What to see and do in Europe's most seductive corner
It is not exactly the same as the cliché about London buses – but 2018 is proof that if you wait long enough for a European national centenary, three will come along at once.
This weekend marks the 100th anniversary of the creation of the modern Latvian state – a red-letter date that completes a trio of three-figure Baltic independence birthdays, in the wake of similar moments in Lithuania (tethered to February 16 1918), and in Estonia (February 24 1918).
These milestones are being saluted with gusto in the countries in question (see lv.100.lv, lietuva.lt/100 and ev100.ee respectively). And it is not difficult to understand why.
While these three amigos were not alone in taking shape amid the turmoil of 1918 – the Czech Republic and Slovakia (jointly, as Czechoslovakia), as well as Poland, all emerged, to some extent, from the fire of the First World War – the Baltic states had further roads to walk in their bid for definitive freedom. All three were subsequently occupied, not just by Nazi Germany, but by the Soviet Union – and they would not escape the latter until 1991.
Twenty-seven years on from this last liberation, Lithuania (lithuania.travel), Latvia (latvia.travel) and Estonia (visitestonia.com) have all become trusted options for mini-breaks and holidays. But each still has the capacity to surprise those who fly north-east...
Latvia
Riga is a city of undoubted prettiness. Its celebrated Art Nouveau district has a museum which explains how this small Baltic seed became a flowerbed of early 20th century architectural grandeur (jugendstils.riga.lv; €5). And St Peter’s Church, 13th century in origin, is home to a giant steeple (peterbaznica.riga.lv; €9) which delivers a splendid view of the labyrinthine streets and busy squares below.
There is sober reflection too. Currently being expanded ahead of a big relaunch in the spring, the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia (okupacijasmuzejs.lv; entry by donation) looks back in anger at the Nazi and Soviet eras, and explains why neither incursion is forgotten.
Flights
Air Baltic (00371 6700 6006; airbaltic.com) from Gatwick; Ryanair (0871 246 0000; ryanair.com) from East Midlands, Edinburgh, Leeds-Bradford, Manchester and Stansted); Wizz Air (0330 977 0444; wizzair.com) from Doncaster-Sheffield – and Luton.
Package
Kirker Holidays (020 7593 1899; kirkerholidays.com) offers three-night breaks at the four-star Hotel Grand Palace from £558 a head with flights, transfers and breakfast.
Estonia
Riga is pretty, but Tallinn manages to seduce the camera at almost every corner – at least in a centre that, deeply indebted to the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, has been inscribed on the Unesco World Heritage list since 1997 (praised as a hotspot of medieval commerce whose significance “is demonstrated by the opulence of the public buildings and the domestic architecture of the merchants’ houses, which have survived to a remarkable degree despite the ravages of fire and war”).
Russia’s sometime presence lingers in different ways. The most obvious, and most beautiful, is the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral – an Orthodox jewel, finished in 1900, which crowns the main Toompea Hill (orthodox.ee). More insidious is the Hotel Viru (viru.ee), a giant reminder of the Soviet jackboot, where the walls used to have ears. Now debugged, it recalls the clandestine practices of yesteryear via the KBG Museum that skulks quietly up on its 23rd floor (€11).
Flights
British Airways (0344 493 0787; ba.com) from Heathrow; easyJet (0330 365 5000; easyjet.com) from Gatwick; Ryanair from Edinburgh and Stansted; Air Baltic from Gatwick; Wizz Air from Luton.
Package
A three-night stay with breakfast at the four-star Hestia Hotel Europa, flying from Gatwick on December 20, costs from £331 per person through easyJet Holidays (020 3499 5232; easyjet.com/holidays).
Lithuania
The most southerly country in the triumvirate (sharing part of its lower border with Poland), Lithuania sings sweetly in its little capital. Vilnius fans out around the swarthy bluff of Gediminas Hill, where the Gediminas Tower is the final remnant of the city’s 15th century castle.
And it shines in the neo-classical elegance of its cathedral – an 18th century gem which manages to resemble a Roman temple (the Pantheon in Rome was a clear touchstone) while being upstaged by its own belltower (which stands separate and aloof like a lighthouse on a cliff).
There is a rotating showreel of art exhibitions at the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania (valdovurumai.lt; €6), a reconstruction of the onetime royal palace. There are shadows and stains too. The Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights (genocid.lt/muziejus/en; €4) aims a hard, unforgiving eye at Soviet times.
Flights
Ryanair from Birmingham, Leeds-Bradford, Liverpool, Luton and Stansted; Wizz Air from Belfast, Doncaster-Sheffield and Luton.
Package
Cities Direct (01242 536 900; citiesdirect.co.uk) deals in three-night getaways to Vilnius from £199 per person – including flights, plus a three-star hotel, with breakfast.
A wider view
While the capitals are the most plausible options for glimpses of the region as winter clicks into gear and Christmas markets take over the central squares, there is more to each country than its respective urban kingpin.
Cox & Kings (020 3553 8314; coxandkings.co.uk) takes advantage of the relative compactness of the Baltic world by dispensing an eight-day “Journey through the Baltic States”. This ticks off Riga, Tallinn and Vilnius, but also ventures to Parnu (an appealing seaside town on Estonia’s south-western flank) – and Sigulda (a town in the Latvian interior, where a ruined fortress, dating to 1207, still monitors the Gauja Valley). From £1025 per person including flights.
Explore (01252 884 737; explore.co.uk) is also aware of the accessibility of the region as a whole – and sells an eight-day guided walking odyssey, “Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on Foot”. This pays its respects to the capitals, but also dips into Curonian Spit National Park (the tranche of protected sandbars which Lithuania shares with the Russian exclave Kaliningrad) – and Lahemaa National Park (on the north edge of Estonia. Boars, wolves, and bears roam within). Five tours are planned for 2019, from £1,259 a head, with flights.
A summer alternative is provided by Wizz Air, which flies to relatively unknown Palanga, on Lithuania’s west coast. A three-night sojourn at the four-star Grand Baltic Dunes hotel, flying out on June 13, starts at £365 a head with Expedia (020 3564 0868; expedia.co.uk).
