Kaunas Travel Guide
Kaunas is a good place to spend two or three days between Vilnius and the coast. Walk from the Old Town towards Laisvės Alėja, choose an art museum, and give the city's modernist buildings some time of their own.
At A Glance
Give the centre two different days
Start with the Old Town and riverside on your first day. On the next, walk along Laisvės Alėja and look at the streets leading towards the art museums. This splits the historic centre and the newer city into manageable walks, with time to sit down between them.
Kaunas makes more sense when you leave room for its buildings as well as its attractions. You can enjoy façades from the street, but a building that looks interesting is not automatically open to visitors. Check any interior tour before arranging the whole day around it.
Put the museum entrance on your map
The M. K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art receives visitors at V. Putvinskio Street 55. Its standard adult ticket is €10. Across this part of the city, the Devils' Museum is a different collection with an €8 ticket. Give your chosen museum a proper block of time instead of buying two admissions for hurried visits.
The M. Žilinskas Art Gallery is closed for reconstruction. Do not confuse it with the main Čiurlionis museum when following an older guide. Opening days and holiday exceptions are on the museum's own page. A rainy morning is a good time for a museum, with the outdoor walk saved for later.
Arrive at the station that suits your plans
Trains from Vilnius arrive at Kaunas railway station. The station is not in the Old Town, so allow for the last part of the journey when comparing accommodation. If you have only a day, avoid spending the first hour carrying bags from one end of the centre to the other.
Kaunas Airport's public-transport page describes bus 29 towards the city bus and railway stations. Check the current departure and stop for your flight. An airport named after Kaunas is not a central railway station, and its transfer needs time of its own.
Make an easy meal plan
Look at lunch menus near the places you already intend to visit. Compare the price of the whole meal, including any drink, rather than only the cheapest dish on the board. If you are staying in an apartment, check whether it has a usable kitchen before planning several supermarket dinners.
For a short stay, it can be worth paying a little more for a room close to your evening plans. A cheaper address across town may add transport costs and make a midday break less convenient. The spending examples below let you compare those choices; they are not claims about rooms currently on sale.
Continue west without filling the travel day
The Kaunas to Klaipėda route helps you move towards the coast. Treat that as a change of base, with room for packing, the station and check-in. If you prefer a quieter finish to the trip, Druskininkai offers a different direction with parks and spa time. You do not need to include both on the same short holiday.
Example spending plans
Use these room and meal budgets to plan a day. They are spending choices, not average prices or available room offers. Replace the room amount with your full booking price, including tax. If sharing, divide only the private-room cost. Airport and intercity travel are extra.
A bed, simple meals, local travel and an activity allowance.
A private room, meals, local travel and an activity allowance.
More room for accommodation, meals and paid sightseeing.
Example for one traveller using one individual bed. Chosen allowances, not measured averages or available offers. Replace them with your bookings. Add intercity and airport travel separately. Replace the activity allowance with chosen admissions rather than counting both. An individual bed is not guaranteed; use the whole-room quote if that is what you book.
🏛️ Top sights and admission costs
Admission choices, ticket prices and practical advice for your visit.
M. K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art
€10.00Devils’ Museum
€8.00🛏️ Where to Stay
Stay near Laisvės Alėja for museums and central walks, or in the Old Town for evenings near the river. A room near the bus or railway station helps with early departures but is farther from the Old Town.
🚇 Getting Around
The central walking route is fairly straightforward, but the railway station and Old Town are at different ends of it. Use local buses for a distant visit rather than treating every attraction as a short walk.
Airport transfers
Take bus 29 towards Kaunas bus and railway stations, then continue to your room. Check the departure after your flight and the stop you need. The airport lists Žiogas, bank-card and driver-cash payment options; compare the fare for the ticket you buy. Add waiting and the final local journey.
🥖 Eating for Less
Compare weekday lunch menus around your planned museum stop. Ask what the set includes, then leave some room in the day for a bakery or café instead of scheduling a large meal at every stop.
Worth Paying For
The main Čiurlionis museum costs €10 for a standard adult. The €8 Devils' Museum is a separate visit; choose by interest before buying both.
Skip / Save Your Money
A distant attraction and two central museums can make a tiring single day. Pick one main paid visit and enjoy the architecture between stops.
Common Tourist Traps & Money Mistakes
The M. Žilinskas Art Gallery is closed for reconstruction. It is a different building from the open M. K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art on V. Putvinskio Street.