Recently, I was on a work trip to the Netherlands. During my trip, I took some personal time for a road trip I had planned for a long time. I visited Eastern European countries, including Krakow and Warsaw in Poland, Vilnius, Riga, and Tallinn in the Baltic region, and ended my trip in Helsinki.
I had originally planned (A few years ago when I created this itinerary) to visit more Eastern European countries, like Ukraine and Belarus, and also St. Petersburg/Kaliningrad in Russia. However, due to the war, I couldn’t enter Ukraine. Also, the EU closed its borders with Russia and Belarus, making it impossible to visit those places. I hope things become peaceful in the future.
Itinerary
The plan was to start the trip in Krakow, a historical city in Poland, and then travel north to Helsinki. Along the way, I planned to visit Warsaw, Vilnius, Riga, and Tallinn.The trip focused mostly on the historical aspects of each place. Unlike my other trips, this one was centered around cities with fewer natural sites. My colleague joined me for the Poland part of the trip, and I traveled solo for the rest of the journey.
Travelling to the destination
As mentioned, I was in the Netherlands. We took a Wizz Air flight from Eindhoven to Krakow. Eindhoven is a hub for low-cost airlines in the Netherlands, so I found a cheap ticket.
On my return, I flew with KLM from Helsinki to Amsterdam.
Travelling between cities
Following was the mode of transport during the visit
- Krakow to Warsaw: PKP Intercity train (2 hours’)
- Warsaw to Vilnius: Bus from LuxExpress (8 hours’)
- Vilnius to Riga: Train by LTG link (4.5 hours’)
- Riga to Tallinn: Bus from LuxExpress (5 hours’)
- Tallinn to Helsinki: Ferry from Eckeroline ( 2 hours)
I did online booking for all these travels. It went smoothly.
Travelling within city
We walked a lot within the cities. When needed, we used public transport. We did not take taxis at any location.
Hotels
I booked hotels using Booking.com. I looked for recent positive reviews, ratings above 7 stars, and good prices. Most hotels were close to the city center or near public transport, which saved me time and money on travel. There were no surprises.
Restaurants
Finding vegetarian options in Europe is easy. We had no issues at all. I ate at vegan, Italian, Mexican, and Indian restaurants. Sometimes, we also went to fast food places like McDonald’s, Burger King, and Hesburger.
Currency
All countries except Poland use the Euro, so it was easy. In Poland, I converted some Euros to Polish złoty for emergencies.
I used credit card almost everywhere. It was super convenient.
Network
All hotels had Wi-Fi. I enabled Airtel International roaming, and it worked perfectly throughout the trip.
Language
Even though each country had its own language, we had no problem conversing in English.
Visas
All the countries are in the Schengen area, so no additional visas were needed.
Summary
This region of Europe isn’t very popular among Indian tourists. Indians usually prefer Western Europe first. I didn’t see any Indian tourists in the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Interestingly, most of the delivery agents for Bolt/Wolt (similar to Zomato and Swiggy) were Indians. Helsinki has a small Indian community. There were a few Indian tourist groups in Warsaw.
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