When you want to see the most important sights on your way from Vilnius to Riga, then either rent a car, or go on an organised one-way transfer tour.
If you just want to travel between the two capitals directly and as fast and cheap as possible then the bus is your best bet.
You can also take the direct train as of December 2023, but there is only one daily connection. Alternatively, you can choose to fly from Vilnius to Riga.
Planning your Baltic adventure? Then also read my Vilnius & Riga city guides.
What to do on a day trip from Vilnius to Riga
Continue reading for all the details and possibilities on how to get from Vilnius to Riga within a day. But first let’s take a look at what you could see along the way.
The distance between Vilnius and Riga is approximately 300 km and takes roughly 3 hours by car, or 4 hours by bus or train. However, that’s the direct route from Vilnius to Riga.
If you want to see a little more of Latvia and Lithuania I suggest you stop at the three sights below. Additionally count on an extra 75 to 100 km, or an extra hour of drive time.
If you want to see the three suggested sights properly expect your day to take around 10-12 hours, including drive time.
Visit the Hill of Crosses
You first stop after leaving Vilnius is the Hill of Crosses. This first section is already the longest drive of the day. You will drive about 225 km and it takes you roughly 2.5 to 3 hours.
You will find the Hill of Crosses to be quite an impressive sight. There are thousands and thousands of crosses on this eerie hill. The first mention of the crosses dates back to around 1850, but some assume the first crosses were put here even before that. Nobody fully understands the origin of why the crosses were put here though.
The Hill of Crosses has become a Lithuanian pilgrimage site. No matter how often the government has tried to level the hill and all its crosses in the past, it always recovered.
Insider tip: On the way to the Hill of Crosses go on a little detour to the roads around the townships of Domantai, Kirmelyne and Uosupis. Before you know it you’ll find yourself in stork central. I accidentally stumbled on these roads and saw around 50 different stork nests and most of them had storks in them too!
Rundale Palace and gardens
Next up on your itinerary from Vilnius to Riga is Rundale Palace. The distance from the Hill of Crosses is 75 km and should take you about 1 hour.
Rundale Palace is what I would describe as rural Latvia’s architectural masterpiece! The Palace was first finished in 1768, but was badly damaged in various wars. The restoration began in 1972 and was finally finished in 2015! That’s a long time for a restoration, but what you see now is really magnificent.
The palace was designed by Italian baroque architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli, who also created the Winter Palace in St Petersburg. So don’t miss the chance to visit Rundale Palace on your visit to Latvia.
You can easily spend a couple of hours exploring 40 of the 138 (!!) rooms and the extensive rose garden. Take a break in the cafe with a pretty good cup of coffee if needed.
Also read: Castle Day Trips From Riga, Latvia | Cēsis, Sigulda & More
Bauska Castle
From Rundale Palace you need to drive another 10 minutes to reach Bauska Castle. This is the final stop before you go on your way to Riga.
Bauska Castle is actually two castles that have grown together to become one. The oldest part is in ruins and the newer part is still being renovated. And I have to say that they are doing a really great job restoring the castle!!
What I love the most about Bauska Castle is the woodwork on the inside of the wing that faces the old ruins. You can climb the stairs here and look at the wooden frames. Climbing all the stairs sometimes feels like a maze, so I hope you’ll make it out alive. Just joking!
Occasionally you will find the stairs venture outside onto balconies offering great views of the ruins.
The final stretch to Riga along the A7 takes you about an hour (67 km). Enjoy your time in Riga!
Insider tip: Bauska Castle is surrounded by two rivers, so don’t head straight to the castle after parking. Take a walk to one of the bridges for some great views of the river and the castle on the hill.
Should you squeeze in Trakai Castle as well?
I advise you not to visit UNESCO-listed Trakai Castle as part of this one day road trip, because it would simply be too much. If you want to visit Trakai Castle (and you should), then do it as a half day trip from Vilnius.
Also read: Trakai Castle – Incredible Day Trip From Vilnius
How to get from Vilnius to Riga
Now that you know the sights along the way, let me show you all five options of getting from Vilnius to Riga or from Riga to Vilnius:
- Self-drive Road trip
- Organised Group or Private Transfer Tour
- Taking the bus between Vilnius and Riga
- Direct train between the two capitals
- Fly Air Baltic from Vilnius to Riga
1. Self-drive Road trip from Vilnius to Riga
A road trip is the most fun way to get from Vilnius to Riga. Self driving gives you the opportunity to stop wherever and whenever you want.
You can choose between two options to travel between Vilnius and Riga yourself by car. In the Baltics you could rent a car the regular way, or you can use car sharing service CityBee. Let me break down both options for you.
Regular car rental
Regular car rental hire is a great way to travel from Vilnius to Riga. You can check out all the options on booking.com. I always use rentalcars.com to compare all the major operators in a destination.
You can select the best option and book it there right away. Also you can choose to add insurance directly, and avoid the upselling hassle when picking up the car.
Tip: Bear in mind that on top of the rental rates you might have to pay an (international) one way fee when driving from Vilnius to Riga. So to avoid surprises, double check to see whether that one-way fee is included or not.
CityBee Car Share Service
Instead of renting a car the regular way, you could also pick up one of the CityBee cars. CityBee is a car share service that you need to sign up for. Once signed up the app will show you the locations of all the cars.
You can choose to pay per minute and per kilometer, which is perfect for short trips. But you can also buy packages for multiple days and kilometers. CityBee charges a one way fee of €79 when ending a ride in a different country though, so do keep that in mind.
What I love about this car share service is that the cars are literally always around the corner and that petrol is included. On top of that in the cities where CityBee operates, the cars can be parked for free as well. Check out CityBee’s website to find out more.
2. Organised tour from Vilnius to Riga with Discover Lithuania
Don’t feel like driving yourself, but do want to see sights along the way from Vilnius to Riga? Then you should know that there is a tour available from Discover Lithuania.
This tour takes a full day and stops at the most important sites along the way:
- Hill of Crosses
- Rundale Palace
- Bauska Castle
The tour is one way, so either from Riga to Vilnius departing on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Or from Vilnius to Riga departing on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
The tour is currently priced at €95 and you can bring your baggage along for free as well.
Insider tip: I really recommend these tours with Discover Lithuania, because they have a guaranteed departure. Other tours might be cancelled last minute if they don’t meet a minimum number of participants. Unfortunately I had that experience, so do keep that in mind.
3. Take a bus from Vilnius to Riga
When you’re only looking for the fastest (and cheapest) way from Vilnius to Riga (or Riga to Vilnius) your best option is the bus. And with bus I actually mean a full-on coach service with power plugs to juice your devices, a movie system and free wi-fi.
There are three main operators running buses between the two cities, Lux Express Flixbus and Eco Lines. Total time of your bus trip is about 4 hours.
- Eco Lines usually has the cheapest fares, because they occasionally have promotions going on. You can book a one way ticket for as little as €10-12. Their service runs 3 times a day between Riga and Vilnius and vice versa.
- Lux Express typically is a bit more expensive, but fares are still reasonable at €19-20 one way. Lux Express has the largest amount of leg space, so tall people do take notice. They have 8-10 departures throughout the day.
- Flixbus also recently started operating the line between Vilnius and Riga, giving you even more options to find a suitable connection.
Tip: Compare all bus times and book right away on omio.com. If you’re new to Omio, then use my referral link and we’ll both get €10 off our next booking.
4. Is there a train from Vilnius to Riga?
As of 27 December 2023 Vilnius and Riga are finally connected with a direct train, which is operated by LTG Link. The service is daily, leaving at 6:30am from Vilnius and arriving in Riga 4 hours and 13 minutes later at 10:43am.
Need a connection in the other direction? Then you can jump on the 3:28pm train in Riga and arrive in Vilnius at 7:51pm.
Tickets cost €24 in 2nd class and €34 in 1st class. Book your tickets right here.
Future rail developments in the Baltics
The Rail Baltica project is working on connecting all of the Baltic capitals of Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius by high-speed train. It’s an ambitious project that also aims to link rails southwards to Warsaw in Poland and even northwards to Helsinki in Finland through a tunnel!
The high-speed train can reach a speed of up to 249 km/h which can reduce travel times by more than 50% when compared to the car. Read more on the website of Rail Baltica.
5. Flying Air Baltic from Vilnius to Riga
The final option to get from Vilnius to Riga is to fly with Air Baltic. Air Baltic has 4 departures per day between the two cities.
Fares start as low as €35 (including cabin baggage and a personal item). These fares are only available if booked at least a month in advance. The lowest fares are typically only available for flights departing very early in the morning or late at night.
Flight time between the two capitals is about 50 minutes. However, total time for flying could quickly add up when you need to allocate time to get to the airport, for security and for boarding.
Final thoughts
And that’s it, all the options on how you can travel from Vilnius to Riga. Plus the main sights you can stop at along the way. I hope you have a great time in Lithuania and Latvia whichever method of transportation you choose.
Any questions or comments? Please let me know in the comments section below or reach out to me on Instagram. And if you want future travel guides and directly into your mailbox, then sign up to my newsletter.
Planning your trip to the Baltic countries? Then check out my other articles on Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania:
- How to Travel From Vilnius to Minsk | A Cross-Border Bus Guide
- The Ultimate Baltics Itinerary | 7–10 Days From Vilnius to Tallinn
- Latvia’s Northern Coast & Beaches Road Trip | Riga to Kurmrags
- Castle Day Trips From Riga, Latvia | Cēsis, Sigulda & More
- Best Things to Do in Riga (+ 3-Day Itinerary Ideas)
- Vilnius Coffee Guide | 10 Best Specialty Coffee Spots in the City
- Complete Vilnius City Guide with Things to Do & Itinerary Ideas
- Trakai Castle | An Incredible Day Trip from Vilnius
- How to get from Vilnius to Riga and what to do along the way
- Perfect Weekend in Tallinn | 2 – 3 Day Itinerary & Day Trip Ideas
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