Baltics itinerary: 10 days, Tallinn to Vilnius

Three capitals, three languages, one currency: the Baltics fit neatly on a single north-to-south line. The real question isn't the route but how to travel it. With a car you see Rundāle Palace and the Hill of Crosses, neither of which is on a train line. Without one you travel more calmly, and since January 2026 a direct train has run from Tallinn to Riga. This plan covers both.

The route runs from Tallinn to Vilnius, so you fly into one end and home from the other. It works just as well the other way round, so take whichever direction has the better fare.

The route at a glance

Driving times: route calculation based on OpenStreetMap, without breaks. With stops, add about a third.

1. Tallinn
2. Pärnu
3. Riga
4. Rundāle
5. Hill of Crosses
6. Vilnius

Base map: Natural Earth

Days 1–3: Tallinn and Lahemaa

Tallinn's walled old town and Toompea hill take two days on foot; our guide to how many days in Tallinn splits them up. Spend the third day out in Lahemaa National Park. The boardwalk across Viru Bog is about 45 minutes' drive from Tallinn according to Visit Estonia and ends at a viewing tower. You can also get there by bus, with the stop just under a kilometre from the start. If you're hiring a car, collect it that morning, since it's no use in the old town. You'll find tours and tickets for Tallinn^* on Tiqets.

Tallinn trip planDay by day, with map and tips

Days 4–5: Pärnu or Tartu?

Here the route forks. Pärnu is Estonia's most popular summer town: a resort since the 19th century, with a wide beach about 15 minutes' walk from the centre. From June to August it's the right choice. Outside those months take the inland road through Tartu and Cēsis, which doesn't depend on the beach: Tallinn–Lahemaa–Tartu–Cēsis–Sigulda–Riga is 476 km in 7:33 hours, so two full days instead of under five hours via Pärnu. You'd then skip the separate Sigulda trip from Riga because you pass through it.

Days 6–7: Riga and Sigulda

Riga is the biggest city on the trip and two days are the minimum: one for the old town around the House of the Blackheads, one for the Art Nouveau streets around Alberta iela. See how many days in Riga for more. For the day out, drive to Sigulda, 54 km and an hour away, where red-walled Turaida Castle, dating from 1214, stands over the Gauja valley. Keep the car if you want to see Rundāle tomorrow.

Day 8: the long driving day

Be clear about this one in advance: 372 km and just over 5 hours of pure driving, closer to 8 or 9 hours in all with stops. Rundāle Palace, 79 km south of Riga, is a Baroque and Rococo palace built between 1736 and 1740 as a summer residence for the Duke of Courland. Then you cross into Lithuania for the Hill of Crosses near Šiauliai, where well over 200,000 crosses stand, brought by pilgrims since the 19th century. From there it's another 219 km to Vilnius.

If that's too long, sleep in Šiauliai and give up a day in Vilnius. Or take the train instead, as below, and skip both stops.

Days 9–10: Vilnius and Trakai

Vilnius has a sprawling old town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site for around 30 years, with Gediminas Tower, the cathedral and the Gate of Dawn. On the second day go 27 km to Trakai island castle in Lake Galvė. It's just 31 minutes by car, and GoVilnius says weekday buses run every 10 to 20 minutes, so you can hand the car back in Vilnius first. See how many days in Vilnius for the city.

Without a car: the train option

Rail here has improved faster than most guidebooks know.

LTG Link warns that Riga–Vilnius tickets often sell out, so buy online and early. You can compare buses on Busbud^*. Times change during the year, so check the current timetable before you go. Tartu fits in easily as a stop, since it's on the direct train to Riga. In exchange you lose Pärnu, Rundāle and the Hill of Crosses, which is the honest price of this version.

By car the only awkward part is a one-way hire across borders. Ask explicitly whether the car may be driven in all three countries and returned in another one. A hire car from Tallinn^* is best compared with return in Vilnius, and check the total price.

Variant: the Curonian Spit (2 extra days)

From the Hill of Crosses you can turn off to Klaipėda (186 km, approx. 2:18 h) and take the ferry to the Curonian Spit, a 98 km dune peninsula and UNESCO World Heritage Site. From Klaipėda to Nida is 50 km, about an hour. Klaipėda back to Vilnius is 308 km in 3:14 hours.

One warning: just south of Nida lies the border with Russia's Kaliningrad exclave, which isn't fenced all the way and only partly marked in the dunes. The German Foreign Office warns that crossing by even a few metres can lead to arrest by Russian border police. Stay on the signed paths and, in the water, on this side of the yellow buoys. The UK's advice for Lithuania is also worth reading.

Best time for the Baltics

June is the best month: long days, average highs of 21.9 °C in Riga and 20.1 °C in Tallinn, and less rain than in high summer. July and August are the wettest at 89 mm in Riga, often in short showers, though warm enough for Pärnu. May is cooler but dry at around 50 mm. Around 23 June, Latvia marks its midsummer festival, Jāņi, when cities go quiet and the countryside celebrates. For other ideas, see where to go in June.

Climate: 2015–2024 averages from the ERA5 reanalysis (Open-Meteo), rounded.

Good to know before you go

• Entry and money: All three countries are in the EU and the Schengen Area and use the euro.
• Borders: The route doesn't touch Russia or Belarus. The German Foreign Office warns against travel to Belarus, so plan no side trips and keep away from the border areas.
• Vilnius airport: The German Foreign Office mentions possible short-notice closures of airspace and the airport, so leave some margin on your last day and check the latest advice for Lithuania.
• Flight: A direct flight from London to Tallinn takes approx. 3 hours, from Vilnius back to London approx. 3 hours.
• Data: Visitors from outside the EU can use an eSIM for Estonia^* (check it covers your other countries); our eSIM price index compares the cost per gigabyte.

How YesTrip helps with this trip

Create a trip in YesTrip with these stops: the app shows every place on the map, uses AI to plan your days in Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius, for which we have ready-made city plans, and shows the weather for your travel dates. The packing list suggests clothing to match the forecast, the offline map helps on the bog and the country roads, and if you travel with others you can share the trip and the expenses. You book with each provider directly. If you want more cities afterwards, try eastern Europe city breaks.

* Ad – Partner link: if you book there, we earn a commission. Your price stays the same.