What is the Vilnius self-guided walking tour?
The Vilnius self-guided walking tour is a walk with no group and no fixed start time: you follow the route in the World City Trail app, and recorded narration takes over whenever you reach a stop. Allow around 3 hours for 10 stops and 4.1 km, with the walking itself taking about 58 minutes. The Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the route runs from the last surviving city gate up to Gediminas Hill and over the Vilnia into Užupis.
Under the Gates of Dawn the narration explains why Catholic and Orthodox believers alike stop to pray beneath the chapel window, in front of a painting of the Virgin Mary. On Literatų gatvė you hear how a wall began filling up in 2008 with small artworks for writers linked to the city. At Gediminas Castle Tower comes the legend of the iron wolf that howled in the Grand Duke's dream and led him to found the city on this hill. St Anne's Church brings its bricks in more than 30 shapes and the story that Napoleon wished he could carry it back to Paris in the palm of his hand, and in Užupis you learn about the district that declared itself a republic in 1997.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 58 min · 4.1 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch
What happens along the route
At each stop
The narration opens with the facts and moves on to the people, the local legends and the odd details that turn a building into a story. Every chapter can also be read as text on screen.
Between stops
Google Maps guides you along the 4.1 km of the route, about 58 minutes on foot in total, and you set the speed.
Whenever you need a break
Stop for lunch, a coffee or a museum visit, and the narration waits where you left it, for later the same day or another day.
Your route, your order
The app points you to local food and shops along the way, and if another starting point is more convenient, you can switch to it or reorder the stops.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of people. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Walk when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Who the audio walk suits
A few days in Vilnius
The walk ties the main sights together and gives each one its background, so even a short visit feels complete.
People who like their own pace
No group to wait for and no fixed start: you linger where something catches your eye and walk on when you feel like it.
Families and couples
Legends for the children, history for the adults and a pause button for everyone.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Groups of up to 5 work best; larger groups split up, one ticket per person.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
Gate, hill and river: the stops one by one
10 stops · about 58 min walking · start: Gates of Dawn · finish: Angel of Užupis
From the Gates of Dawn the route heads north through the Old Town to Town Hall Square, whose Town Hall Laurynas Gucevičius rebuilt in classical style, and on to the writers' wall of Literatų gatvė. Cathedral Square gathers the next three stops: Vilnius Cathedral, the rebuilt Palace of the Grand Dukes and the New Arsenal of the National Museum, with King Mindaugas in front. After the climb to Gediminas Castle Tower you come down to the Bernardine Garden and St Anne's Church, then cross the Vilnia to the Angel of Užupis. Part of the walk is uphill, the app lets you reorder the stops, and you need no tickets.
Open the route map ↗
1Gates of DawnStart
The Gates of Dawn are the only surviving gate of the city wall of Vilnius, built in the early 16th century. A chapel above the arch keeps a 17th-century painting of the Virgin Mary, believed to work miracles and venerated by Catholic and Orthodox believers alike. Many people stop to pray in the street below the chapel window.
Read the full story →
2Town Hall Square
Town Hall Square has been a market and meeting place since the Middle Ages. The Town Hall was rebuilt in classical style with a columned portico at the end of the 18th century, to designs by the architect Laurynas Gucevičius. Today the square hosts fairs, concerts and the city's Christmas tree.
3Literatų gatvė (Literature Street)
This short street in the Old Town has a wall covered with hundreds of small artworks, each dedicated to a writer linked to Vilnius or Lithuania. The project began in 2008, and new pieces are still added. The poet Adam Mickiewicz is said to have lived on this street in the 1820s.
Read the full story →
4Vilnius Cathedral
The Cathedral of St Stanislaus and St Ladislaus stands where Lithuania's rulers built churches from the 13th century on. Its present classical look, with a columned portico and three statues on the roof, dates from the late 18th century and the architect Laurynas Gucevičius. In Soviet times it served as an art gallery and it was returned to the Church in 1989.
5Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania
The rulers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania lived in this palace at the Lower Castle. The Russian imperial authorities had it demolished around 1801, and after years of excavation it was rebuilt and opened as a museum in 2013. Inside, remains of the original walls are on show.
Read the full story →
6New Arsenal – National Museum of Lithuania
The New Arsenal, once a military building in the castle area below Gediminas Hill, is part of the National Museum of Lithuania. Its exhibitions tell the country's history from early times to the 20th century. In front stands a statue of Mindaugas, crowned in 1253 as the first and only king of Lithuania.
7Gediminas Castle Tower
The red-brick tower on Gediminas Hill is what remains of the Upper Castle, rebuilt in brick in the early 15th century. According to legend, Grand Duke Gediminas dreamed of an iron wolf howling on this hill and founded the city here. Vilnius first appears in his letters of 1323, and the Lithuanian flag flies from the tower.
Read the full story →
8Bernardine Garden
This park beside the river Vilnia takes its name from the Bernardine monks, whose monastery garden once lay here. It was restored in 2013 to recall its 19th-century layout, with flower beds, paths and fountains. Its old trees and benches make it a popular place to rest in the centre.
9St Anne's Church
St Anne's Church, built around 1500, is a late Gothic church made of bricks in more than 30 different shapes. Its narrow façade is full of pointed arches and slim towers. Legend has it that Napoleon, passing through Vilnius in 1812, wished he could carry the church back to Paris in the palm of his hand.
Read the full story →
10Angel of UžupisFinish
Užupis, the artists' district across the river Vilnia, declared itself a republic in 1997 as a playful gesture. Its symbol, a bronze angel blowing a trumpet on top of a column, was unveiled on the main square in 2002. Nearby, the district's humorous constitution is displayed on a wall in many languages.
Read the full story →
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