Pažaislis Monastery, Kaunas

Some monasteries have gone into the tourist industry in recent years, offering inexpensive lodgings to travelers willing to live with a modest standard and some basic house rules. However, this is probably not an option for the Pažaislis monastery, since rule number one in the travel industry is to make visitors feel welcome.




This is more or less it

This is one of the few tourist sights I have visited where the staff (or nuns in this case) almost made a point out of ignoring me. The first time I visited I was simply told that “we are closed. Come back some other time”. I attempted to follow this great advice, but it proved rather difficult since there was no sign announcing the opening hours anywhere near the entrance. When I eventually did return, several years later, there were still little information for tourists, but at least they let us in. So perhaps they are improving little by little.




If visitors meet a closed door, it does not help much that the door is good looking

 

Honestly, I don`t even know why it is even listed as a tourist attraction. There are some nice buildings to look at, but there is nothing to do, no exhibition to see, and nowhere to eat. At the end of the day, very few people are actually THAT interested in old buildings. Most tourists want memorable experiences, and those can be hard to find for most people at the Pažaislis monastery. The closest I came was this old well that you can throw coins into and pretend that it is a wishing well.

 



Either a wishing well, or a water Source polluted by many coins

They could at least arrange for a simple gift shop that sells tacky fridge magnets and postcards. Preferably one that can also offer you a cup of coffee at an outrageously high price. Tourists always feel more at home when people are trying to weasel money out of them. In this place, it is as if they are not even trying.

Rated: Waste of time