My quest for the best Christmas market EVER continues in 2025 as I embark on a four country tour of Christmas Markets in the Balkans.
I booked through GateOne, the same company I did my Spain/Portugal tour with last year, because they move at a slower pace and I wanted to see if I can travel again. We are only staying at Radisson hotels vs more local chains, so I loaded up at breakfast for the long walking tour ahead.
The city was recently crowned EU Christmas Capital for 2025 by the Christmas Cities Network. Vilnius is known for its enchanting, tradition-meets-innovation festive atmosphere, famous artistic Christmas trees in Cathedral Square, vibrant markets, and unique events like Christmas currency and gingerbread buses. We JUST missed the Christmas currency on December 13 but I will barage you with a plethora of pictures to make up for it.
The first full morning in town started with a 3 hour tour, 2 hours of which was walking through Old Town and the Jewish Quarter. Unfortunately, there was so much to see on this walking tour that I didn’t capture all the names of churches, cathedrals and highlights. Hopefully the pictures will suffice.
This is the phrase for “greetings” in Lithuanian, in front of the Presidential palace, where he is hard at work to tie up loose ends before the end of the year. Fun fact: The current President chose NOT to live here but keep his all glass house in a nice neighborhood of Vilnius, which he helped design.
The Church of Saints Peter and Paul the Apostles
Our first stop was St Peter and Paul, a famous and incredibly well maintained Baroque style cathedral. Construction began in 1668 and was consecrated in 1701.
When you first enter the cathedral, you will see a stunning crystal ship since St. Peter was the patron saint for sailors
As we progressed towards the front of the church, we saw a series of side chapels with stunning statues ending in frescos on the ceiling.
Looking back, you can see the frescos that decorate the ceiling.
Lithuanians can designate around 2% of their taxes to a non-profit of their choice, such as their church, to ensure everyone can marvel at its beauty.