How To Make the Most of a Day Trip to Trakai, Lithuania

Disclosure: This post (probably) contains affiliate links. If you click on one, I may make a small commission. Of course, this will come at no extra cost to you and helps keep this site running.

For travellers to Lithuania and the country’s capital, the most popular day trip from Vilnius is to see the castle at Trakai. Having failed to visit Trakai the first time I went to Lithuania, this picturesque island castle became a priority on my second trip. Surrounded by lakes, Trakai Castle has it all: beautiful surrounding scenery, a classic look and quite an interesting story to tell. With all that, a day trip to Trakai from Vilnius is a no-brainer.

Quite possibly the best day trip from Vilnius, visiting Trakai Island Castle is also one of the easiest from the Lithuanian capital. Even still, it always helps to know what you’re in store for so you don’t miss out on anything. Because honestly, there are more things to do in Trakai than you might expect. With that in mind, here’s all you need to know to have a great Trakai day trip during your Vilnius visit.

Getting to Trakai from Vilnius

When it comes to making your way to Trakai Castle, you’re really spoilt for choice. Not only are there multiple options for getting there but they range from cheap public transport to a tour where you don’t worry about a thing. For my liking, day trips are always the best when they’re easy and a Trakai day trip is really pretty easy.

Let’s start with the comfortable approach and go from there. If worrying about transport and finding your way doesn’t appeal to you, then a tour is the way to go. With a guided tour like this, you get a half day at Trakai which is just about right. For comfort and a degree of freedom in your days activities, renting a car while in Vilnius may be a better way to go. That way, your schedule is purely your own for the 30 km drive.

If like me, your more interested in taking public transport to Trakai, then you’re in luck. There are both direct bus and train connections between Vilnius and Trakai that are nearly identical in terms of cost and journey time. Both reach Trakai in under 40 minutes, but the bus runs 2-3 times an hour whereas the train goes every 2-3 hours. In the end, it’s all a matter of timing and they both only cost around 2€ each way.

Town of Trakai

Before actually getting to the island castle, you first need to pass through the town of Trakai. Much like the island castle, the town sits on a narrow stretch of land between several lakes. From the main road through, that’s not particularly obvious though. With plenty of typical Baltic wooden houses and the odd larger building, Trakai is really quite a low-key place. If you’re looking for cafes or restaurants away from the other day-trippers then the town centre is kind of perfect for that.

The major landmark you’re likely to encounter before you reach the island castle is the Trakai History Museum and the town’s other castle. Yes, there are actually two castles in Trakai, the Trakai Island Castle and the Trakai Peninsula Castle, which both host the museum. Having already spent time reading through the castle’s exhibits at the island castle, I decided not to visit the other part of the museum, especially since there seemed to be a kids event loudly going on inside.

Trakai Island Castle

As soon as you reach the shores of Lake Galve, the gleaming orange form of Trakai Island Castle should stand before you. Reached by a series of bridges and islands, this castle’s setting couldn’t be more romantic. It certainly helps with the leisurely atmosphere that you see paddle boats and sailboats gently gliding about the waters nearby. After visiting the castle, you could easily spend the rest of the day just making the most of the lake in front of you.

In fact, there’s a whole waterfront of different souvenir stores and restaurants that would seem in their own little world were it not for the castle view. It’s also possible to a gentle lake cruise around the castle from some of the closer islands, with tours going for around 5€.

History of Trakai Castle

After crossing the islands, it’s hard not to be struck by the presence of the castle in front of you. Before or after going inside, I recommend walking a loop around the castle on the small island to see what it looks like from all the different angles. You’ll probably notice that there’s a lot of variety in the stones and bricks built into this structure. That’s because the castle looked quite different before it underwent major restoration efforts at the start of the 20th century.

Trakai Island Castle was built in the late 14th century around the same time as the current town of Trakai. Constructed under two successive Grand Dukes, Trakai was actually the second most important city in all of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the 15th century. Many of the Grand Dukes preferred staying in Trakai rather than Vilnius and many foreign dignitaries were met here. Trakai actually prospered economically as well but things started to decline around the 17th century.

Island Castle Tour

When you step foot inside the main entrance gate, it’s only then that you get a sense of how large Trakai Island Castle is. Upon paying 8€ (as of March 2019) for the entrance ticket to the island castle, you find yourself standing before a huge outer courtyard. This space leading up to the Ducal Palace is filled with a couple of cages and stockades, but also men dressed as warriors reenacting fights. Once inside, you’re free to wander as you please with exhibits in the palace and other castle rooms.

With the museum spanning right through the castle, there are exhibits on many different facets of the castle, its people and its history. There were of course exhibits on period weaponry and clothing, but then more idiosyncratic displays such as antique smoking pipes and antique Lithuanian tourism brochures. With that kind of range, you’re guaranteed to find at least one exhibit that grabs your attention.

One of the exhibits I personally found really fascinating was on the diversity of Trakai during the 15th century. People of many different ethnicity and faiths were represented among the city’s population of 4000, including the Karaim and Tartar people. The Tartars were Muslims from the distant region of Crimea, where the Karaim were also from. Brought to Trakai as soldiers, these communities thrived for centuries, allowed to freely worship and self-govern.

Visiting Trakai Island Castle

Although I’ve described Trakai as a day trip from Vilnius, half day trip might be more accurate. If you choose to just see the island castle and its exhibits, Trakai could work as a morning or afternoon activity. Of course, you won’t have trouble finding things to fill a day here though. What’s great is that visiting Trakai on a budget isn’t hard, but there are opportunities to splurge too if you like. Plus, that view of the castle across the bridge is hard to resist, am I right?

Have you ever wanted to visit Trakai Castle in Lithuania? Have you visited before and think there are other things worth knowing before people go? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

This article is now available as a mobile app. Go to GPSmyCity to download the app for GPS-assisted travel directions to the attractions featured in this article.