Baltic Road Trip: 10-Day Itinerary from Vilnius to Tallinn

Three countries, three languages, three medieval capitals listed by UNESCO, and between them hundreds of miles of pine forests, bogs and almost empty white-sand beaches. The Baltic states are made for a road trip: the roads are flat, quiet and in good shape, the distances are short, and a car is the only easy way to reach the most beautiful places, from the Curonian Spit to Lahemaa National Park, which buses barely serve.

We first discovered the region through its capitals, Tallinn (FR) and Riga (FR), and we built this itinerary while planning our return: 10 days, south to north, from Vilnius to Tallinn. It covers about 1,250 km (780 miles) and 13 stops, mixing cities, nature and the seaside, at a pace designed so you don't spend your vacation behind the wheel: two days without the car, and two nights in the same place in Nida and in Riga.

We'll also tell you what is truly worth the detour, and what you can skip if you're short on time: not every stop on this route is equally rewarding, and the best moments are often far from the capitals.

Our Baltic road trip itinerary at a glance

The numbers match the stops in this article.

In total: about 1,250 km (780 miles) and 25 hours of driving, or 2.5 hours a day on average on driving days. Times are calculated without breaks and rounded up. Ten days is a comfortable minimum; with twelve, you can add a full day in Vilnius and in Tallinn (see "Adapting the itinerary").

You can also drive the route the other way, from Tallinn to Vilnius: it usually comes down to flight prices.

Day 1: Vilnius, the most baroque of the Baltic capitals

Land at Vilnius airport, pick up the car… and leave it straight away in the hotel parking lot: the old town of Vilnius, one of the largest in Eastern Europe, is best explored on foot. Baroque churches follow one another on every street corner, from the white cathedral to St. Anne's, a Gothic brick church that Napoleon supposedly wished he could carry back to Paris "in the palm of his hand". Climb Gediminas Tower in the late afternoon for the view over the red roofs and bell towers, then cross the little Vilnia River to wander through Užupis, the bohemian district that declared itself a "republic", with its own constitution displayed on a wall.

Vilnius is the least known of the Baltic capitals, and that's a shame: it feels livelier and less museum-like than Tallinn. One day is short, and it's the first thing we would extend with an extra day.

• Time needed: one day (two ideally)
• Parking: paid parking in the center, color-coded zones payable by app; choose a hotel with parking
• Where to stay: in the old town or Užupis, around €80 to €120 a night for a double room in summer (2026 estimate)
• See on Google Maps

Day 2: Vilnius → Trakai → Kaunas (117 km / 73 miles, 2 h)

Just 30 km (19 miles) from Vilnius, Trakai is the image everyone has of Lithuania: a red-brick Gothic castle sitting on an island in Lake Galvė, linked to the shore by wooden footbridges. The castle was largely rebuilt in the 20th century, and the inside, a rather classic history museum, takes about an hour. The best part is outside: paddle around the lake in a pedal boat or rowboat, then try kibinai, stuffed pastries from the Karaite minority that has lived here since the 14th century. On weekends it gets very crowded: arrive at opening time.

Then take the A1 highway to Kaunas, Lithuania's second city. Its old town is pleasant without being spectacular; its real draw is the interwar modernist architecture from the time Kaunas was the temporary capital, listed by UNESCO since 2023. A late afternoon on Laisvės alėja avenue and dinner in the old town are enough: Kaunas is above all a convenient stop that breaks up the long drive to the coast.

• Route: 30 km (19 miles) from Vilnius to Trakai, then 87 km (54 miles) on the A1 highway to Kaunas
• Trakai Castle: €14 from April to September, €12 the rest of the year; open daily 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. from May to September (official prices)
• Parking: paid lots at the entrance to Trakai, a 10-minute walk from the castle
• Where to stay: in Kaunas, around €60 to €90 a night (2026 estimate), or by the lake in Trakai if you prefer somewhere quiet
• See on Google Maps

Day 3: Kaunas → Klaipėda → Nida (261 km / 162 miles, 3 h 45 incl. ferry)

This is the longest highway day of the trip, but also the easiest: the A1 runs straight through the countryside to Klaipėda, Lithuania's main port. Take time for lunch in its small half-timbered old town before boarding the ferry to Smiltynė, the northern tip of the Curonian Spit. The crossing only takes a few minutes, and the car ticket also covers the return trip.

On the other side begins the Curonian Spit, a 98-km (61-mile) strip of sand between the Baltic Sea and a lagoon, listed by UNESCO and shared with Russia (the Kaliningrad exclave) to the south. Road KK167 runs through an unbroken pine forest all the way to Nida, with its blue and brown fishermen's houses and carved weathervanes. Stop on the way in Juodkrantė for the Hill of Witches, a forest trail lined with wooden sculptures from Lithuanian folk tales, great fun with kids.

• Route: 210 km (130 miles) of highway to Klaipėda, the ferry, then 50 km (31 miles) on the spit
• Klaipėda–Smiltynė ferry: €23.20 round trip for a car in 2026, frequent departures (timetable and prices)
• Curonian Spit entry fee: paid at the Alksnynė checkpoint, it reaches about €50 per car in high summer (June 20 to August 20 in 2026) versus €10 the rest of the year; check before you go on visitneringa.com
• On the way: Klaipėda's old town, the Hill of Witches in Juodkrantė
• Where to stay: in Nida, guesthouses and apartments from €90 to €150 in summer (2026 estimate), book early for July and August
• See on Google Maps

Day 4: the Curonian Spit by bike, our favorite stop

If we had to keep only one stop, it would be this one. Leave the car parked for the day and rent a bike in Nida: a perfectly flat bike path runs through the pine forest along the spit. In the morning, on the Baltic Sea side, white-sand beaches stretch as far as the eye can see, with dunes covered in marram grass and cool but crystal-clear water. In the afternoon, climb the Parnidis Dune, a mountain of sand over 50 m (165 ft) high overlooking the lagoon, with its large stone sundial at the top.

Come back for sunset: the sand turns orange, the lagoon darkens, and you understand why Thomas Mann had a summer house built here (you can visit it, on the hill above Nida). Be careful: the Russian border runs just south of the dune, so stay on the marked trails, which are also there to protect the very fragile dunes.

• Time needed: a full day, without the car
• Things to do: bike along the spit (rentals in Nida), the beach on the Baltic side, the Parnidis Dune, Thomas Mann's house
• Where to stay: same place as the night before
• See on Google Maps

Day 5: Nida → Liepāja → Kuldīga (238 km / 148 miles, 4 h 15 incl. ferry)

Take the ferry back to Klaipėda, then the coastal road north. After Palanga, you cross into Latvia almost without noticing and reach Liepāja, Latvia's third-largest city. The town itself isn't memorable; the draw is Karosta, the former Soviet naval base to the north, with its gold-domed Orthodox cathedral, its abandoned apartment blocks and the Northern Forts slowly being swallowed by the sea on the beach. It has a very particular, slightly melancholic atmosphere: an hour or two is plenty, and if you're tired, you can head straight to Kuldīga.

The reward comes at the end of the day: Kuldīga is our second favorite stop of the trip. This small town of wooden houses, listed by UNESCO in 2023, sits beside the Venta Rapid, the widest waterfall in Europe: over 240 m (790 ft) wide and barely 2 m (6.5 ft) high. In summer you can walk in the water at the foot of the falls, and in April and May you can watch fish leaping upstream. The old brick bridge and the little Alekšupīte stream, which flows between the houses in the center, give the town huge charm, especially in the evening once the day-trippers have left.

• Route: the ferry, 110 km (68 miles) to Liepāja, then 90 km (56 miles) to Kuldīga. This is the busiest day: you can sleep in Liepāja and see Kuldīga the next morning instead
• Time needed: 1 to 2 hours in Karosta, an evening and a morning in Kuldīga
• Parking: easy and often free in Kuldīga
• Where to stay: guesthouses in central Kuldīga, around €60 to €90 a night (2026 estimate)
• See on Google Maps

Day 6: Kuldīga → Jūrmala → Riga (149 km / 93 miles, 3 h)

Use the morning to see Kuldīga's waterfall and bridge again in the soft light, while the streets are still empty. The road to Riga then crosses Courland, a landscape of fields and forests with hardly any hills.

Just before Riga, Jūrmala is the historic seaside resort of the Baltics: 30 km (19 miles) of fine sandy beach and beautiful early 20th-century wooden villas in the streets of Majori and Dzintari. This is the stop we feel most mixed about. The beach is huge but the sea, very shallow, is often chilly; the pedestrian street Jomas iela has become rather commercial, and driving in costs money (€5 a day in 2026, all year round). A stroll through the villa streets and a paddle in the sea are enough: if you loved the beaches in Nida, you can head straight to Riga.

• Route: 125 km (78 miles) to Jūrmala, then 25 km (16 miles) to Riga
• Jūrmala entry fee: €5 per car per day, paid online or at machines (card only) by 11:59 p.m. on the day you enter (visitjurmala.lv)
• Where to stay: in Riga, pick a hotel with parking, around €80 to €120 a night (2026 estimate)
• See on Google Maps

Day 7: Riga, without the car

The largest city in the Baltics deserves a full day. In the morning, the old town and its restored landmarks, including the famous House of the Blackheads; at lunchtime, the Central Market, set in former Zeppelin hangars, to taste Latvian specialties (rye bread, smoked fish, bacon-filled pīrāgi: it's all in our article on Latvian food). In the afternoon, walk up to the Art Nouveau district around Alberta iela, whose carved facades are among the most beautiful in Europe.

Riga is bigger and livelier than Tallinn, and less "postcard" too: the old town is surrounded by wide boulevards and more working-class wooden neighborhoods. We've listed our favorite things to do in what to do in Riga (FR), and our evening picks in the best bars in Riga (FR).

• Time needed: one day, on foot
• Parking: most of the old town is closed to cars; leave yours at the hotel
• See on Google Maps

Day 8: Riga → Sigulda → Cēsis (91 km / 57 miles, 2 h)

A short driving day to enjoy Gauja National Park, nicknamed the "Switzerland of Latvia": that's an exaggeration (there are no mountains), but the Gauja Valley, carved into red sandstone and covered in forest, stands out from the flatness of the rest of the country. In Sigulda, climb up to Turaida Castle, a red-brick tower rising above the trees over the valley, then walk down to Gūtmanis Cave and cross the valley by cable car to Krimulda. In the fall, when the forests turn red and yellow, this is the most beautiful corner of the Baltics.

In the evening, Cēsis is a lovely little town with cobbled streets, overlooked by the ruins of a Livonian Order castle that you visit by lantern light. Quieter than Sigulda, it's a much better place to spend the night.

• Route: 55 km (34 miles) to Sigulda, then 35 km (22 miles) to Cēsis
• Time needed: half a day in Sigulda, an evening in Cēsis
• On the way: a swim or a short hike along the Gauja (red sandstone cliffs)
• Where to stay: in Cēsis, around €60 to €90 a night (2026 estimate)
• See on Google Maps

Day 9: Cēsis → Tartu (167 km / 104 miles, 3 h)

You cross into Estonia at Valga / Valka, a town split in two by the border, before reaching Tartu, the country's university town and a European Capital of Culture in 2024. Its center is small and charming: the Town Hall Square and its fountain of kissing students, Toome Hill with the ruins of its brick cathedral, and student cafés everywhere. The large Estonian National Museum, in a spectacular building on the edge of town, is the best place to understand the country's history.

One caveat: in July, the students are gone and the town is much quieter than in spring or September. If you're short on time, Tartu is the stop you can skip, heading straight from Cēsis to Pärnu and Tallinn (see below).

• Time needed: an afternoon and an evening
• Parking: paid lots around the center, reasonably priced
• Where to stay: in the center, around €70 to €100 a night (2026 estimate)
• See on Google Maps

Day 10: Tartu → Lahemaa → Tallinn (227 km / 141 miles, 3 h 45)

The last day is the most varied. Lahemaa National Park, on Estonia's north coast, packs everything that makes the country into a few miles: forests, shores scattered with huge glacial boulders, Baltic German manors and fishing villages. Visit Palmse Manor, one of the finest restored estates in Estonia, make a detour to Käsmu, the "captains' village", then walk the Viru Bog boardwalk (about 3.5 km / 2 miles), with its observation tower over dark pools and stunted pines. It's a striking landscape, best seen in the late afternoon once the tour buses have left.

From there it's only an hour's drive to Tallinn, with a last possible stop at Jägala Waterfall, the widest in Estonia. Arriving in the evening, enjoy the old town, the most beautiful of the three capitals, at the time when the cruise passengers have left. For the rest of your stay, we've gathered our tips in things to do in Tallinn (FR), Tallinn's museums and the best bars in Tallinn (FR).

• Route: 150 km (93 miles) from Tartu to Palmse via Route 39 and then the Narva highway, 80 km (50 miles) from Lahemaa to Tallinn
• Time needed: half a day in Lahemaa
• Parking: free parking at the start of the Viru Bog trail (Route 1, near the Loksa turnoff)
• Where to stay: in Tallinn, near the old town, around €90 to €140 a night (2026 estimate)
• See on Google Maps

Adapting the itinerary

• With only 7 days: drop Kaunas (drive Vilnius → Nida directly), Liepāja (Nida → Kuldīga via the inland road) and Tartu (Cēsis → Tallinn via Pärnu). You keep the three capitals, the Curonian Spit, Kuldīga and the Gauja Valley.
• With 12 to 14 days: a second day in Vilnius and in Tallinn, and a night on Saaremaa Island in Estonia (ferry from Virtsu, about 2 days round trip), with its windmills, cliffs and meteorite crater.
• To see the Hill of Crosses: this pilgrimage site covered with hundreds of thousands of crosses lies north of Šiauliai, far from the coast. To include it, swap the coastal route for the inland one: Vilnius → Hill of Crosses → Rundāle Palace (the "Versailles of Latvia") → Riga, at the cost of Nida and Kuldīga.
• As a loop from Riga: if the one-way fee is too high (see below), rent in Riga and drive Riga → Tallinn → Tartu → Vilnius → Nida → Kuldīga → Riga in 12 to 14 days.
• Off-season: in May–June and September, the roads are empty, prices are lower and the days are still long (nearly 19 hours of daylight in Tallinn in late June). In winter, the itinerary is still doable but the days are very short and winter tires are mandatory.

Driving in the Baltics: our tips

Renting a car

The easiest option is to pick up the car at Vilnius airport and drop it off in Tallinn. This one-way rental comes at a price: at Enterprise, for example, the Vilnius → Tallinn drop-off fee was €185 plus VAT in 2026, plus €55 per border crossed (Vilnius branch terms). Fees vary a lot from one company to another: compare them with the rental price itself (often €40 to €70 a day in summer, as a rough guide) and make sure all three countries are allowed in the contract, since driving into a country that isn't covered carries a heavy penalty. A small car is plenty, as the roads are flat and rarely narrow.

Rules to know

• No tolls or vignette for private cars in any of the three countries: the Lithuanian vignette only applies to vans, buses and trucks (Via Lietuva). Only entering the Curonian Spit and Jūrmala costs money.
• Headlights on at all times, day and night, in all three countries.
• Speed limits: 50 km/h (31 mph) in towns, 90 km/h (56 mph) on rural roads, 110 to 130 km/h (68 to 81 mph) on expressways and the Lithuanian highway. Speed cameras are everywhere, and Lithuania uses average-speed checks on some sections.
• Alcohol: limit of 0.02% in Estonia (effectively zero), 0.05% in Latvia, 0.04% in Lithuania, lower for new drivers.
• Winter tires are mandatory from December 1 to March 1 in Estonia and Latvia, and from November 10 to April 1 in Lithuania.
• Driver's license: an EU license is all you need. If you hold a US or other non-EU license, bring an International Driving Permit along with it, and check your rental company's requirements when booking.

On the road

The main roads (the A1 highway in Lithuania, the Via Baltica between Riga and Tallinn) are in good condition but often two-lane, with trucks and roadworks in summer: allow some margin. Smaller roads, especially in Latvia, can be gravel for a few miles, with no particular difficulty. Watch out for moose and deer at dawn and dusk, in the signposted areas. Refueling is easy everywhere, including on Sundays, with automated stations that take cards.

How much does a 10-day Baltic road trip cost?

Estimate for a couple in summer 2026, staying in guesthouses or 3-star hotels:

The Baltic states remain cheaper than Western Europe for food and accommodation outside the capitals; Tallinn and Nida in summer are the two exceptions.

When to go

From mid-May to mid-September. June is our favorite month: the nights are almost white, nature is a bright green, and you can join the Midsummer celebrations (June 23–24), the biggest summer festival in all three countries. July and August are the warmest (20–25 °C / 68–77 °F) but also the busiest, especially in Nida, where the entry fee soars. September brings the first fall colors to the Gauja Valley and lower prices.

Conclusion

This 10-day Baltic road trip holds more surprises than you might expect: people often come for the capitals and leave with the evening light on the Parnidis Dune, the sound of the Venta Rapid in Kuldīga or the silence of Viru Bog in their heads. The quiet roads and short distances make it a relaxing trip, ideal for a first road trip in Northern Europe. If we had to keep only two stops outside the capitals, it would be the Curonian Spit and Kuldīga.

FAQ

How many days do you need for a Baltic road trip?

Ten days let you see the three capitals and the most beautiful natural sites without rushing, with about 2.5 hours of driving a day. In seven days, focus on the capitals, the Curonian Spit and the Gauja Valley; in two weeks, you can add Saaremaa Island and full days in Vilnius and Tallinn.

Can you do this trip without a car?

Yes for the capitals: comfortable buses (Lux Express, Ecolines) link each capital to the next in 4 to 5 hours, and the Rail Baltica railway is still under construction. But the Curonian Spit, Kuldīga, the Gauja Valley and Lahemaa are much harder to reach by public transportation, and that's where the best moments of the trip are.

Is driving in the Baltics easy?

Yes: the terrain is flat, traffic is light outside the cities and the main roads are in good shape. The only challenges are overtaking trucks on two-lane roads, a few gravel stretches in Latvia, summer roadworks and animals at dusk.

Do I need an International Driving Permit?

Not with an EU license. With a US or other non-EU license, carry an International Driving Permit together with your license: it's the safest option with the police and rental companies. The three countries are in the Schengen Area, so there are no systematic checks at the borders between them, but keep your passport with you.

Are there tolls in the Baltics?

No, there are no tolls or vignettes for private cars in Lithuania, Latvia or Estonia. You only pay to enter the Curonian Spit (about €50 in high summer and €10 the rest of the year in 2026) and Jūrmala (€5 a day), plus the Klaipėda ferry (€23.20 round trip).

Which direction is best: Vilnius to Tallinn or the other way around?

Both work. Starting in Vilnius lets you finish in Tallinn, the most beautiful of the three capitals, and keeps the big northern landscapes for the end. The choice mostly depends on flight prices and the one-way rental fee: compare both directions before booking.

About the authors

We are Camille & Fabien, two travelers who love authentic discoveries. On Revel Roads, we share our experiences, our favorite food finds and our best addresses to travel like a local. We wrote this article based on our trip to the Baltic states (Tallinn, Riga) and the research we did to build this driving itinerary. Prices and rules were checked in November 2026.

👉 More about us

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