Vilnius-Sightseeng Guided Tours

Tour № 1 – Šventaragis Valley

Cathedral Basilica of St. Stanislaus & St. Vladislaus
Cathedral Basilica of St. Stanislaus & St. Vladislaus (inside, including the Chapel of St. Casimir, the Chapel of Deportees, the Gasztołd Chapel, the Royal Chapel, St. Wladislaw/Vladislaus/Ladislav Chapel, High alter, Memorial plague to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas Magnus, the Sapieha Madona’s picture, etc)
Cathedral Basilica Bell Tower
Royal Palace of Lithuania (the Palace of Grand Dukes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
Upper Castle
Upper Castle’s West (Gediminas) Tower
Old Arsenal – Museum of Applied Art
New Arsenal – Lithuanian National Museum
Monument to King Mindaugas (1236-1263: Crowned King on July 6th, 1253)
Monument to Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas (1316-1341: the founder of Gediminian-Jagiellonian ruling dynasty)

Tour № 2 – Vilnius University & Monastery Quarter

Vilnius University – Historical Campus (est. 1579)
Vilnius University – the Bronze door of the Central Library
Vilnius University – Historical Campus (inside, including 12 university’s courtyards, Domus Philologiae, Smuglevičius Hall, White (Observatory) Hall, Lelewel Hall, Lithuanian Philology Centre, etc)
Vilnius University – Science Museum
St. Johns’ Church in the Great (Skarga) university’s Courtyard
St. Johns’ Church in the Great (Skarga) university’s Courtyard (inside, including Great alter, Altar of Maria of Loretto, Chapel of St. Anne, Altar of St. Victorino, Organ, several memorial plagues and frescos, etc)
St. Johns’ Church in the Great (Skarga) university’s Courtyard – Bell Tower
Dominican Street
University Street
St. John Street
Church of the Holy Cross and former Hospitaller Monastery
Monument to Laurinas Gucevičius (1753-1798)
Presidential Palace (Prezidentura)
Alumni (Alumnatas) Courtyard
Sanctuary of Divine Mercy
Church of the Holy Spirit and former Dominican Monastery
St. Ignatius Church and former Jesuit novitiate
Plaque for Righteous Among the Nations
Monument to Stanislaw Moniuszko (1819-1872)
St. Catherine’s Church and former Benedictine Monastery

Tour № 3 – From the Cathedral Basilica to Town Hall Square

Buildings of Pilies Street
House of the Signatories
Marija and Jurgis Šlapelis House Museum
Paraskeva Russian Orthodox Church
Pilies Street souvenir open market – What should you buy in Vilnius
Buildings of Didžioji (Great) Street
Vilnius Picture Gallery (Chodkiewicz Palace)
Stendhal House
Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church
Historical Town Hall
Buildings around the Square of Historical Town Hall
Former printing house of Francysk Skaryna (1486-1551) – the Magistrate House
Buildings of Savičiaus Street
Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis’ (1875-1911) Memorial Flat Museum
Church of Blessed Mary the Comforter and the Augustine Monastery
Kazys Varnelis’ (1917-2010) House Museum – Great and Small Guilds
Casimir Church
Buildings of Subačius Street
Bastion – an artillery fortification
Church of the Assumption and former Missionary Monastery

Tour № 4 – Quarter of Three Confessions

Buildings of Aušros Street
Radisson SAS Astorijos Hotel (former Italia hotel)
Building of National Philharmonic
Monument to Jonas Basanavičius (1851-1927) on the square in front of National Philharmonic
Memorial plaque to Ignacy Domeyko (1802-1889)
Baroque gate to Uniate Church of the Holy Trinity and former Basilian Monastery
Uniate Church of the Holy Trinity and former Basilian Monastery
Memorial plaque to Josaphat Kuncevic (St. Josaphat, 1580-1623)
Memorial plaque on the building of former Basilian Monastery where Adam Mickiewicz (1798-1855) was imprisoned
Russian Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit and monastery
Russian Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit (inside, including the remains of the Three Vilnius Martyrs kept under a wooden canopy in front of the iconostasis)
Church of St. Teresa (of Ávila, Spain) and former Carmelite Monastery
Church of St. Teresa (of Ávila, Spain) (inside, including the church’s mural paintings, the Chapel of Pac’s family’s mausoleum, impressive, gently-curved church’s pulpit and the altar)
Chapel of the Gate of Dawn (Medininkų Gate)
The sacred picture of the Holy Virgin Mary in the Chapel of the Gate of Dawn (Medininkų Gate)
Votive objects in the Chapel of the Gate of Dawn (Medininkų Gate)
The Gate of Dawn (Medininkų Gate) from the southern side with a Renaissance composition of Vytis

Tour № 5 – Jewish Quarter

Small and Large Vilnius Jewish Ghettos
Monument to the Vilna Gaon
Mark Antokolski (1840-1902) House
Former Mattityahu Strashun (1817-1885) Jewish Library
Vokiečių gatvė (German Street)
Contemporary Art Centre
„Barbara“ sculpture
Monument in remembrance of Vilnius Ghetto martyrs and fighters in 1941-1943
Church of St. Nicholas
A sculpture of Vilnius Patron Saint Christopher in the yard of the Church of St. Nicholas
Evangelical Lutheran Church
Amatų gildija (Artisan guild) open ceramic workshop and gallery
Former Vilnius ghetto theatre 1941-1943
Former Gothic façade at Karmelitų gatvę (Carmelite Street)
Closed courtyards with open galleries, characteristic of Old Town architecture
Church of All Saints and former Carmelite Monastery
A section of Vilnius historical defensive wall
The sculpture named „Egg“
Monument to Tzemach Shabad (1864-1935)
Choral Synagogue
Church of the Assumption of the Holy Virgin Mary and former Franciscan Monastery
Sculpture of the Holy Virgin Mary (The White Mother of God)
Suzin’s built Baroque-style family mausoleum chapel
A monument to Jozef Montwiłł (1850-1911)

Tour № 6 – Bends of the River Vilnia

Adam Mickiewicz’s Memorial Flat Museum
Church of St. Anne
Church of St. Francis and St. Bernardine
Chapel of the Holy Steps
Monument to Adam Mickiewicz
Church of St. Michael the Archangel
Adam Mickiewitz’s House
Sereikiškių Park
Amber Museum
Russian Orthodox Church of the Blessed Mother of God
„Angel of Užupis“ sculpture
Constitution of the „Republic of Užupis“
Church of St. Bartholomew
Bernardinų Cemetery

Tour № 7 – City Centre

Three Crosses Monument on the Three Crosses Hill
Church of St. Peter and St. Paul
Petras Vileišis Estate
Tuskulėnų Park with columbarium
A building of Lithuanian Energy
A building of Lithuanian Theatre, Music and Film (A Small Radziwiłł Palace)
A Great Radziwiłł Palace
Vilna Gaon Jewish State Museum
Sculpture or Roman Gary
A monument to Frank Zappa
Museum of Genocide Victims (former KGB Headquarters)
A plaque to Chiune Sugihara

All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic

Choral Synagogue in Vilnius

Choral Synagogue is the place of the only working synagogue and school "Tarahat Hakodesh" in Vilnius This synagogue is built in the Oriental Moorish style and is only survived one out of some 105 before WWII synagogues and other Judaic prayer housesThe exterior contains an inscription in Hebrew "A prayer house is sacred for all nations", and above the pediment the tablets with the Ten Divine Commandments are representedAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

The Vilnius Picture Gallery (Chodkiewicz Palace)

The family of the noblemen Chodkiewicz bought a house that stood on this site, and transformed it into a Renaissance residenceGrand Hall of the Vilnius Picture Gallery in former Chodkiewicz PalaceThe Classicist interior of the palace is a notable feature of the building of former Chodkiewicz Palace, today the Vilnius Picture GalleryAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

Church of St. Anne

Church of St. Anne (left) and Bernardine Church (right). The church of St. Anne is a unique monument of red firebrick Gothic architecture in LithuaniaSt. Anne Church, designed in 1495-1500 by Benedikt Rejt, built up at the turn of the 15th century, and renovated in 1902-1909. 35 different kinds of brick were used help in creating the church. The façade was reinforced in 1960-1970St. Anne Church - a church which French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte wanted to put on his palm and carry it over to Paris. The Church of St. Anne is symmetrical, marked by graceful, pointed forms that continue upwardAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2018

St. Ignatius Street

At the Church of the Holy Spirit, a Dominican monastery was established on St. Ignatius Street in 1501. In the 19th century, the buildings of the monastery were converted into a prison The entrance from St. Ignatius Street to the former old Jesuit Novitiate: arranged around three courtyards. It is the same age as the nearby Church of St. IgnatiusThe Church of St. Ignatius was erected from 1622 to 1647 being devastated by fires in 1748-1750. It suffered during the war against Russia from 1655 to 1661. The porch was added in the 19th century.All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

The Museum of Archaeology of Lithuania

The museum is located in the north wing of the Old Arsenal and looks at Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Age Lithuania followed by the various tribes that inhabited the area until they combined to form a state in the 13th centuryThe museum displays object found in burial sites, such as pins, amulets, rings, brooches, knives or necklaces. You can as well as see regional dressses of Lithuanian tribes before the formation of the state in the mid-13th century The museum shows a hoard of some 16.000 17th-century coins found in 1999 in Vilnius. It is believed that the hoard may have been hidden during the 1700-1721 Great Northen War. Nevertheless, it is the largest collection of old coins to be found in Lithuania All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

Chapel of St. Casimir (interior)

The silver cofin of St. Casimir is under a plaster canopy accompanied by relics. Under the cofin is a miraculous painting in a silver frame, with a silver statue with the saint's attributes placed on the cofin. The relief features a very rare depiction of a smiling Blessed Virgin Mary with Baby JesusIn the chapel there are eight silver-plated wooden Baroque statues of the Kings and Grand Dukes of Poland and Lithuania from the Gediminid and Jagiellon dynasties from the 17th centuryThree-Handed Image of St. Casimir c. 1520. This painting is considered to be miraculous. In 1743 the painting was put into a silver, gold-plated framing. St. Casimir is holding lilies and a rosary, which are his symbolsAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

Presidential Palace

The main façade of the Presidential Palace (Prezidentura) in Vilnius at Simonas Daukantas SquareThe presidential coat-of-arms is adorning the entrance to the President's Chancellery on University StreetThe Inner Courtyard of the Presidential Palace - the palace of the President of the Republic of Lithuania since 1997All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2018

Gothic Brick Architecture in Vilnius: Pilies (Castle) Str.

There were formerly two separate Gothic houses. Both were built before 1514 and belonged to clergy, goldsmiths, a surgeon and pharmacists. During the 1655-1661 war with Russia they were damaged and handed over to the capitulary of the Cathedral, which had them rebuilt in the Baroque styleThe building were severely damaged during the Second World War and renovated in 1957-1960Decorative Gothic façades and cylindrical vaults in the basement and on the ground floor have been reconstructed All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2019

Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania (Inside)

One of the meeting rooms in the library for public lectures, book presentations and discussionsOne of the exibition hallsOne of the Reading RoomsAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

Vilnius Panorama of the Neris River

Mindaugas Bridge is constructed in 2003. It has the name of the only Lithuanian King crowned on July 6th, 1253On the foothill on the left riverside of Neris, there is a Renaissance building of Old Arsenal followed by the buildings of House of the Castle Keeper and New Arsenal On the right riverside of Neris, a new business center of Vilnius is growing during the last two decadesAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2019

Church of St. Stephen

St. Lazarus' almshouse operated in this church, plague and famine victims were buried there. In 1715, the church and the monastery were given to the brethren of St. Rochus who tended to sick people, and in 1752 - to the sisters of MaryIn a cemetery at the church many outstanding people were buried, among others architect Laurynas Stuoka-Gucevičius. A memorial plaque to him is set up on the south façade of the church. However, later the cemetery was turned into a storage site of construction materialsThe church was severely damaged during a fire in 1794. The church was reconstructed and slightly transformed in 1801-1806. In 1864, the convent was closed down, and the buildings converted into a prisonAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

“Republic of Užupis”

Užupio street is the main street in the city's district of Užupis. The district was in the Soviet time one of the most dilapidated districts in Vilnius. Many of the buildings did not have electricity and sanitary facilities, and the streets were unlitThe River Užupis which separates Užupis district from the Old Town. On one side of the river is a unique ensemble of sacred buildings and a park, while on the other side is "Republic of Užupis", where a number of artists live and work"Angel of Užupis" sculpture. An angel is playing a trumpet that provides ideas about Užupis to others and protects the district. The 24th Article of the Constitution of Užupis, for instance, says that "Everyone has the right to understand nothing". The district is separated from the Old Town by the River Vilnia on three sides, and by a high hill on the fourth sideAll photos ...

Šiltadaržio St. in Vilnius

Šiltadaržio St. is ending at Bernardinų St.Art Printing House Culture Center with the Theater in the streetIn the streeet, there is a Toy Museum and other cultural atractionsAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

The Wroblewski Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences

The Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences was established in 1941 together with the Academy of Sciences, in the building of the former State Wróblewski LibraryBetween two world wars, State Wróblewski Library was one of the largest libraries in Vilnius. It was founded by lower Tadeusz Wróblewski. In 1941, the new Library inherited from it some 163.000 volumes, more than 35.000 manuscripts, large collections of numismatics, cartography, and artworksAfter WWII, the Library was supplemented by extensive collections from other libraries. Today, its stocks count more than 3.77 mln itemsAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

Vilnius University Est. 1579

The Old Campus in the Old town - Rectorate building. On April 1st, 1579 the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Stephen Bathory issues a royal charter recognizing the Jesuit College into a universityThe Old Campus in the Old town - Rector's Office and former Astronomical Observatory building (right) and the Central Library building (left) with the Central Library Courtyard in front of the buildingsThe History Facutly building (left) and the Central Library building (right) with the arched gates to Mikalojus Dukša Courtyard (left) and Mathias Casimir Sarbievius Courtyard (forward). The Old Campus of the university has 13 courtyardsAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2018

Vilnius Old Town Hall

The Town Hall hosted a court, archive, weapons depository, as well as a prison for artisans that had broken the law. Burgomasters also held meetings in the Town Hall, as did the Council of Merchants Since 1991, Vilnius Old Town Hall once again is functioning as a place for holding important events like art exhibitions, concerts, conferences, meetings, etcIn the Middle Ages, the Town Hall Square was a place where physical punishment was carried out. There were gallows and a scaffold nearby, where executions were carried outAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2019

Church of St. Catherine and Former Benedictine Monastery

It was built by the Benedictine Sisters near their convent. It acquired its present-day appearance after a great fire in Vilnius in 1737. The church has a rich interior decorated with stucco mouldings and artificial marble. Today the church is restored and adapted for concerts. It also hosts the International Christopher Summer Music FestivalFlanking the church on Vilniaus Street, a particularly elegant Chapel of Providence was erected in 1641 and rebuilt in 1746The single-nave church has 9 magnificent Late Baroque altars and a pulpitAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2018

The Building in Vilnius Street No. 25

The building in Vilnius Street in Vilnius No. 25 in which Jonas Basanavičius died in hospital on February 16th, 1927. The day of his death coincided with the anniversary of the Independence Act in 1918A memorial plaque on the building informs that in this building in 1909 the Editorial Board of the oldest Lithuanian newspaper "Lithuanian News" started to work Another memorial plague on the building as this building housed a music school, where the famous violinist Jascha Heifetz studied in 1905-1909 All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2022

The Old Arsenal in Vilnius

In 1986 the east winf of the Old Arsenal was restored. It houses the Museum of Applied Art and Design. The Old Arsenal enables the visitors to feel the ambience of the Renaissance Vilnius The building of the Old Arsenal was remodelled by Sigismund Augustus (second half of the 16th century) in the Renaissance style, mainly by adding a third floor (the attic), decorated in double arch niches. In was an enormous building, reputed to be the largest in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth The Old Arsenal was badly damaged during the war with Russia in 1655-1661, and remained a virtual ruin until the late 18th century when in 1780 was rebuilt and burned down at the end of WWIIAll photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2020

Church of St. Jacob and Philip (2)

The present church was built in the late 17th century, after its predecessor was burnt down in the 1655 during the war with Russia. The church was completed only in the middle of the 18th century The nave is 24 metres high, making it the tallest in Vilnius; and its length is the same, with accounts for its concentrated appearance when viewed from the sideIn the north tower is a particularly ornate chapel, dedicated to the Dominican St. Hyacinth, with frescoes depicting scenes from his life. The fresco above the entrance depicts the Virgin Mary and Angels. The church was returned to the Dominicans in 1993All photos are copyrighted by Vladislav B. Sotirovic© Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2018