With over 250,000 specimens spread over three floors, this museum covers the animal kingdom from the imposing taxidermy mammals (bison, muskox, big cats, hippos, primates) to varied birdlife, and even a paleontological section full of mammoth remains. It was founded in 1919 by Tadas, a famous Lithuanian naturalist, and the displays are thorough and well organised, but you leave with a wistful feeling that you'd rather have seen these creatures alive and in the wild.
Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum
Kaunas
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
3.38 MILES
Lithuania's dark 20th-century history is poignantly told here, 7km north of Kaunas. Begin in the sombre, church-like gallery with striking stained glass…
-
MK Čiurlionis National Museum of Art
0.33 MILES
One of Lithuania's oldest and grandest galleries, Kaunas' leading art museum (founded 1921) is the place to acquaint yourself with the dreamlike paintings…
-
27.06 MILES
Housed inside a former 18th-century Carmelite monastery, this is a particularly thorough introduction to the history of the region and the town. Displays…
-
1.21 MILES
Kaunas-based Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara (1900–86) saved around 6000 Jewish lives between 1939 and 1940, issuing transit visas to stranded Polish…
-
0.33 MILES
This museum is devoted to the Devil, Lucifer, Satan, the fallen angel, the seducer, the cajoler, with over 3000 statuettes, carvings, masks and other…
-
0.1 MILES
Artist Vytenis Jakas moved into this courtyard over a decade ago and turned it into an ever-evolving art project, creating murals and transferring onto…
-
0.05 MILES
Built in 1871, the only functioning synagogue of those that survived since 1941, and one of the few remnants of Kaunas' once-strong Jewish community, this…
-
4.96 MILES
Built by Camaldolese monks in the 17th century, this striking baroque monastery lies 9km east of central Kaunas, on a promontory jutting into the Kauno…
Nearby Kaunas attractions
0.05 MILES
Built in 1871, the only functioning synagogue of those that survived since 1941, and one of the few remnants of Kaunas' once-strong Jewish community, this…
0.07 MILES
This late-15th-century Gothic gem is tucked in a courtyard off Laisvės alėja. Its red-brick crypt overflows with burning candles, prompting a separate…
3. Statue of Vytautas the Great
0.08 MILES
Medieval Lithuania's legendary Duke poses sternly with his sword.
0.09 MILES
The Field of Sacrifice – a name engraved on paving slabs in front of the City Garden – is a tragic tribute to the 19-year-old Kaunas hero Romas Kalanta,…
0.1 MILES
Artist Vytenis Jakas moved into this courtyard over a decade ago and turned it into an ever-evolving art project, creating murals and transferring onto…
6. Presidential Palace of Lithuania
0.26 MILES
This handsome 19th-century building was the seat of government for the Republic of Lithuania between the wars. Restored to its original grandeur, it now…
0.33 MILES
This museum is devoted to the Devil, Lucifer, Satan, the fallen angel, the seducer, the cajoler, with over 3000 statuettes, carvings, masks and other…
8. MK Čiurlionis National Museum of Art
0.33 MILES
One of Lithuania's oldest and grandest galleries, Kaunas' leading art museum (founded 1921) is the place to acquaint yourself with the dreamlike paintings…