Celebrate like a local: your guide to Lithuanian holiday traditions

If you’ve decided to spend the holidays in Lithuania this winter, prepare for a season that blends long-standing traditions with trendy festivities. From beautifully decorated Christmas trees to cosy gatherings around traditional meals, Lithuanian holidays offer warm and charming experiences for visitors worldwide.

Gerson David Pinto, a Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) student from Colombia says that during Christmas time in Lithuania, he feels just like at home. “Colombians share a lot of similarities with Lithuanian traditions when it comes to Christmas since we aim to share joy, love, and warmth with loved ones,” he says.

As the holiday spirit fills the air, here are four tips to help you make the most of this time.

Visit Christmas trees around Lithuania

The holiday season in Lithuania always begins with the festive lighting ceremonies of Christmas trees. The country’s main Christmas tree stands in Cathedral Square in Vilnius, the European Christmas Capital 2025.

If you want to experience the Christmas spirit near Kaunas, but you’ve already visited the festive city centre, less than an hour away in Jonava there is an entire Christmas tree park waiting for you. This year there are a record-breaking 105 trees, which were brought to the city by all the local institutions and communities!

Experience a traditional Christmas Eve

To fully appreciate Lithuania’s traditional Christmas Eve, known as Kūčios, the best way is to join Lithuanian friends or a local community for that evening. It is a special night for families across the country that offers a moment to pause, appreciate loved ones, and embrace the stillness before the joy of Christmas Day.

In Lithuanian homes, the evening begins with the preparation of twelve meat-free dishes, each representing one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. Traditional dishes feature fish, kūčiukai, small sweet pastries, typically served with poppy seed milk, and kissel – a traditional berry-based drink.

Christmas Eve dinner starts by sharing a Christmas wafer, breaking off a piece of it, and offering it to another family member with a blessing. It is then customary for everyone to try each of the twelve dishes, a tradition thought to bring good luck in the year ahead.

After the meal, many families attend midnight Mass, marking the arrival of Christmas Day in an atmosphere of candlelight and carols.

Do some good

While Lithuanians may seem reserved or even distant at first, the holiday season reveals their different side. Christmas in Lithuania is truly a time of giving, where people look out for those in need.

Giovanna Andino Villalta, a graduate of Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) from Honduras, says that both Lithuania and Honduras are similar in that way. “The most important thing during the holidays is to share the joy with others, especially those who need help. Therefore, Hondurans collect donations of clothes, blankets, and toys and take them to those who need them the most,” she explains.

Similarly, Lithuanians support local charities, fulfil the wishes of children from disadvantaged backgrounds, or donate essentials to seniors and families facing hardship. During this time, there’s also a focus on helping animals, with shelters receiving more volunteers and donations to care for pets awaiting new homes.

Here are a few organisations helping those in need. If you have the opportunity, consider contributing to:

• Maltiečiai who help the elderly. They are also organising a campaign to welcome the winter season with sensitivity on 18 December afternoon at Vilnius Cathedral Square.
• Vaikų svajonės team dedicated to making children’s Christmas dreams come true.
• A dog shelter Penkta Koja that currently cares for more than 300 animals.
• Išsipildymo akcija – a project that annually helps children with extremely serious or rare illnesses.

These acts of goodwill not only brighten someone else’s holiday but also create a deeper connection to the true spirit of the season.

Will It Snow? Celebrate the Season Either Way

Each year, all Lithuanians dream about a white Christmas, so wondering whether the holidays will be with snow is an annual thing. Sadly, according to the reports from the Lithuanian Hydrometeorological Service (LHMT), the most recent year with snow on Christmas was in 2012. In other years, snow either appeared only in certain regions or lasted for just one day. So, chances are slim this year.

KTU student Gerson reveals that in Colombia expecting snow doesn’t make sense. “In most of the cities, one of the decorations is fake snow from cotton, so when it is snowing in Lithuania, all the landscape already feels like a decoration, honestly. I have loved it so far,” he says, still expecting the snow this season in Lithuania.

Knowing that you can’t rely on the weather to be festive, try to make it more so by engaging in winter activities.

If you are feeling adventurous, try the biggest snow park in the Baltic states, called Liepkalnis. It is a slightly more expensive activity, but perfect for those who love winter sports and adrenaline. Here you can enjoy skiing, and snowboarding, rent equipment and lessons for beginners, making it accessible for everyone. Plus, the views of Vilnius from the top of the slopes are stunning.