In-depth guide · CampingSpirit
Around 730 kilometres from Vilnius via Trakai, the mushroom forests of Dzūkija and the spa town of Druskininkai to Kaunas, the Hill of Crosses and the lake country of Samogitia: a journey away from the coast on which you will see more wooden houses than hotels.
The spirit of the route
Inland Lithuania is quiet. Beyond Trakai the pine forest closes in, the road narrows, and in the sand beside the tarmac stand the bicycles of mushroom pickers who emerge from the undergrowth with full buckets. Dzūkija smells of resin and heather, the villages are made up of grey log houses with blue shutters, and in the evening mist rises over the Ūla. Further west the land becomes hillier and more Catholic: wayside crosses at every junction, calvaries, a hill with hundreds of thousands of crosses that rattles in the wind. From the sliding door you see lakes where nobody drives a motorboat, storks on electricity pylons and forest edges behind which Soviet nuclear missiles stood for decades. The route demands no mountain passes and no ferry bookings, but it does call for composure on sand tracks, respect for the nearby border with Belarus and a willingness to spend the night in a farmyard rather than on a lakeshore.
Stage-by-stage plan
1Stage 1: Vilnius to Trakai (approx. 30 km)
- The drive
- From the centre of Vilnius take the A1 (E85) towards Kaunas and after a good 20 kilometres turn onto the country road to Trakai. Four lanes and flat, slow on the arterial roads during rush hour. Pure driving time is half an hour; set aside the morning for a short walk around Vilnius and only set off afterwards.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Vilnius Old Town (UNESCO World Heritage Site): a short loop from the Gate of Dawn (Aušros vartai) along Pilies Street to the cathedral is enough for a first impression.
- Užupis across the Vilnia: an artists’ quarter with back courtyards, wooden balconies and the constitution of the self-proclaimed “republic” in many languages on a house wall.
- Užutrakis Manor on the eastern shore of Lake Galvė opposite Trakai: a neoclassical manor house with a landscape park and a view of the island castle.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: In Trakai, Slėnis campsite (Kempingas Slėnyje) lies on Lake Galvė, around three kilometres from the castle area, with electricity, sanitary facilities and a swimming spot; during the summer holidays arrive early in the day. Check facilities, length limits and season dates in advance.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Trakai Historical National Park only allows overnight stays at campsites and designated camping areas. Lakeside car parks can be used during the day but are not intended for the night; the park administration and police may carry out checks.
- Insider tip for campers
- The island castle is at its most beautiful early in the morning and in the evening, when the coaches from Vilnius have gone. On Karaimų Street stand the colourful wooden houses of the Karaim, with three windows facing the street, and their prayer house (kenesa); the small Karaim museum explains the history of the Turkic-speaking minority that has lived by the lake since the 14th century. In Vilnius, do not drive the camper into the Old Town – cobbled lanes, little space, paid parking zones.
2Stage 2: Trakai to Marcinkonys (Dzūkija National Park) (approx. 120 km)
- The drive
- Via Rūdiškės south onto the A4 towards Varėna, a well-built, almost dead-straight road through pine forest. Beyond Varėna take minor roads to Marcinkonys; the last kilometres to the villages on the Ūla are partly gravel or sand tracks. About 2 hours’ driving.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Zervynos: a linear village of log houses on the Ūla in which Dzūkija’s traditional building style has survived – walk through the village on foot, people live there.
- Nature trail on the edge of the Čepkeliai bog near Marcinkonys with a boardwalk and an observation tower over Lithuania’s largest raised bog; the reserve itself is strictly protected.
- National park visitor centre in Marcinkonys with maps, trail descriptions and information on the rules for mushroom and berry pickers.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: There are no large campsites in the national park; the park directorate and the state forest service designate simple camping areas (stovyklavietės) on the Ūla and Merkys with a fire pit and pit toilet, some for a fee, without electricity or disposal. A number of farms taking part in “kaimo turizmas” (rural tourism) accept motorhomes by arrangement. Ask at the visitor centre for the current list.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Overnight stays in the national park are only permitted at designated camping areas and campsites; forest tracks and riverbanks are off limits, as is driving on forest tracks with a no-entry sign. In the south the park extends to the border with Belarus – the Čepkeliai bog lies right on it. Do not enter the marked border strip.
- Insider tip for campers
- Before setting off, fill up with fuel, shop and top up water in Varėna – the forest villages have hardly any shops and no disposal. Only drive sand tracks after rain or in dry spells if you can see the surface: heavy motorhomes quickly dig themselves into loose sand. Varėna is regarded as Lithuania’s mushroom capital; a mushroom festival is traditionally held there in September.
3Stage 3: Marcinkonys to Druskininkai via Merkinė and Liškiava (approx. 70 km)
- The drive
- Through the forest north-west to Merkinė at the confluence of the Merkys and the Nemunas, then south on the A4, with a detour to Liškiava on the steep bank of the Nemunas, to Druskininkai. Tarmac, flat to gently rolling, a few bends in the Nemunas valley. Around 1.5 hours.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Merkinė hill fort above the confluence of the Merkys and the Nemunas, plus an observation tower with a view over the floodplains.
- Liškiava: the baroque Holy Trinity Church of the former Dominican monastery and the hill fort with a view into the Nemunas valley.
- Grūtas Park near Druskininkai: an open-air museum with the statues of Lenin, Stalin and party officials removed from Lithuanian towns after 1990, with exhibitions on the Soviet era and deportation.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Druskininkai campsite (Druskininkų kempingas) on Gardino Street on the southern edge of the spa town, around a kilometre from the centre: electric hook-ups, sanitary facilities, disposal for grey water and cassettes; open in the summer season, check dates and prices with the operator in advance. A good place to top up water and empty tanks after the forest villages.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In Druskininkai, overnight stays in public car parks are not expressly forbidden but are frowned upon in the spa area, and many spaces are paid. Druskininkai lies only a few kilometres from the border with Belarus; forest and riverside paths heading south lead into the border zone. Observe the markings and signs of the border guard, and do not head towards the border by canoe or drone.
- Insider tip for campers
- Visit Grūtas Park in the morning if you can; the large car park at the entrance also takes motorhomes. In Druskininkai an evening on the promenade by Lake Druskonis and the cable car across the Nemunas to the Snow Arena are worthwhile. The centre is traffic-calmed – leave the camper at the campsite and get around on foot or by bike.
4Stage 4: Druskininkai to Kaunas (approx. 125 km)
- The drive
- Back north on the A4 to Merkinė, then via Alytus and on along well-built country roads into the Nemunas valley to Kaunas. Flat, little traffic, town through-roads with traffic lights in Alytus and Kaunas. Around 2 hours’ pure driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Kaunas Old Town with the town hall (the “White Swan”), the Gothic Perkūnas House and the castle at the confluence of the Nemunas and the Neris.
- The modernist Kaunas of the interwar period (UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2023): Laisvės alėja, the Church of the Resurrection with its roof terrace, the Central Post Office and numerous functionalist residential buildings – best explored by bike or on foot from the New Town.
- Ninth Fort: a tsarist-era fortification in which tens of thousands of people, predominantly Jews from Kaunas and Jews deported from Germany, were murdered during the German occupation; museum and memorial on the north-western edge of the city.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: On the western edge of the city at Raudondvario plentas 161A lies the Kaunas Campinn campsite for motorhomes and tents; check facilities, season and disposal with the operator before arriving. The centre is easy to reach by bus.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Within the city the same applies as in Vilnius: overnight stays in public car parks are not generally forbidden as long as you are not camping, but the centre has paid zones, tight spaces and night-time activity. For a single night, only use supervised or designated sites.
- Insider tip for campers
- The Ninth Fort lies on the north-western edge of the city near the A1 towards Klaipėda, with a large car park, and is only a few kilometres from the campsite on Raudondvario plentas. The Old Town is unsuitable for large vehicles; in Aleksotas the historic funicular takes you up to the viewpoint above the rooftops. You will find supermarkets of the big chains with large car parks on the arterial roads.
5Stage 5: Kaunas to Šiauliai and the Hill of Crosses (approx. 175 km)
- The drive
- North via Kėdainiai and Šeduva on well-built country roads through flat farmland to Šiauliai, then on the A12 towards Joniškis to the Hill of Crosses, around 12 kilometres north of the town. Few bends, long straights, many average-speed checks. About 2.5 hours.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Hill of Crosses (Kryžių kalnas): a small hill covered with hundreds of thousands of crosses, rosaries and statues of saints, levelled several times by the Soviet authorities and put up again each time. Early in the morning or at dusk it is almost silent there.
- Franciscan friary at the Hill of Crosses: a large window behind the altar of the church opens up a view of the hill.
- Šiauliai: the Vilniaus Street pedestrian zone and the Bicycle Museum, which documents the tradition of the local bicycle factory.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Around 20 kilometres north of the Hill of Crosses, Sunny Nights Camping near Gataučiai in Joniškis district on the A12 (E77) takes motorhomes, with electric hook-ups, sanitary facilities and disposal for grey water and cassettes, in a rural setting; open in the summer season, check dates with the operator in advance. Alternatively, rural tourism farms around Šiauliai offer pitches by arrangement.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): At the Hill of Crosses there is a large visitor car park with toilets and a shop, which is fine for motorhomes during the day; it is not an overnight spot, and restraint is called for at a pilgrimage site. Wild camping on farm tracks only with the owners’ permission.
- Insider tip for campers
- If you would like to put up a cross of your own, small wooden crosses are sold at the stalls by the car park. In Šiauliai there are large supermarkets and filling stations with LPG on the ring roads – convenient for stocking up before rural Žemaitija.
6Stage 6: Šiauliai to Plateliai (Žemaitija National Park) (approx. 150 km)
- The drive
- Back through Šiauliai and west via Kuršėnai and Luokė into hilly Samogitia, via Telšiai or Plungė to Lake Plateliai. West of Šiauliai the landscape becomes more rolling, with moraine hills, forests and small lakes; the last kilometres are narrow tarmac roads. About 2.5 hours.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Lake Plateliai: one of the largest and clearest lakes in Lithuania, with several islands including Castle Island (Pilies sala), swimming spots and boat hire.
- Plateliai manor park with the old “Witches’ Ash” and the mask exhibition in the granary: carved wooden masks for the Užgavėnės Shrovetide festival.
- Žemaitija National Park visitor centre in Plateliai with maps of cycling and walking routes around the lake.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Laumių lankų sodyba on the southern edge of Plateliai is a farm with pitches for motorhomes; clarify electricity, water and disposal, other facilities and the season by phone in advance. On the eastern shore of the lake near Paežerės Rūdaičiai lies Atžalynas campsite, around 250 metres from the water, with wooden cabins, lakeside tent pitches, a sports ground and boat hire – ask beforehand whether there is room for motorhomes.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In Žemaitija National Park overnight stays are only permitted at campsites and the park administration’s designated camping areas; many lie right on the lake and charge a fee. Do not stay overnight at swimming spots or on lakeside paths; fires only in the existing fire pits.
- Insider tip for campers
- Plateliai is small: a shop, a café and a few places to stay. Better to refuel (LPG too) and do larger shopping beforehand in Telšiai or Plungė. A cycle path of a good 20 kilometres runs around the lake, partly on gravel – ideal with your own bikes from the rear rack.
7Stage 7: Plateliai to Telšiai via Plokštinė and Žemaičių Kalvarija (approx. 60 km)
- The drive
- From the lake on narrow forest and minor roads to the former Plokštinė missile base, then back along the eastern shore north to Žemaičių Kalvarija and on country roads over hills and fields to Telšiai. Short but winding and narrow; wait in passing places for oncoming traffic. Around 1.5 hours without stops.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Plokštinė Cold War Museum: underground silos of a Soviet nuclear missile base from the early 1960s, deep in the forest; tours through the tunnels and to one of the silos where a missile once stood.
- Žemaičių Kalvarija: a basilica and Way of the Cross with 19 chapels across the hills around the village, the destination of a large pilgrimage every July.
- Telšiai on Lake Mastis: the capital of Samogitia, with the baroque cathedral on the hill and a lakeside promenade.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: In Telšiai motorhomes are best parked at farm stays and campsites on Lake Mastis or in the surrounding villages; the choice is small and changes, so check current sites on Campercontact or park4night. Alternatively, plan a second night at Lake Plateliai.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Outside the national park you may stay overnight in public car parks as long as no sign prohibits it and you do not set anything up. Do not stay overnight at the car park in Plokštinė or in Žemaičių Kalvarija – the one lies within the national park, the other is a pilgrimage site with residents.
- Insider tip for campers
- Pack a warm jacket for Plokštinė: the tunnels are cool even in high summer. Check tours and opening times with the national park in advance. From Telšiai it is around 100 kilometres to Klaipėda and the ferry to the Curonian Spit – the coast and the drifting dunes are covered in the CampingSpirit travel guide “Amber, castles and drifting dunes” from Riga via the Curonian Spit to Vilnius.
Camping practice & local rules
Wild camping & overnight parking
- Lithuania has no right of public access in the Scandinavian sense: forests are open to the public and you may pick mushrooms and berries for your own use in most forests, but camping and overnight stays in the forest are only permitted at designated camping areas (stovyklavietės). The state forest service runs many of them free of charge.
- In national parks (Dzūkija, Žemaitija, Trakai) and nature reserves, overnight stays outside campsites and designated camping areas are prohibited; reserves such as the Čepkeliai bog may only be entered on marked paths. Picking is forbidden in strict reserves.
- Forest fires: Dzūkija’s pine forests are among the driest areas in the country. Open fires only in existing fire pits; when the fire risk is high, the authorities can ban entry to the forests and all fires. Check the current warning level locally or with the forest service.
- Border with Belarus: a fence and a border protection zone run along the border, which may only be entered with permission from the State Border Guard Service (VSAT); signs near the border are binding and violations are penalised. Near Druskininkai, Marcinkonys and in the Čepkeliai bog the border is close, and south of Druskininkai the Nemunas itself forms the border for a stretch. Do not fly drones or paddle in border waters. For road traffic to Belarus only the Medininkai and Šalčininkai crossings are open, and even these have been closed at short notice; travel to Belarus is advised against.
- Outside protected areas, sleeping in your vehicle in public car parks is not generally forbidden as long as no signs prohibit it and there is no camping behaviour (table, chairs, awning). On private land, ask the owner. Apps: park4night, Campercontact, plus the forest service maps.
Waste disposal & supplies
- Water and waste disposal is available almost only at campsites and some farms; public service points are rare. Between Trakai and Druskininkai and between Šiauliai and Telšiai, set off with full fresh water and empty tanks.
- Forest camping areas have pit toilets but no cassette disposal and no drinking water. Never empty grey water in the forest or into lakes.
- Tap water in the towns is drinkable; in the countryside and at wells only use water from marked drinking water points, or boil it.
- LPG (“autodujos”) is available at many filling stations in the towns; hardly at all in the forest villages. German exchange cylinders are not swapped; fill refillable cylinders or a gas tank with the right adapter, and arrive with full cylinders.
Vehicle size & traffic rules
- Speed limits for cars and motorhomes up to 3.5 t: 50 km/h in built-up areas, 90 km/h on paved country roads, 70 km/h on gravel and other roads, 120 km/h on expressways (April to October) or 110 km/h (November to March), 130 or 110 km/h on motorways. Vehicles with trailers may drive at most 90 km/h on motorways, expressways and paved roads, otherwise 70 km/h. For vehicles over 3.5 t the limits are 90 km/h on motorways, 80 km/h on expressways and paved country roads and 70 km/h on other roads; novice drivers may drive at most 90 km/h. Average-speed checks and fixed speed cameras are widespread.
- Road usage charge: cars and motorhomes registered as passenger cars (M1) do not need a vignette. Vehicles registered as goods vehicles (N1–N3) – including some panel van conversions – require a vignette, even under 3.5 t; in future the distance-based electronic toll system Via Toll is set to replace the vignette for these classes. The vehicle class in the registration certificate (field J) is what counts; check the current position with the Lithuanian road administration before you travel.
- Dipped headlights are compulsory all year round, including during the day. Winter tyres are required from 10 November to 31 March. A warning triangle, first-aid kit and fire extinguisher are part of the required equipment.
- Blood alcohol limit 0.4, stricter for novice and professional drivers. Mobile phones at the wheel only with a hands-free system.
- In Vilnius and Kaunas the city-centre parking zones are paid, by app or at a machine. The old towns are narrow and partly closed to traffic – park the motorhome outside them. Some sand and forest tracks in Dzūkija are closed to motor vehicles; no-entry signs apply to tourists too.
CampingSpirit packing & preparation checklist
- Tick repellent and tweezers: in Lithuania the risk of tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme disease is high, and in Dzūkija you walk through heather and undergrowth. Check your vaccination status before the trip.
- A mushroom basket, knife and a mushroom identification guide for Central Europe – and the rule of only eating what you are sure you know. At the markets in Varėna and Druskininkai locals sell chanterelles and ceps.
- Sand ladders or traction aids: the access roads to camping areas and forest villages in Dzūkija are often loose sand.
- Offline maps with the border marked: GPS interference is possible near the border, and some satnavs suggest routes that lead into border strips or closed forest tracks.
- A warm jacket and a torch for the tunnels at Plokštinė and for cool, misty evenings on the Ūla and Lake Plateliai.
- Mosquito nets for the roof vent and sliding door: around bogs and lakes, mosquitoes and horseflies are numerous in early summer.
As of 2026-10. Closures, fees and booking rules change: check official sources before you go.
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