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Banknotemaniac
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| Trakai Island Castle |
How do I arrive to Trakai?
Trakai is quite visited because of its beauty and its proximity to Vilnius so there are many way to arrive here.
- Train: there are 10 daily trains (aprox. 35 minutes) from Vilnius and the price is 1.80€ (one way) and 3.33€ (roundtrip).
- Bus: there are between 40-50 daily buses from Vilnius (one every 10-20 minutes; aprox. 40 minutes) and the price is 2€ (one way) and 3.80€ (roundtrip).
- Car: if the visitor rents a car, Trakai can be reached from Kernavė or Vilnius (aprox. 30 minutes) but also from other destinations such as Varėna (aprox. 50 minutes), Prienai (aprox. 55 minutes), Kaunas (aprox. 1 hour), Dzūkija National Park (aprox. 1 hour 5 minutes) or Druskininkai (aprox. 1 hour 25 minutes).
History
What can I visit in Trakai?
Trakai is a small town and is very popular for daytrups from Vilnius, although most of the visitors just go to the castle. These are Trakai's main attractions:
- Trakai Island Castle (10-19 from May to Sep; 10-17 from Nov to Feb; 10-18 rest of the year; 8€/ 4€ adults/ retiree, students and kids): Brick-Gothic style island castle whose construction began in the 14th century by Kęstutis and completed by his son Vytautas the Great (who died here in 1430). Trakai was one of the main centers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the castle held great strategic importance. It lost its military importance soon after the Battle of Grunwald, transformed into a residence and redecorated in Renaissance style. It was used as summer royal residence in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and then as prision, falling into disrepear with time. The castle was restored in the period of the Soviet Union and today here it's located Trakai History Museum (10-18 Wed-Sun from Apr to Oct; 10-17 from Nov to Mar; 4€/ 2€ adults/ retiree, students and kids), a small museum that explains the history of Trakai.
- Karaite Ethnografic Museum (10-18 Wed-Sun; 2€/ 1€ adults/ kids): museum which shows the history, customs and traditions of the Karaites since they were brought to Lithuania 600 years ago. The Karaites are a small Turkic religious and ethnic group resettled to Trakai by Grand Duke Vytautas in 1397 and 1398 from Crimea, after one of his successful military campaigns against the Golden Horde.
- Trakai Peninsula Castle: castle built by the Duke of Trakai Kęstutis as an important defensive structure protecting Trakai and Vilnius against attacks of the Teutonic Knights. Much of the castle was destroyed during the Russo-Polish War in the 17th century but the remains of the walls and towers are preserved and protected. It was granted to a Dominican cloister, built a monastery and church.
- St. Mergelės Marijos Apsilankymo Catholic Church: church with Gothic and Baroque architectural features whose origin dates back to 1409. Here it's located Mother of God of Trakai, a Catholic icon in the main altarpiece of the church from the 15th century (it was a gift from the Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos to Grand Duke Vytautas on the occasion of his baptism according to legend). Worship services are held in Lithuanian and Polish. It has a nice Exposition of Liturgical Art (10-18 Wed-Sun from Apr to Oct; 10-17 from Nov to Ma; 3€/ 1.50€ adults/ retiree, students and kids) with an important sacred art collection.
- Trakai Kenesa: 18th century synagogue of the Karaite Jewish community, a rare example of one of the surviving kenesas of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and one of the only examples of Karaite architecture. It was restored in the 1890s and is still in use.
- Dievo Motinos Gimimo Russian Orthodox Church: church built in 1863 that was demolished during WW1 and only restored in 1938.
- Užutrakis Manor (10-18 Wed-Sun from Apr to Oct; 3€/ 1.50€ adults/ retiree, students and kids): manor built in 1898 by Józef Tyszkiewicz, the youngest son of Count Juozapas Tiškevičius (nobleman of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania), that has Neo-Renaissance and Neoclassicism features and designed by Joseph Huss. The palace is surrounded by a large park.
- Totoriškės Manor:
19th century residential complex on the northern shore of Lake Galvė.
Currently, one of the most popular campsites in Lithuania.
- For people who like exploring there are abandoned communist era buildings east of the castle island. They are easily accessible, are interesting to explore and provide a good views from Trakai Island Castle. The area is full of lakes like for example Lake Akmena, Lake Skaistis or Lake Galvė. It can also be enjoyed Akmena Lake Beach.
- Trakai is surrounded by beautiful lakes and it can be enjoyed walking the Varnikų Pažintinis Trail (3.5 km), allowing to observe nature around the town.
- On the outskirts of the Trakai there's the small town of Senieji Trakai (1,396 inhabitants), known as Old Trakai. Here it's located the Ruins of Senieji Trakai Castle, remnants of a brick castle was built by Grand Duke Gediminas, who transferred here the capital of Lithuania from Kernavė. The wedding of Grand Duke Kęstutis and Birutė was held there in 1350. It was destroyed by the Teutonic Order in 1391 and abandoned. Benedictian monks built a monastery here in the 15th century.
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| Trakai Kenesa |
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| St. Mergelės Marijos Catholic Church |
Where can I eat in Trakai?
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Kibinai
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