Experience the weird and the wonderful in Kaunas

Kaunas is Lithuania’s second largest city and is positioned between two imposing rivers. It is an important university city with a large number of colleges where students come to study everything from medicine to agriculture. Kaunas’s pride and joy is its compact and traffic-free old town. Beautiful 16th century buildings house modern art galleries as the impressive Town Hall looks on. The newer part of the city is east of the Old Town and its hub of the Laisvės alėja, or Freedom Avenue. This is Kaunas’ main street with shops, cafes and bars galore. This is also the place where locals meet to pass the time, chatting animatedly by the fountain. There are a number of interesting sights in Kaunas, including Kaunas Castle and the baroque Pazaislis Monastery. There is also a Gothic Cathedral and a collection of intriguing museums, including the Devil Museum with its sculptures and curious representations of Hitler and Stalin.

Why Go?
Go for the interesting sights and museums, the renowned art galleries and the impressive architecture. Kaunas has a youthful, energetic atmosphere and the historic Old Town and vibrant Freedom Avenue are great places to spend some time and soak up the ambiance.

When to Go?
Kaunas has a Continental climate with warm, pleasant summers and extremely cold winters. The best months to visit are from June to August when temperatures are at their warmest and between 20°C and 23°C. Winter temperatures drop below zero and snow is a regular feature of the city. Flights are slightly more expensive in the summer months but as budget airlines operate flights to Kaunas, cheap fares can be found.

How to get there?
There are direct flights from Bristol, Edinburgh, Liverpool, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Luton and Birmingham to Kaunas International Airport (KUN). The airport is 13km from Kaunas and it takes around 30 minutes to travel into the city centre by taxi. Buses are also available at the airport. Bus numbers 29 and 120 travel directly into Kaunas city centre.

Must see
Visit Kaunas Castle with its interesting 13th century remains and moat. Explore the National Museum of Art and see the works of Lithuania’s most influential artists. Take in the diabolical collection at the Museum of Devils; it’s strange but it’s fascinating and there are few exhibitions like it. Take a stroll around the Old Town and see its well-preserved merchant’s houses. Enjoy a spot of people-watching on Freedom Avenue.