Lithuania's premiere classical and contemporary music festival fills the Old Town's church courtyards and UNESCO-listed plazas with two weeks of international orchestras and chamber ensembles each June.
Vilnius Festival is Lithuania's leading international classical music event, running annually since 1979. Concerts take place across the Old Town's Baroque and Gothic church interiors, including St Anne's Church on Maironio Street, St Casimir's Church on Didžioji Street, and the Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus at Cathedral Square. The acoustic quality of these spaces is the festival's defining characteristic: a chamber ensemble in the vaulted nave of St Anne's Church is one of the more precise musical experiences available in the Baltic states.
Vilnius Old Town is compact enough to walk all festival venues within 20 minutes. The Cathedral Square end is the formal anchor, with larger orchestral performances; the university district around Universiteto and Pilies Streets has the more intimate chamber events. Evening starts are typically 7pm or 8pm. The Užupis neighbourhood (a self-declared republic and arts district 10 minutes east of Cathedral Square on foot) has the highest concentration of restaurants and bars for pre- and post-concert dining. Hostel dorm beds in the Old Town run €15–25 a night, making Vilnius one of Europe's more affordable festival cities.
Party hostels within reach of 's main celebrations. Ranked by guest rating.
Day-by-day breakdown
The opening night concert traditionally takes place in front of the Cathedral Basilica in Cathedral Square. The outdoor setting holds 3,000–5,000 and is free to attend. International orchestras and soloists have included the Lithuanian Philharmonic, the Berlin Philharmonic, and the St Petersburg Philharmonic in previous years. Gates open 90 minutes before the performance. Cathedral Square is 10 minutes on foot from the main hostel district on Gedimino Avenue.
The bulk of the festival programme falls in the second week, with ticketed concerts running nightly in the church interiors. St Anne's Church (late Gothic, 1500) holds around 200 and sells out its chamber programme earliest. The Vilnius Cathedral crypt offers one of the more unusual acoustic settings in the festival. The Užupis arts district hosts informal afternoon performances in the Angel Square area on most mid-festival afternoons.
Pre-booked private transfers and shared shuttles for your arrival.
