Baltic Impressions: Self-Launched Riga to Vilnius

Fly into Riga Airport (RIX) and take bus #22 (about £1.50, 30 mins) or a Bolt taxi (£8-10) to the city centre. Check into a hostel or budget guesthouse in the Old Town/Vecrīga or Quiet Centre area. Spend the afternoon orienting yourself: stroll the cobbled streets of Vecrīga, cross the Vanšu Bridge for skyline views, and pick up supplies at a Rimi or Maxima supermarket. Evening: try local grey peas and bacon at a cheap kafe (Lido is a great budget canteen, £6-8 for a full plate).

🚌Airport bus #22 to city centre ~£1.50, or Bolt taxi ~£8-10

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse in central Riga, £16-20 pp (dorm or budget twin)

• →Self-guided wander of Vecrīga Old Town
• →Vanšu Bridge viewpoint
• →Lido self-service canteen dinner

Join the free walking tour of Riga (tips-based, usually departing ~11am from the Old Town; book on GetYourGuide or just turn up) covering Riga Castle, Dome Cathedral, St. Peter's Church, the Swedish Gate, the Three Brothers, the Large and Small Guilds and the Freedom Monument. In the afternoon, walk Alberta iela and Elizabetes iela in the Art Nouveau district — the facades are free to admire from the street, and a small museum ticket (Riga Art Nouveau Centre, ~£7) gets you inside one restored apartment. If you want the countryside, the Ethnographic Open-Air Museum is reachable by bus #1 to Jugla (~£1.50) rather than the tour's £40 excursion — entry is about £4.

🚌On foot; local bus ~£1.50 if heading to the open-air museum

🛏Hostel or budget guesthouse in central Riga, £16-20 pp

• →Free walking tour of Old Town (tips-based)
• →Art Nouveau district self-walk (Alberta iela)
• →Riga Art Nouveau Centre museum ~£7
• →Optional: Ethnographic Open-Air Museum ~£4 + bus

Book a Lux Express or Ecolines coach from Riga to Tallinn (about 4.5 hours, £10-15 — the Lux Express 'Lounge' seats include wifi and films). Break the journey at Pärnu: get off, store your bag at the bus station or a cafe, and walk the 10 minutes to the beach promenade and the leafy old town with its red-brick St. Catherine's Church. Re-board a later coach to Tallinn (about 2 hours, £6-8). Check into a hostel in Tallinn's Old Town — Hostel Tallinn or similar is well placed and cheap.

🚌Lux Express/Ecolines Riga–Pärnu ~£8; Pärnu–Tallinn ~£7

🛏Hostel in Tallinn Old Town, £18-22 pp

• →Pärnu beach promenade and old town walk
• →Coastal photo stops

Take the free walking tour of Tallinn's Old Town (tips-based, departs daily ~11am from the Town Hall Square) covering the Town Hall, Great Guild Hall, Toompea Castle, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and St. Mary's Cathedral. Climb the Town Hall tower or St. Olaf's Church tower for views (~£5). Skip the £50 medieval dinner and instead eat at Rataskaevu 16 or a budget pub like Hell Hunt (£10-15 mains) — or visit Olde Hansa's courtyard for the atmosphere without the set menu. Evening: walk up to Kohtuotsa and Patkuli viewing platforms for free sunset views over the rooftops.

🚌On foot

🛏Hostel in Tallinn Old Town, £18-22 pp

• →Free Old Town walking tour (tips-based)
• →St. Olaf's Church tower climb ~£5
• →Kohtuotsa & Patkuli viewpoint platforms (free)

Do the tour's Lahemaa excursion independently and much cheaper. Take a bus from Tallinn to Palmse (about 1h15, ~£4 each way) and visit Palmse Manor — the manor house museum is about £7 and the grounds are free. Walk or take a short local bus to Sagadi Manor (forest museum, ~£5). Vihula Manor is a further walk/taxi away and can be skipped if time is short. There's no need for the vodka museum — bring a picnic from a Tallinn supermarket. Return to Tallinn by early evening bus.

🚌Bus Tallinn–Palmse return ~£8; local buses/walking between manors ~£2

🛏Hostel in Tallinn Old Town, £18-22 pp

• →Palmse Manor museum ~£7
• →Sagadi Manor forest museum ~£5
• →Self-guided forest and coastline walk

Take a morning Lux Express or Elron train from Tallinn to Tartu (train ~2h15, £8-12; bus similar). On the way you can stop at Põltsamaa (bus route passes nearby) to see its castle ruins — or visit on a later local bus if you'd rather keep the day simple. In Tartu, check into a hostel or budget hotel near the Old Town (Tartu Hostel or Looming Hostel are good value). Explore Tartu Old Town: the Town Hall Square, the 'Leaning House', the Kissing Students fountain, and the University of Tartu's main building (free to walk around; the University Museum is ~£6). Cross the Angel's Bridge on Toome Hill for sunset.

🚌Elron train or Lux Express Tallinn–Tartu ~£8-12

🛏Hostel/budget hotel in Tartu, £18-22 pp

• →Tartu Old Town walk
• →University of Tartu main building and museum ~£6
• →Toome Hill and Angel's Bridge

This is the hardest leg to do independently, so plan it beforehand. Take a bus from Tartu south towards Valga/Valka on the Latvian border (~1h, £4), then connect by bus or taxi to Gulbene or Stāmeriena (~2h, £6-10) — check schedules on 1188.lv for Latvia and peatus.ee for Estonia. Visit Stāmeriena Manor (entry around £5), a beautiful neo-Gothic manor with a park, and stop at a local cider producer — Talava cider near Gulbene can be visited by arrangement (call ahead, tasting ~£5-8). Stay at a rural guesthouse or manor hotel in the Gulbene/Stāmeriena area; dinner at the guesthouse (~£12).

🚌Bus Tartu–Valga ~£4; onward bus/taxi to Gulbene area ~£8-12

🛏Rural guesthouse/manor hotel near Gulbene/Stāmeriena, £20-28 pp

• →Stāmeriena Manor and park ~£5
• →Talava cider tasting by arrangement ~£6

Continue south by bus from Gulbene towards Rēzekne/Daugavpils (about 3-4 hours, £8-12). Break at Aglona to see the Catholic Basilica of Aglona, Latvia's most important pilgrimage site (free entry; the small museum ~£2). Nearby, local ceramics workshops (including in Preiļi) can be visited — pre-arrange through your guesthouse or the local tourist office for a short demonstration (~£5). The Slutišķi Old Believers' village on the Daugava is best reached with a local taxi from Daugavpils (~£15 return split); it's a photogenic wooden village with a small museum. Overnight in Daugavpils in a budget hotel or guesthouse.

🚌Bus Gulbene–Aglona–Daugavpils ~£10-14; local taxi to Slutišķi ~£7 pp if shared

🛏Budget hotel/guesthouse in Daugavpils, £18-24 pp

• →Aglona Basilica and pilgrimage site (free)
• →Ceramics workshop demonstration ~£5
• →Slutišķi Old Believers village

Morning in Daugavpils: visit the Mark Rothko Art Centre in the 19th-century Daugavpils Fortress (entry ~£6) — a genuine highlight and far cheaper than the tour options. Then head towards Lithuania. Direct Daugavpils–Vilnius buses run (~3h, £10-12). To include Aukštaitija National Park, take a bus to Ignalina or Utena (about 2h, £5) and use local buses/taxis to Palūšė, a pretty lakeside village with a wooden church, and do a short lakeside forest walk. Finish with a bus or minibus to Vilnius (~2h, £6). Check into a hostel in Vilnius Old Town (Jimmy Jumps House or Filaretai are good value).

🚌Bus Daugavpils–Utena ~£5; Utena/Ignalina–Vilnius ~£6

🛏Hostel in Vilnius Old Town, £16-20 pp

• →Mark Rothko Art Centre ~£6
• →Palūšė wooden church and lake walk
• →Aukštaitija forest trails

Join the free walking tour of Vilnius Old Town (tips-based, departs ~10am or 12pm from Cathedral Square) covering Vilnius Cathedral, Gediminas Tower (tower museum ~£4, or just walk up the hill for free), Peter and Paul Church, St. Anne's Church, the Old University and the Gates of Dawn. In the afternoon, wander the bohemian Užupis republic across the river with its street art and the 'Constitution' wall. Skip the £42 Palace of the Grand Dukes option unless you're keen — instead try a cheap local dinner of cepelinai (potato dumplings) at a simple Lithuanian kiosk or Šnekutis (~£8-10).

🚌On foot

🛏Hostel in Vilnius Old Town, £16-20 pp

• →Free Old Town walking tour (tips-based)
• →Gediminas Tower ~£4
• →Užupis district and street art
• →Cepelinai dinner ~£9

Final morning for a last coffee in Vilnius and any souvenir shopping at Halės Market. Take bus #3G or #1 to the airport (~£1) or a Bolt taxi (~£8). If you have time before your flight, the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights (entry ~£5) is a hard-hitting and worthwhile stop near the centre.

🚌Airport bus ~£1 or Bolt ~£8

🛏—

• →Halės Market
• →Optional: Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights ~£5