‘Lithuania, my fatherland…’ is from Poland’s romantic masterpiece Pan Tadeusz. Its Polish author Adam Mickiewicz (1798–1855) – muse to Polish nationalists in the 19th century – grew up near Vilnius and studied at the university (1815–19) before being exiled for anti-Russian activities in 1824. The rooms where he wrote the well-known poem Grażyna (Lithuanian: Gražia; a Polish name for a woman with Lithuanian roots meaning ‘beauty’) are now filled with some of the poet’s letters.
Mickiewicz Memorial Apartment & Museum
Vilnius
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania
0.22 MILES
If you only see one museum in Vilnius, make it this one. On a site that has been settled since the 4th century AD stands the latest in a procession of…
0.25 MILES
Stately Vilnius Cathedral, divorced from its freestanding belfry, is a national symbol and the city's most instantly recognisable building. Known in full…
0.18 MILES
Founded in 1579 during the Catholic Counter Reformation, Vilnius University was run by Jesuits for two centuries. During the 19th century it became one of…
0.91 MILES
This former headquarters of the KGB (and before them the Gestapo, Polish occupiers and Tsarist judiciary) houses a museum dedicated to thousands of…
0.26 MILES
Climb the creaky stairs into the free-standing belfry of Vilnius Cathedral, once part of the city's 13th-century defences. Towering 57m high, it's one of…
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14.53 MILES
Stepping across the wooden walkway to Trakai's Gothic castle is like tripping into a fairy tale. The castle is estimated to date from around 1400, when…
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10.4 MILES
Some 21km north of Vilnius, off the Utena road, is Europos Parkas. Leading contemporary sculptors, including Sol LeWitt and Dennis Oppenheim, show over…
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0.25 MILES
Katedros aikštė buzzes with local life. In the 19th century markets and fairs were held here and a moat ran around what is now the square’s perimeter so…
Nearby Vilnius attractions
1. St Michael the Archangel Church
0.03 MILES
This grand early-17th-century chuch, built by the Sapiega family, now houses a wonderful museum of sacral art. The building itself, with its single Gothic…
0.04 MILES
Dedicated to Baltic gold and the beautiful things it can be crafted into, this enthusiastic little museum occupies a 17th-century baroque house. Upstairs…
0.05 MILES
Flamboyant and Gothic St Anne's Church, a vision of undulating lines and red-brick arches, was built in 1500 on the site of a wooden church that burned to…
4. Bernadine Church & Monastery
0.09 MILES
The massive buttresses and towering walls of this, one of the most impressive churches in Vilnius, are capable of providing defence as well as worship…
0.11 MILES
This excellent museum is a fun romp through the ages for kids and adults alike. Acquaint yourself with 12th-century games and peruse the extensive…
0.12 MILES
Lithuania's Declaration of Independence was signed here on 16 February 1918. Today, across 14 rooms of this 18th-century house, you'll find a reverent…
0.13 MILES
The gallery of the courtyard – the largest of the 13 that comprise Vilnius University's 'architectural ensemble' – features plaques commemorating the…
0.13 MILES
The full name is 'Church of St Johns, St John the Baptist and St John the Apostle and Evangelist', but 'Sts Johns' (plural) will do nicely. Founded in…