Getting to Lithuania

We recommend you come into Lithuania on Thursday. That way you can adjust to the time difference, see a little bit of Vilnius, the capital, and be ready to head to the Festival Friday! If you can’t come in until Friday, no problem just make sure you arrive before Noon.

Forest Festival is a short trip from Vilnius, so unless you’re planning on driving in from somewhere in Europe, flying into Vilnius International Airport will be your easiest option. Uber with international numbers or wifi at the airport works, or you can grab a Taxi from the airport to your hotel which should cost you around 12€.

(Don’t be deceived by the “International” in the airport title. Lithuania isn’t the easiest place to reach - it will require a layover somewhere in Europe. We recommend booking your flights well in advance as options become limited.)

Thursday in Vilnius

If you get to Vilnius on Thursday, come meet us for a few drinks at 8pm at Kas Kas bar.

If you’re around Thursday afternoon, our friend has kindly agreed to do a little walking tour of Vilnius. Meet him outside of Artagonist Hotel at 4pm.

Accommodations

You only need to reserve a hotel for the nights you’re in Vilnius. So depending on your flights Thursday and Sunday nights. The rest of the weekend we got you covered!

For Thursday, we reserved the Artagonist Hotel for the night, a swanky, artsy hotel in the old town part of Vilnius (“Senamiestis” in Lithuanian). This will also happens to be the nicest place you’ll stay over the weekend. To reserve a room at Artagonist, please email sales@artagonist.lt noting ‘Austeja+Ralph’ and select from the available rooms. It’s first come first serve because not everyone can fit here.

There are also plenty of other options around Vilnius ‘Old Town’. Two other nearby hotels to consider are Viešbutis Narutis and Amberton Cathedral Square but feel free to stay anywhere. The city is small, it doesn’t really matter where you stay as it’s easy to meet up, walk around, and explore.

Buses to & from the Festival

Friday: We have organizing buses from Vilnius to the Festival. The buses will be leaving at 12:30pm from the corner of Rusu Gatve and Maironio Gatve (“gatve” means “street” in Lithuanian).

Sunday: Buses will be leaving Naujas Laivas at 1:30pm which will get you back to downtown Vilnius at around 3pm. Plan your flights accordingly please.

Travel Requirements

Visas: You don’t need a visa to visit Lithuania! Just make sure your passport has at least 6 month before expiring.

COVID: Unbelievably 2+ years in - COVID is still a thing. If you’re traveling from the U.S. you need to take a PCR test 72 hours before traveling to Lithuania - please ensure you plan accordingly.

You also need a negative COVID test to return to the U.S. within one day of your flight. We are organizing a rapid mobile lab to come administer tests first thing Sunday morning (you’ll have results within 30 minutes).

We have booked an entire Sodyba where you lovely people will stay, and where we’ll hold the festivities. The goal is to have everyone in one place, so we don’t have to worry about logistics and can just focus on having fun!

To manage expectations - imagine festival-like accommodations. Rooms will likely need to be shared, bathroom space will be limited, and boots and sweaters may be required. However, fun and love will be in abundance! Details on which cabin you’ll be staying in and who you’ll be sharing a cabin with to come after folks have RSVP’d.

Click here to see the venue and learn more about it!

Other Logistical Details

Outlets: Lithuania uses the standard European outlet - two round holes for the plug in known as “Type F” so make sure to bring a converter. It operates on a 230V supply voltage and 50Hz.

Wifi/Cell Service: Full transparency - service on the grounds is a bit dodgie. As such, I don’t think you can rely on always having service across the grounds but you can reliably get it and connect to the internet around the main villa. Reminder, you will be international so will need an international calling plan if you want your data to work, otherwise Wifi is readily available across Vilnius / Lithuania and will be available at the festival. You may just need to walk over to that area for strong connectivity versus getting it from your cabin bed. It’s like actual camp :)

Medication Station / Extra Supplies: We’re going to have a table at the main villa with a bunch of different medications, sunscreen, Band-Aids, insect repellent, electrolytes, granola bars, etc. Go there for all your random needs. If you forgot something that you really need and we don’t have, the nearest town is about a 20 minute drive so find Austeja’s uncle Saulius and he’ll sort you out with a ride.

Food: All your meals will be provided on the grounds with various options and hopefully all dietary restrictions taken into account. So don’t worry, you will be adequately fed. We will also have snacks always available throughout the day.

Water: Water is safe to drink from the tap across Lithuania and in our humble opinion is delicious. This includes the tap water at the festival site which is fresh well water that is tested monthly.

Packing list: Passport, converter (EU compatible - type F), sleep eye mask (its light out 20 of 24 hours), swim suit, sweater / jacket, rain coat, shoes for all events to be in grass

Kids: As much as we love your kids, we are making this Festival a "kid free" zone - a little escape for all of us adults to enjoy some time together without interruptions. If you want to bring your kids to Lithuania, please let us know, and we can help organize babysitting with Austeja’s family friends.