Holiday Inn Vilnius

Hotel is good . Close to city centre and very helpful staff . Nice restaurant downstairs with a fusion menu

My first visit to Vilnius, and Lithuania. With a great location and excellent price, the Holiday Inn seemed a good choice. And it was. An easy 20 minute bus ride and 5 minute walk from the airport, and you're at the hotel. The bus from the airport is €0.65 each, each way. Or €8 for a 72 hour travel pass which includes the airport. It's so cheap and easy, I really wouldn't bother with a taxi. We arrived slightly early but our room was ready. We had room 701, their suite. Check in was friendly and top marks to Anton for a friendly welcome. I had also been in touch with the hotel ahead of time with some questions which Anton had been dealing with too, and remembered me. Which was nice. Usual Diamond benefits were applied without issue too. We made our way up to the room which was lovely. It was also extremely clean. It looked brand new! They had kindly made up a small bed in the living area for our 11 year old which she said was very comfortable. There was a large sofa, separate chair and a table as well as a minibar. The main bedroom was a king bed with separate desk and chair. The bathroom had a Jacuzzi bath, separate shower cubicle and double sinks. The door to the bathroom at first seemed odd, almost a see-through sliding door. It wasn't in fact see through unless you stood right next to the glass, and actually looked quite cool. We ate in the Rib Room which happened to be valentines night and it was packed. We had booked thankfully. I had their rib platter which were some of the best ribs I've had. The food was enjoyed by others in our party although a well done steak was requested for my wife but wasn't well done at all by UK standards. Always one to remember in Europe. Service was a little slow but it was packed and actually, something we found everywhere in Vilnius restaurants. Maybe that's just their way. We used the bar on the ground floor which was very nice. Their bar snacks platters are definitely something to try - a good selection of local dishes which we shared among our group. Drinks here were quite expensive compared with other establishments in Vilnius which was a shame as we'd have spent more time here and bought more drinks if they had been better priced. Saying that, the drinks and cocktails we did have were lovely. It is worth noting that Lithuania has very tight alcohol laws and high taxes on alcohol, making such drinks expensive compared with other food and beverage options. This was true everywhere, not just the hotel. Shops stop selling alcohol at 8pm (3pm on a Sun). 20 is the legal age and no discounts of any kind are allowed by law. Worth noting if you are using IHG milestone rewards here - they cannot be used against alcoholic drinks by law. The location of the hotel is excellent with the old town being around 10-15 minutes walk away. We really enjoyed our stay and would recommend this as a base if you are visiting the city for the first time. As with a recent stay at the Holiday Inn in Gdansk, this Holiday In