Discover the Baltics

This trip fulfilled all expectations- and more! A wide ranging and varied itinerary in three countries. It enabled me to learn about the regional history, both distant and recent, and helped me understand current geopolitics. In addition to the excellent trip leader Andrius, local guides were carefully chosen to enhance our appreciation of the various sights and cities.

great weather, company & so much interesting information

Traveling through the Baltic states was far more than a vacation—it was a journey into the heart of living history and local culture. From the moment we set foot in Tallinn, we were swept up by the city’s medieval magic, walking cobbled lanes beneath ancient spires and discovering lively cafés tucked away in secret courtyards. Each evening, as the old city glowed against the sky, it felt like we’d stepped into a fairy tale. Riga took us by surprise with its dramatic Art Nouveau architecture. Every building told a story in swirling stone and ornate detail. The Central Market—with its enormous Zeppelin hangars stuffed full of local cheeses, smoked fish, and pastries—was a sensory adventure, giving us a taste of everyday life. There was a youthful buzz to the city: music on the streets, laughter in cozy bistros, and a spirit of creativity everywhere. Spending two evenings at the Latvian National Opera and Ballet, one of ballet and the second seeing the opera “Turandot,” were fantastic (and affordable). Our time in Lithuania deepened the adventure. Vilnius radiated warmth and quiet beauty, its baroque churches and the quirky Užupis “independent republic of artists” neighborhood, with its constitution posted on mirrored panels in multiple languages, invited us to linger and explore. Strolling along the river, we reflected on the resilience woven into the region’s history. Beyond the city, Trakai Castle floating on its island was straight out of a legend. Looking back, this adventure has left us not just with memories of beautiful places, but also a greater understanding of the region, its history, and the spirit of its people. For anyone looking for a travel experience brimming with culture, warmth, and unforgettable moments, the Baltics—especially with a guide like Andrius—are an absolute must.

We normally go on walking holidays with Exodus, but due to a current mobility problem we chose this culture experience instead. It proved to be very interesting and informative and gave a valuable experience of everyday life in the region. We were particularly surprised to learn of how hard and restricted life was when the area was under soviet control. It made us realise how lucky we are to live a free life in the UK.

A well balanced trip taking in nature, history, architecture and more in this fascinating part of the world.

This part f this review is from Peter Marshall. A very enjoyable, educational and adventurous tour

A very enjoyable and interesting experience. We learnt a lot about each country from experienced guides who really new the history of each place we visited. Very varied tours ranging from lovely cities with beautiful buildings, to visits to the seaside and countryside.

Fantastic overview of three fascinating countries . I travelled with my husband, and we both thoroughly enjoyed the tour.

This is my 8th Exodus trip since 2017. I appreciate the variety in the cultural tours, such as Discover the Baltics. Over the 12-day period, we visited all three capitals of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, explored historic towns (Tartu, Kaunas, Cesis, and Klaipeda), learned about architecture (Art Nouveau in Riga and Jarmala), trekked in national parks, visited famous churches, took a crash course on Soviet occupation at famous museums, and enjoyed free time to explore on our own. The pace is brisk. Be prepared to board your bus at 9 am each day to begin your tour. There are several long days on the bus as we typically visited two venues. I highly recommend this tour. Exodus should replace two of the hotels used. They were poor. I did not like being assigned a tiny room with a twin bed. My Top 12 Memories of the Baltic Republics 1. Meandering the cobblestone streets of Old Town Tallinn, Estonia 2. Foraging for berries in Tartu National Park 3. Riding a giant adult swing between Estonia and Latvia 4. Admiring the red roofed homes of historic Cesis 5. Roaming in the sculpture garden at Gauja National Park 6. Visiting the Art Nouveau Museum in Riga, Latvia 7. Admiring the colorful wooden houses in Jurmala, a 19th century seaside village 8. Learning the etiquette of “fan flirtation” at 18th-century Rundale Palace 9. Walking the trail of tears at the Hill of Crosses in Lithuania 10. Searching for seaside stones at the Curonian Spit, a Unesco World Heritage site between the Curonian Lagoon and Baltic Sea 11. Taking a boat ride on the lake in Trakai, the former capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania 12. Discovering Vilnius’ old town with our Exodus Travel guide

A thorough and fast paced tour of the three Baltic countries, with a varied itinerary and lots of time in the wonderful cities. Excellent city tours throughout and a perfect guide. Loved it!

The real strength of this tour was the use of local guides who gave us their stories of life under Soviet occupation and family histories of displacement. Learning about the terrible war time history of the region was balanced by moments admiring beautiful buildings and lovely beaches and forests. There was enough free time to wander and visit a few museums - recommended the Maritime museum in Tallinn, The Occupation Museum (take a tour) and Art Nouveau Museum and Ghetto Museum in Riga. In Vilnius and Tallinn the KGB Museums. There were some long bus journeys, very flat landscape but plenty of coffee and toilet stops!

A thoroughly enjoyable, very varied and interesting holiday including the cities, countryside and seaside and an insight into the life and history of the people, a joy to see them flourishing in the freedom of independence.

A varied tour covering 3 countries, 3 capital cities, beaches, castles, country houses, cathedrals, countryside and national parks

An interesting and varied look around the Baltic countries.

A great trip, with a really good balance of sights for each of the three countries.

A busy but fascinating tour through three beautiful countries, providing a varied insight into the culture and history of the region.

A truly wonderful tour with a lovely group of like minded people led by an amazing guide.

This is an excellent trip overall with a few caveats along the way. It is certainly a great way to see the highlights of all three Baltic states, both in terms of the three capitals but also other highlights and interesting places. You will learn a huge amount about the history and culture! You will also do a lot of walking...

A very interesting trip that gave a good overview of the three Baltic States and didn't just concentrate on the three capital cities.

This was a fantastic trip! Each of the countries are unique and there is something to love about all of them. The trip itinerary is really well planned, and there is so much free time in the capitals that you can really feel comfortable just wandering around. I was lucky to be in a group with a really lovely and enthusiastic bunch of people, as well as all the memories, I even came home with a newfound enjoyment of castles.

This was my first experience using Exodus and I’m sure it won’t be my last. I had. A great time with a really wonderful group of people. Our guide, Andrius, was great with lots of great local knowledge and facts he was able to share.

An excellent, busy trip with sufficient free time to explore on our own and lots of variety between cities and countryside/seaside. I finally made it as I had booked this trip when Covid intervened and it had to be cancelled. I am so glad that I was now able to go.

As other reviewers have said, this is an excellent trip that not only travels to the three capitals but includes other interesting places, such as the university town of Tartu, the eerie Hill of Crosses and the wildness of the Curonian Spit. Each of the tour guides explained the history of each location in a succinct style and the contrast between the capitals. (Medieval Tallinn, Art Nouveau Riga and Baroque Vilnius.) We were fortunate to visit Riga at the time of their Midsummer Festival, which was an added bonus. Plus a Jazz Festival in Klaipeda.

As other reviewers have said, this is an excellent trip that not only travels to the three capitals but includes other interesting places, such as the university town of Tartu, the eerie Hill of Crosses and the wildness of the Curonian Spit. Each of the tour guides explained the history of each location in a succinct style and the contrast between the capitals. (Medieval Tallinn, Art Nouveau Riga and Baroque Vilnius.) We were fortunate to visit Riga at the time of their Midsummer Festival, which was an added bonus. Plus a Jazz Festival in Klaipeda.

Fantastic holiday! The group was great and fun despite the age gap. the tour leader Lukas was very knowledgeable, competent and fun!

Finally got to do this trip which was on my bucket list before the pandemic. It was certainly worth the wait and lived up to all my expectations. This is one of the best Exodus trips I have travelled on. I find ex-Soviet countries fascinating and we certainly got a good introduction to the histories of all 3 countries together with an insight into their views about the current situation. This was due to the generous ways in which both our guide Andrius and the local guides were prepared to share some of their experiences from less liberal times. It was all very thought provoking and led to some thoughtful discussion between fellow travellers. But on a lighter note - the itinerary was more varied than I was expecting. We saw capital cities, medieval streets, Art Nouveau architecture, crumbling and restored castles, fishermen's wooden cottages, Soviet elite holiday homes, a palace built in the time of the Tsars , a decommissioned nuclear bunker, museums, art galleries and some ex-KGB "facilities". Trips into the countryside were also included, we visited the sea in all 3 countries, some fantastic national parks and drove through wonderful forests. Even the weather was on our side - I could be forgiven for thinking the Baltics are countries where the spring sun creates beautiful dappled patterns whilst glinting through the fresh green forest foliage. It only rains when you are in the bus between destinations! However, there was also a heatwave in Southern Europe, so future travellers should not take too much notice of this comment.

This tour was so much more interesting than I’d expected it to be. Admittedly I knew virtually nothing about the histories of the three countries - other than the fact that they’d all been under Soviet rule - but I hadn’t expected them to be *so* different in terms of their culture, food, architecture, …. I loved the three capital cities - Tallinn’s old town, Riga’s architecture (especially its Art Nouveau buildings) and Vilnius’s university buildings - and also Tartu, Kaunas, Cesis, Jurmala and Klaipeda. I also loved the dunes of the Curonian Spit and walking the Hill of Witches. The Plokstine Cold War Museum visit was chilling (even though I can remember some of the events documented there) and I found visiting the occupation/KGB museums in Tallinn, Riga and especially Vilnius harrowing. Luckily there were much lighter times too: Rundale Palace (where we had a very amusing guide), the beautiful Pazaislis Monastery, the boat trip and walk around Trakai Castle, the amazing sculpture park and reconstruction of Turaida Castle (where I amazed myself by climbing the tower!), the concert in Riga Cathedral, …. So many happy memories of this trip!

I have just come back from a wonderful tour exploring these beautiful 3 countries. It was nice and relaxed with reasonable start times each day but still felt you utilised each day to explore. There was a good range of sights to see and you didn’t feel rushed at any. I came back feeling as though i had a really good insight into these beautiful countries. I felt safe as a lone female in all areas and saw no adverse affects due to the current situation in Russia/Ukraine. Our tour guide Simona was excellent & really went above & beyond what was expected, her knowledge throughout was phenomenal. The hotels were small & standard but brilliant locations. Breakfasts standards varied slightly in each but all had a very basic version of continental, a few you couldn’t get black/english tea in at all. The rooms in most were very small and i would say 100% not suitable as a room share option. Some beds there was no space or had fixed furniture so could not be separated into 2 singles. Disappointing when booking regional flights through Exodus you no longer get included transfers. Not worth the price or wait to pay exodus for them. I got 1 bus directly outside airport to a 1 min walk from hotel (you could see hotel from main bus station ) for €1.50, easy to get as stay on until last stop which was main station. My return flight i had to be at airport early hours so i got a bolt (local taxi) for €5.60 Overall this was a really lovely tour and i’m happy i’ve visited the 3 main Baltic countrys.

There is so much to see and experience on this trip. From the ancient historic castles and Old Towns, to the more recent era of Soviet and German Occupations, and finally to current times when we see modern vibrant cities and towns looking to the future with their own culture and traditions intact. There is a bit of everything in this trip - ancient and modern architecture, beaches, boat rides, museums, countryside, and great local cuisine.

3countries I never thought I would get to visit, but so glad I did. With our great guide Andrius and some witty, funny, knowledgable local guides , not only did I visit these countries but understood the history of the Baltic countries , their independence yet ease of interaction. The trip was full of surprises- a phone box turned into a church in Tallin, walking around the lovely university town of Tartu, paddling in the icy cold Baltic Sea in Jurmala, visiting an opulent Baroque palace, walking the sand Dunes at Nida, visiting an old soviet missile site was interesting and frightening at the same time particularly in May 22.Riga with the zeppelin hangar market places,baroque buildings -The hill of crosses, the wood carving at Nida-so many interesting things to see. Andrius with his great sense of humour looked after us all, chose fantastic eating places and kept us amused on the bus with interesting stories and jokes. A throughly enjoyable holiday and well managed-Go for it yourself

1st post pandemic trip, originally booked for 2020. A fantastic trip to get back travelling again. Great balance of scenery, history, culture and fun. The itinerary is well planned snd we benefited from an experienced tour leader who really did ‘make’ this trip so fantastic. He worked around us, the places, and worked hill time making sure we all got what we wanted. No early starts for one😀 The special feature of these locations is their history of being ‘in the middle’ for centuries. Most recently the transition from Soviet rule to European independence. The signs of both are very evident. The icing on the cake got this trip was the tour leader Andrius being born and raised under the Soviets and now benefiting from the new freedoms. His experiences were very good to hear snd learn from

For the well season wanderer, a trip to Baltics is a time traveller's delight. From visiting medieval town (Tallin), 18th century chateau (Rundale), wonderful art nouveau buildings (Riga), dour grey soviet era (nuclear missile site) to an optimistic future (Vilnius). Our wonderful historian on this trip, Andrius, knew pre and post soviet rule and was very clear which path for the Baltic states he would choose

Group leader (Andrius) was perhaps the best part of the trip. He was born under Soviet rule and just as he entered university the Soviet Union dissolved and his country declared independence. His insights and knowledge of history and society were a real treat.

Our trip leader (Andrius) was perhaps the best part of the trip. He grew up under Soviet rule and went to university just as Lithuania gained independence. His insights and experiences plus knowledge of history and culture were a wonderful gift. He was always looking out for the group while attending to any special needs. Local guides were generally very good. This was our first trip with Exodus. The trip was well paced with considerable walking. We had good hotels and restaurants. Weather was often cold and windy with some rain as one would expect for mid May in northern Europe. Spring was just arriving in Estonia and a month farther along by the time we got to Lithuania. Lots of flowers and 50 shades of green from the trees to the fields.

This was my first package tour and I'll admit the Baltics weren't my first choice - but I'm glad we took the leap! For anyone interested in history, this is a rich tour with lots of highlights. From a stop at a nuclear missile launch site, to an excellent seaside cafe that smokes fish on the premesis - every day was packed with interesting and surprising things that you'd never get to see otherwise. There's a fair bit of coach travel, unavoidable when you are doing three countries. And it's cold even in mid-May! Despite this, our spirits were kept high by our guide Andrius, who was utterly charming and patient throughout - ensuring we all got the most out of every moment, and entertaining us with many personal stories of Soviet times.