Trakai Castle

This must be the most popular tourist attraction in Lithuania, even though The Hill of Crosses probably gives it a run for its money. The reasons for this are simple, and more or less give an outline of how one creates an attraction for mass tourism:





Trakai castle. The number of visitors increased significantly after they built the wooden bridge.

1.       It is fully adapted for tourist busses, making it capable to handle many visitors at the same time

2.       it is located near the capital, where most visitors enter and leave the country

3.       It is not far from the main road between the two largest cities in the country, making it a natural place for a tour bus to stop

4.       It offers great backgrounds for photos (after all, tourists don`t want pictures of interesting objects,  but rather photos of themselves with the interesting object in the background)   

5.       There are plenty of souvenirs to buy

6.       There are plenty of places to eat

7.       The place has a history that makes it interesting

8.       You do not need to know a lot of this history in advance in order to enjoy the place




A typical example of a historical exhibit which is totally irrelevant to the average tourist, unless he himself is in the picture.  

I have visited Trakai several times, both during the tourist season and the off-season, and I find it to be a beautiful place regardless of when you visit. I do however recommend spending more time there than most people do, and leave some time for walking around and having something to eat. For that reason it is probably best to visit during summer, when all the shops and restaurants are open.



Kibinai are the thing to eat in Trakai. Allegedly invented by the Karaim people, who are now so rare that restaurants have to use cardboard cutouts of them to create an authentic atmosphere, they anyway taste delicious. As meat wrapped in dough usually does.

I also strongly recommend renting some kind of boat or kayak if you have some experience with such vessels. They will give you an opportunity to view both the city and the castle from the water, and the lake is just big enough for such activities.

 






The boat of my choice in Trakai



 

Woodworking enthusiasts should set aside the whole day for a visit to Trakai, since the city has many old and protected wooden buildings. These buildings may not be as extravagant as or lavishly decorated as those found in many other cities in Europe, but they do have some originality. You can quite often see nice decorations made with simple means.

 



Unlike many decorative features on wooden houses in the west, Trakai decorations usually do not take forever to paint. And are probably less of a pain in the ass for their owners.

 

 

And if you are lucky, and travelling by car, you stumble into Trakai on a day when the place is packed with people. Since the entire place is protected, there are strict rules when it comes to not only erecting buildings, but also creating new parking spaces. And as a result, it can be difficult to find parking spaces on busy days. But fear not, nice (but strict!) old ladies like this one will come to the rescue:




NOBODY will dare to mess with Your car if you leave it with this lady.

 

Local inhabitants, whose houses were built before the area was protected, will offer you to park in their yard for a modest fee. You agree about a price and how long you are going to stay, and you can leave the safe hands of the grandma of your choice. After paying, you should not be surprised if she also tries to sell you tomatoes or cucumbers, or offers you to rent a room for the night.

 



Pictures like this one…most visitors have them. You almost need Jesus walking past on the water to raise an eyebrow.

 

This is the kind of place that one has to visit, at least since everyone else does. Everyone comes back from Lithuania with pictures of Trakai castle. If you want to distinguish yourself from these victims of mass tourism – take time to explore the city, and show the pictures of all the interesting parts of it they did not have time to look at.  It will at least make you feel less shallow and mainstream.

 Rated: Must see