points with corresponding signs, and cards are also issued at some border gas stations.

3. Schengen visa. Here a surprise awaited us. It turns out that now almost all embassies are switching to working with intermediaries. That is, you, of course, can do without them, but then you will have to make an appointment at the consulate to submit documents two or three weeks in advance and plus 10 days to obtain a visa, but you will save 25 euros on Pony Express services.

4. Navigator. We downloaded Sygic, which took us from house to house, that is, to the rented apartments. In addition to the main functions, it can be used in pedestrian mode - it will show nearby attractions and give brief information about them.

5. Good company. After all, you will have to spend a lot of time nose to nose: if in the city you can still scatter to different places, and on the plane sit at different ends, then in the car you will not be able to get away from each other. And it’s even better if this company has a second driver whom you trust - the road is much easier if you change the wheel every two to three hours.

By the way, about the road. There are several options for traveling to Europe: the choice depends on the specific route. Our first destination was Riga, so we chose the Novorizhskoe highway with the border crossing at the point Burachki (Russia) - Terekhovo (Latvia). Judging by reviews from friends and Internet blogs, the highway was reconstructed just a couple of years ago. We did not have a single complaint: neither with the quality of the coating, nor with the markings, nor with the signs. There was only one imperfect, but short-lived site in the Pskov region; it did not cause any serious inconvenience.

Having left Moscow at 4 am, we were already at the checkpoint at 11. On the way there was a feeling that we were alone on the track. Only in the rearview mirror sometimes someone’s headlights could be seen, and every five minutes oncoming cars rushed by. We were third in the queue at the border, but ten minutes later there was already a decent tail of cars behind us - it’s not even clear where all these people came from. When going through control, it’s mainly the driver who has to fuss: he takes all the passports, shows the car, and fills out the documents. Passengers can at most be asked to get out of the car, and even then not always. Having settled the formalities in about an hour, we moved on.

On the other side of the border, the asphalt has become noticeably worse, but still of acceptable quality. By the way, fill your tank full before the border - a liter of 95 gasoline in Latvia costs approximately 1.8 euros. The next 300 km to the capital of Latvia took us about 5 hours - a lot settlements on the highway and the speed drops to 50, and sometimes to 30 km/h. That is, the entire journey, taking into account crossing the border, stops at gas stations and lunch, took about 13 hours. For comparison, the Moscow – Riga train takes 16.5 hours.

Parking in the centers of European cities is paid, so think in advance about where to store your car. We had an agreement with the owners of the rented apartment that they would give us the keys to the courtyard of the house, which helped us save a lot of money and not worry about the safety of our transport. By the way, the apartment itself with all amenities for four people, a 10-minute walk from the Old Town, cost about 50 euros per night.

Of course we immediately went to Old city. Having reached St. Peter's Church and appreciating its scale, we realized that we were pretty hungry from the road. After looking around, we went into the cafe local cuisine- what a knuckle it was! I can honestly say that it was the most delicious dinner of the entire trip. I wanted to order mulled wine, but the waiter suggested trying a hot drink based on Riga balsam and blackcurrant juice - delicious! The bill for dinner at a restaurant in the center is about 20 euros per person - this is meat with a side dish and a drink. Some, but not all establishments automatically include a 10% service charge.

You can save a lot on food if you eat at home or in establishments similar to our “Mu-mu”, for example. In the latter case, a very hearty dinner will cost about 10 euros. But we figured that we would lose some of the flavor by not exploring the local cuisine.

After walking around the evening center a little more and thoroughly tasting mulled wine in the central square, we went to rest.

The next morning, we left the car and went to Jurmala by train. The fact is that the station is located right next to the Old Town, the train takes only 20 minutes, and we decided not to bother. And the price of gasoline again... Jurmala is a resort on the coast of the Gulf of Riga. In the very center is the Maiori station, where we got off. Previously, it was here that New Wave, KVN and other festivals took place. A very cozy town with beautiful architecture and pine trees. On the beach in winter, the wind, of course, knocks you off your feet, but the streets themselves are quiet and nothing interferes with your walk. I can imagine how great it is here in the summer! This place is especially suitable for a family holiday.

Returning to Riga and armed with a guidebook, we headed back to the Old Town. If you wish, then on the square near the House of the Blackheads you can hire a personal guide who will take you around the city and tell you everything in detail. Unfortunately, we were not able to climb observation deck St. Peter's Church: due to the heavy snowfall this did not make sense. The next morning we wanted to go to a 20-minute organ concert in the Dome Cathedral. So we went in to buy tickets. As it turned out later, this was a very right decision - right before the concert there was a huge line at the box office. Having walked further and looked into the Cathedral of St. James, we found ourselves at the end of the service and the organ was just playing. “Oh, my 10 euros were wasted, I wasted my money,” I thought. True, it turned out that the organ of the Dome Cathedral sounds much cleaner, even in my amateurish opinion. But if you want to save money, this is quite an option.

The day after the concert we went to Tallinn. There are about 300 km between the cities, and this journey took about five hours. Crossing the border is purely formal: you drive through the checkpoint without stopping at a low speed, and that’s it – you’re in Estonia. The route immediately changes noticeably - the road surface becomes better, there are many more cameras, and gasoline is cheaper (about 1 euro per liter). In Tallinn, we also parked in a closed courtyard of a house with the prior permission of the owners. The price of the apartment is comparable to Riga housing - 50 euros for a spacious apartment within walking distance from the historical center.

On Town Hall Square, following a very tasty smell, we ended up in the medieval tavern “Three Dragons”. In all seriousness, no electricity or cutlery - you have to drink the soup from a cup-bowl! The choice of dishes is limited to one type of soup, boar ribs and sausages for main course; there are also pies with various fillings and drinks. Prices are reasonable for tourist center: dinner with sausages – 12 euros, with ribs – 20 euros. Of course, I wanted to try something unusual, and I chose boar ribs. The portion is very large and quite enough for two young ladies. Objectively, the meat was cooked well - not tough, very juicy. But it has a very specific marinade, it gives off sweetness. And sweet meat is... not my thing in general. Although the surrounding men drank beer with pleasure.

In the morning we decided to catch up and went to the observation deck in the Fat Margaret Tower in the Old Town. To get to the top, you need to buy a ticket to the Maritime Museum for 6 euros. Good news - if you are traveling as a family, the ticket will cost you 12 euros for everyone. The prospect of walking through a boring specialized museum did not please us at all, but what a surprise it was when it turned out to be extremely fascinating. There are interactive exhibits, real masts with sails from sunken ships, and ship models. In general, it will be interesting for both big and small; for boys it’s a paradise. You can also go to Hydroharbour, the second part of the museum, and climb on a real submarine there!

In principle, a couple of days is enough to explore the historical part of both capitals. If you want to travel outside the city or delve into the study of museums in more detail, of course, it is better to allocate more time.

The return journey to Moscow took us approximately the same 13 hours through the Luhamaa (Estonia) – Shumilkino (Russia) checkpoint. A couple of differences from the Latvian border: it is better to book the border crossing time in advance - you will spend about an hour. It is unknown how long you will have to wait in line. And you also have to pay a service fee of about 5 euros per car.

Total:

In total, we spent about 12 thousand rubles on the road for gasoline for a sedan with a 1.6 engine and an automatic transmission. For three people it turned out to be much cheaper than tickets.

Green card (insurance) – 2500 rubles.

Service fee at the Estonian border is 5 euros.

I want to tell you how my friend and I visited the Baltic states ourselves, without agencies. I won’t talk about the sights, just about the business. How to go yourself. This is my first independent trip.

At the time of our trip, such a tour of the three capitals of the Baltic states cost 44,000 per person for a week, and it cost us 23,000. Almost two days in each city. There is a difference!!! TIP: I always buy books from the Orange Guide series. Wonderful series. I take it with me on all my trips when I go on my own.

VISA. I’ll say right away that we decided to submit our documents to the visa center. A little more expensive, but simpler: if something goes wrong, they still reprint the documents on their own forms. For money. Documents are submitted to the embassy or visa center of the country where you will spend the most time, namely nights, regardless of the sequence of visiting countries. We started from Lithuania, but we submitted visa documents to the Latvian visa center, because... in Vilnius there were two days, but one overnight stay, and in Riga and Tallinn two nights each. You will find a list of documents on the websites. Along with your documents, be sure to bring copies of hotel reservations and copies of all tickets, and insurance is required. Read carefully. For example, at the time of our registration, they did not accept hotel reservations from booking in Lithuania. Maybe something has changed. We booked on Hotels.com. There weren't many people in the center, it took about an hour and a half. We waited longer for the documents to be reprinted. After 10 days, my husband arrived and took our passports with visas. When submitting documents, you indicate who will pick them up. Very comfortably.

TRAVEL BETWEEN COUNTRIES: we chose the bus. Tickets were booked on the website.

Very convenient site. Buses take an average of 4 hours. There’s not much to see on the road. The buses were empty. Maybe it’s not the tourist season, or maybe I’m just lucky. We chose the second half of the day, left at 5 pm, arrived at 9 pm, slept, and in the morning walked around the city with fresh energy. We chose hotels closer to the center and bus stations so as not to spend extra money on travel.

HOTELS. We chose inexpensive ones with the intention of only spending the night. Breakfast.

VILNIUS. We arrived on an airBaltic plane. The plane is tiny: 15 rows with two seats per aisle.

They flew perfectly. From the airport we took a bus to the Comfort Vilnius 3* hotel. There are two hotels in Vilnius with a similar name and we were a little misinformed by the locals, but from one hotel

It's an extra 15 minutes walk to ours. Found. The hotel is small but nice. For a night or two, no more. There wasn't even a closet in our room.

We took only breakfast in all hotels. The food was decent, the linen was clean. All attractions are within walking distance. We didn’t spend any money on travel anywhere.

We arrived in Vilnius at 10 am, the bus to Riga was the next day at 16.30. From the hotel to the bus station it's a 10 minute walk. Almost two days were enough to see the main attractions and just walk around the city. But that's not what this review is about. Travel on your own, don't be afraid of anything.

RIGA. From the bus station to the 4* hotel it’s a 10 minute walk. The hotel is very good. When you booked, you got a discount. The breakfast was amazing, there was even champagne. There is no such breakfast in Turkish fives. Clean, quiet, 5-7 minutes to the center. The room even had an ironing board and iron, a kettle, tea and coffee. At 17.00 bus to Tallinn. We walked everywhere and didn’t spend money on transport.

TALLINN. In Tallinn from the bus station to the hotel 3* by tram 10 min and on foot 5 min. The hotel is not bad, but there is no tray in the shower, and the water almost did not go through the hole in the floor and flooded the entire floor in the bathroom. But as a joke, there was a mop, you know, with a rubber band to collect water. But across the road is the Old Town and all the attractions. Return to Moscow on an airBaltic plane. By taxi 15 euros and in 20 minutes on the spot.

CONCLUSION: It's half the price, you are your own boss, travel by yourself and everything will be fine. We walked in all cities; I can’t say anything about the prices for transport.