Lithuania has the smallest coastline of the Baltic countries, but what a coastline it is! Here you will find some of the region's most unique and stunning areas of coastal beauty. The Curonian Spit is the ultimate holiday destination for those looking for peace and quiet. Long stretches of white sandy beaches backed by some of the highest sand dunes in Europe, flanked on one side by the Curonian lagoon and on the other, the Baltic Sea. Pretty fishing villages with their colourful wooden houses and flower displays, are hidden by the surrounding pine trees and make ideal places to stay for rest and relaxation. This is a nature lovers paradise, where moose, wild boar and foxes roam the forests.

Situated 50 miles (80 kilometers) to the northwest of Vilnius and 12 miles (20 kilometers) from Kaunas is the Rumsiskes, an Open-Air Museum of Lithuanian Folk life, located on a 40-acre park. You can see all four areas of Lithuania as they looked 100 years ago. The museum displays about 80,000 exhibits - some of the houses and implements were actually moved here from their original locations. In the summer months you may even see workers in the fields dressed in original costumes and children singing songs while weaving wreaths of flowers. Folk ensemble concerts and holiday festivals are held in the grounds of the Museum.

Let the Lithuania landscape slide past your window as you travel 40 minutes to Trakai, located 18 miles (28 kilometers) west of Vilnius. Learn more about the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Battle of Grunwald, and Vytautas the Great (1392-1430). There are many beautiful lakes in the region. Visit Trakai Castle and Museum of the 15th century (in the middle of Lake Galve). It is the only insular castle throughout Eastern Europe - Island Castle is one of the most visited historical-architectural monuments in Lithuania. The visit is approximately 1 hour and you will have free time for shopping and relax. Trakai is also home to Karaites, a Turkish ethnic group practicing a religion akin to Judaism, who came to Lithuania from the Crimea in the 14th century as warriors for Grand Duke Vytautas. Today the country's smallest ethnic minority counts under 300 members.

Trakai is a 15th century Castle and museum (in the middle of lake Galve), and is the only island castle throughout Eastern Europe. It is one of the most often visited historical-architectural monuments in Lithuania.