Not Quite Rail Baltica: Travelers Can Get From Vilnius To Tallinn By Train In A Day!

This year, travelers will be able to get between Vilnius and Tallinn in a single day using the train (10 hours). It will still require 3 trains, 3 train bookings, and 2 connections... so is it even that impressive?

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[LithuaniaExplained]

WOW! Things have changed fast! Now, you can travel between Vilnius and Tallinn with just ONE ticket, and just ONE transfer at Valga (🇪🇪). Those are big improvements!

[roberturbanczyk]

Such line should be used for sleeper trains. 8h bus journey would be terrible. Meanwhile sleeper trains would make people save time on taking hotel after long journey.

[nonamespecified]

Good video! I wanted to add some additional points that I think are worth noting. Most of this is based on news I’ve read, though some parts are speculative.

It’s true that the people benefiting most from this new service are those living in towns closer to the borders of the countries. I doubt many passengers would take the full ride from Tallinn to Vilnius because it’s quite a long journey with better alternatives. That said, I think there will still be demand. For example, by the end of 2024, LTG Link reported that their Vilnius-Riga service they launched just a year earlier, exceeded expectations, with around 62, 000 rides taken in its first year. That’s a promising result for a relatively new route.

As you noted, two changes are very much inconvenient, so the operators are working to reduce it to one. The quickest solution would be to extend Lithuania’s LTG Link train to Valga, as that model is already certified to run on Estonian railways. As you mentioned, at the end of 2024 a successful test run was conducted, and there’s now a plan for the train to be rented and operated all the way to Valga by Vivi.

The next logical step would be extending the route to Tallinn. Unfortunately, LTG Link currently lacks the capacity to do this. However, there’s good news: they're set to receive new long-distance and commuter trains from Stadler in 2025, with service beginning in 2026. Once these trains are available, it will likely open up the possibility of running a direct service from Vilnius to Tallinn.

In the meantime, Estonia’s Stadler FLIRT units are expected to be certified to run on Latvian railways in the first half of 2025. This will probably mean passengers will need to make only one connection in Riga, with Estonia’s Elron trains running from Tallinn to Riga and Lithuania’s LTG Link trains running from Riga to Vilnius.

Regarding speed, the Tallinn-Tartu mainline is undergoing upgrades to allow for speeds of 160 km/h and is also being electrified. Right now, travel speeds are low on large sections of the track due to ongoing work. It is projected to be finished in late summer of 2025 and travel times are expected to decrease by about an hour.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that each operator currently requires a separate ticket. This is obviously very inconvenient, but fortunately, they’re working on a unified ticket system. An Elron representative stated they aim to introduce this system in the first quarter of 2024.

Wow, this turned into quite a long comment, but I hope someone finds it interesting 😅 Thanks for covering the topic! it’s an exciting development in wait for RailBaltica.

[realhawaiio]

I might do this just to prove a point at some point, as a Tallinn resident xd

[roberturbanczyk]

I think baltic states should make 3 long distance train connections instead of separating them

[kirjoittajajoni]

It's a shame the Baltics lack behind on rail but I'm super excited that there's interest in improving this field. This interest in more cooperation as well as Rail Baltica coming up will offer so many new possibilities to these countries. Can't wait to check Lithuania out for the first time as a resident of Tallinn!

[realhawaiio]

Tallinn resident here.
If only it didn't take 11 hours or cost 55€ :))
And if only Elron ran the trains all the way to Riga as they planned...

[jygeb]

Doing Vilnius-Tallinn by train was already possible a year ago, just with 4 hour layover in Valga. I did Vilnius-Riga-Valga-Tallinn last February, leaving Vilnius at 6.30 and arriving to Tallinn at around 21.00.

Now just Vivi started using Lithuanian train and Estonian train schedule got adjusted for this.

By the way, student discount is applicable for Estonian train, and for Lithuanian one can use it if you buy Vilnius-Joniškis ticket separately.

[aimo]

There is an environment concious traveller community in Finland and propably in Baltics too who consider carbon footprint and dont fly, and prefer trains over busses due that reason. This is good news to them.

[aidanmcferran]

So happy I found this channel! In May, I will be touring around the Baltic states for a week and looking at travel options avoiding a rental car. Given the current infrastructure and travel times, a stopover in Riga for 1/2 nights is much more appealing for travellers rather than the direct journey between Vilnius and Tallinn. Unfortunately, LTG Link frequency of service between Riga and Vilnius is not competitive compared to Flixbus/Lux Express on the same route (almost hourly frequency). However, it is a step in the right direction ahead of Rail Baltica in the next few years. Looking forward to seeing more sustainable travel options becoming available for travellers in the Baltics soon. Thanks for the explainer video, really excited to explore these countries!

[rafag]

if we can't even connect a few cities by train then europe is cooked

[DS.J]

Good video, and you're pretty much correct on everything, as usual. Main issue for now is lack of a single ticketing system, although, according to LTG, this will be sorted some time later this year, possibly over a couple of months or so. Also, It seems Latvian Railways will be renting an LTG train to provide service between Riga and Valga which will be the same Pesa 730M train that is used for Vilnius-Riga i.e. the same train will continue from Riga to Valga which means Vilnius-Riga-Valga will be on the same train. Estonian train would do Valga-Tallinn section. Once this is achieved, it will still not be perfect, but one ticket and one change of train would be enough which is closer to what I would consider a decent train service.
As for advantages of a train vs bus, besides "ability to walk" and "more space" there is another one - less random motion and swinging on a train compared to a bus, for obvious reasons. This can cause motion sickness on buses to many people (including myself) and results in an overall poor comfort on a bus. That's one big reason why any kind of rail transport is always superior to pretty much any kind of bus transport.
Either way, while this is by no means perfect, I'm happy that train companies (and seemingly governments) of the three Baltic countries are at least acknowledging that rail transport between the countries needs to improve and are taking steps towards it after decades of ignoring the problem.

[realhawaiio]

Actually, between Šiauliai and Riga, Vilnius or Tallinn, there are also direct buses :p
Also between Jelgava and the others.
From Tartu there's only direct connections to Riga and to Tallinn, with 1 change being required to go to Vilnius.

[tomstream]

Driving! I drive a Subaru SUV, the journey from Vilnius to Tallinn (601 km) takes 8 hours, the gas (benzinas) cost 70 euro. I love it! And I can smoke a cigarette anytime.

[KristinaJasiunaite]

Thank you for this informative video! I’m not sure I would have notices the changes regarding the schedulea without it.

I love traveling by train!

One additional aspect that motivates me recently to prioritize train travel over flying is the fact that trains are usuay much more climte friendly way to travel while flying is the worst. This is particularly the case when trains are fully electric and are operates when using renewable energy.

[riddlecolo]

Better option is probably to switch to a bus in Riga.

All in all, it makes sense to coordinate schedules, but maybe for local journeys just across the border and one or so stops further. Rail Baltica is the first step and I'm desperately waiting to taking it for the first time.

[davee]

Laba Diena..
My Wife is from Radviliskis and we think we might take a trip for a few nights in Tallinn.
The line needs some upgrading to Latvian border from Siauliai as it was Freight only for years. If they can raise that line speed to 100-120kmh where possible, even the Vilnius-Ryga run will be more competitive. Also i guess LTG can release more of the Mesa built DMUs once the Stadlers arrive in service.

[janelo]

In 1991 I went by nighttrain from Tallinn via Valga to Riga and Vilnius. It was perfect…

[ntw]

I don't really understand how beneficial it would be to extend the Lithuanian train to Valga. I hope Elron trains get approved in Latvia, so there would be just a single transfer in Riga for this route

[gedog]

It’s the EU wide high-speed option that makes the difference. If you could travel Warsaw to Tallinn in 3hrs, or Berlin to Vilnius in similar then you’re out performing the coaches and offering more space than the planes.