Day 1: Arrival in Klaipėda (Memel)

Arrival by own arrangement in Klaipėda (ferry from Kiel) or flight to Palanga. Upon request collection at the port or airport and transfer to the hotel in Klaipėda (transfer time from Palanga ca. 30 minutes, from Liepaja ca. 1½ hours). Upon request we can book a cheap flight or ferry ticket for you. Welcome session in the evening with a presentation of the programme by our hiking guide Dirk, who is very familiar with the customs and language of Lithuania.

Day 2: Hike to Palanga

By bus in the morning to a small town at the Baltic coast, hike through a pine forest along the margins of the Baltic Sea to Palanga, the largest and most modern seaside resort in Lithuania (ca. 12 km). Visit to the Botanic Gardens, which were established in 1843, with their Birute Hill, a rose garden and orangery, and in the castle the world’s largest amber museum, with more than 25,000 exhibits of the coveted Baltic Sea gold, followed by a stroll along Basanavičius Street to the 470 m sea bridge. After a stop in one of the numerous restaurants, return by bus to Klaipėda.

Day 3: Klaipėda

Tour of the city of Klaipėda (ca. 200,000 inhabitants), Lithuania’s only port city, therefore also known as the “Gateway to the World”. Known as Memel until 1945, Klaipėda was under German rule for around 700 years and belonged to East Prussia. Visit to the headquarters of the Lithuanian Navy and a lecture on “1,000 years of Lithuania”, followed by the pretty Old Town (Senamiestis) with its many listed buildings, some of which have been restored. The most notable figure, and the landmark of the city, stands on the paved Theatre Square on top of the Simon Dach Fountain: Ännchen von Tharau – the love song by the music professor from Königsberg immortalised the East Prussian pastor’s daughter.

Day 4: Hike at the lagoon

Bus transfer to Klaipėda’s southernmost port basin, hike from there along the Wilhelm Canal through the attractive landscape on the mainland side of the Curonian Lagoon to Dreverna (ca. 13 km). The canal was built in 1870 and named after Kaiser Wilhelm. After a break in Dreverna, collection and transfer by bus to the next hotel, prettily located directly at the lagoon.

Day 5: Hike in the Nemunas Delta

By bus via Šilutė to the island town of Rusnė, where the Memel divides into several main and side tributaries. Hike in the Nemunas Delta through peat meadows and small fishing villages to the information centre in Pakaine, then to the small harbour and lighthouse Uostadvadis (ca. 9 km), then by boat on the Atmata and on small canals through the Nemunas Delta back to the hotel.

Day 6: Ornithological station and boat trip to the Curonian Spit

Short hike to the ornithological station at the Ventė Cape, then by boat across the calm lagoon to the Curonian Spit and the hotel in Nida. Hike to the Parnidis Dune with further views of the lagoon.

Day 7: Naglių kopa, hike to Preila

By bus to the cormorant colony, then on to the strictly protected Naglių Reserve, on boardwalks to Naglių kopa, a 53 metre-high dune that covers a buried village. Then a hike on the Baltic Sea side along the broad, empty strand to Preila (ca. 12 km). After a refreshment break in one of the few fishing huts on the lagoon that produces fresh smoked fish, back to the hotel in Nida by bus.

Day 8: Hike to Nida

First by bus to Preila, hike on dune and cycle paths to Nida (ca. 7 km). Visit to the Thomas Mann House, then the church with its cemetery, followed by the Amber House with information about the origin and processing of amber. Stroll along the promenade of this much-visited spa town, with an optional trip by flat-bottomed boat to the Russian border or a stroll through Nida.

Day 9: Return home

Hikers will be brought back to the ferry port in Klaipėda or to Palanga Airport. Return home by own arrangement.