Vilnius itinerary: 1, 2 and 3 days

Pick by what you are willing to skip. One day means the cathedral, Gediminas Tower, Pilies Street and Užupis, with no museum time. Two days adds the KGB museum, the university courtyards and the Gates of Dawn without rushing. Three days lets you leave the city for Trakai or spend a half-day at Paneriai, and still have an evening free.

Start at Cathedral Square, where the bell tower and the cathedral stand below Gediminas hill. Go up the hill first, by funicular or on foot, while it is quiet and the light is still low. Come down and walk Pilies Street into the Old Town, then cut through the courtyards of Vilnius University, which you enter from the street side.

After lunch, cross the river into Užupis, the small district that declared itself a republic. The walk there takes about 15 minutes from the Old Town. Come back along the embankment and finish at the Gates of Dawn, the city's pilgrimage chapel, then stay in the Old Town for dinner.

If you only have one day, skip the museums. The KGB museum alone needs two hours and will eat the afternoon.

Day one runs as the one-day plan above. Day two is for the heavier material. Give the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights, in the former KGB building, two hours; it is closed on Mondays, so check the day before you go. Then walk to St Anne's Church and the Bernardine complex nearby.

Use the afternoon for what you missed: the Vilna Gaon Jewish history museum, the Orthodox and Catholic churches along Didžioji Street, or the market halls if you want food to take away. If the weather turns, the museums are the better half of the day and the Old Town walk can wait.

Two days is the point where most travellers stop feeling rushed. It is also the shortest length that leaves room for a slow lunch, which in Vilnius is worth planning for.

The obvious third day is Trakai, about 30 minutes from Vilnius by train or bus, with the island castle in the middle of Lake Galvė. Go early in summer, when the castle opens and the coaches have not arrived. Half a day is enough; the rest of the day is free back in Vilnius.

If you would rather stay in the city, Paneriai, on the outskirts, is the memorial in the forest where mass killings took place during the occupation. It is a short train or bus ride out and needs a quiet half-day. Both options are heavy in different ways; pick one, not both, on a three-day trip.

A third day also lets you take the train to Kaunas if you are continuing, or spend an afternoon on the spa side of Lithuanian travel later in the trip.

Vilnius is cheaper than most Western European capitals. A bed in a hostel dorm, a mid-range hotel double and a sit-down dinner all sit below the equivalent in Berlin or Helsinki. The main variable is your museum count: the KGB museum and Gediminas Tower are small line items, but they add up if you do several in a day.

Public transport is inexpensive and the Old Town itself costs nothing to walk. Budget for one paid entry per day and you will not be surprised at the end of the trip.

Book the KGB museum slot ahead in summer and check the Monday closure. Climb Gediminas hill early or near sunset; midday in July is exposed and hot. Wear shoes you can walk in on cobbles, because the Old Town streets are uneven and the distances are longer than they look on a map.

If you are arriving by air, sort out the transfer before you land. If you are staying more than a few days, a public transport card pays for itself. And leave one evening unplanned: Vilnius rewards a slow dinner more than a packed schedule.

If you have more time in Lithuania, the Vilnius–Kaunas–Klaipėda axis is easy by train, and the coast is a summer-only addition. Trakai fits any length of trip as a half day. Druskininkai, in the south, is the spa option if you want to slow down after the cities.