I got back from visiting Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland last month. Traveling during Covid brought some huge benefits and also plenty of anxiety. Here's what happened:
Tour company
In true solo traveler fashion, I was going on this trip to explore and learn, and that is really done best when someone is guiding you. I picked this tour from Tour Radar, which I thought was the actual tour company, but no: they are the online presence for Click Tours, which in itself was representing the actual tour company, which is Baltic Vision. While it's not comforting to realize mid-trip that you were dealing with what is essentially a shell company, I can report that everything on the administrative side went very smoothly! I spoke with other people on the tour who had booked directly with Baltic Vision, and they said the prices they paid were comparable to what I had paid, so... ok I guess?
The transportation to and from that part of the world during Covid:
There are no airlines that fly directly from the US to Lithuania, the start point of the tour. Despite my hatred for Lufthansa (for not refunding tickets in Fall 2020, a problem that many others had as well but in a classic capitalistic multi-billion dollar company move, they took a $9 billion bailout and didn't refund customers and that's just how they addressed that issue), that was the only airline that got me to Vilnius in the time frame I needed.
Me in 2020: I will NEVER fly Lufthansa again, repulsive greedy jerks.
Me buying tickets for this trip in 2021: Oh hiiiii Lufthansa... repulsive greedy jerks.
Since it's Lufthansa, you have to go through Munich, and Germany requires a negative Covid test to enter, even for a brief layover and even if you're vaccinated. I had to show both the test results and the vaccination card in order to get my boarding pass in Boston, but from there everything was fine. Also: Germany does not allow cloth masks! Make sure to bring plenty of N-95 or surgical style masks. In order to be served at the German restaurants, even in the airport, you need to show an employee your negative test.
General/non-Covid advice: max out on the museums. While the KGB museums are very disturbing and overwhelming (especially if you go to them in each of the capitals - tripling your dose), it's important information about which I had essentially no clue. These countries have a very intense, violent, and recent history that affects everyone who grew up there. There are large Russian populations in each country which lead to some tense encounters given the relatively recent KGB slaughters. There are quite a few articles on this phenomenon; this is the one I found most in line with the vibe I got there.
Covid advice:
The countries
Lithuania: Arrival country! I got there the night before the tour started, to avoid any issues that could crop up given the extra Covid requirements. While you can enter Lithuania without a test, Latvia DOES require one for entry, so I knew I would have to get testing in Lithuania in order to cross into Latvia a few days later. I picked the testing center at the airport so I could just go straight there on arrival and not have to worry about finding a testing center somewhere in the city. I made an appointment when I was still in the states online and was able to just leave the airport and walk for 30 seconds to get to the testing center. I showed my ID and paid at the first window (75 euros for non-rushed results - ouch!) then rounded the corner and took the test, which seemed much more invasive than my U.S. test. They scraped allllll the way down my nose and waaaaay down my throat. Ouch again! There was a line of about 10 people and the whole process took about 35-40 minutes, so plan accordingly. From the airport/test center it was very easy to catch a very cheap bus to the city center and walk from there to my hotel. BUT you can't just pay for your bus ticket via kiosk or driver. You have to buy it with an app, which I wish I had known before leaving - but the airport has wifi so it worked out ok. Downloading the app and inputting all your data is a pain when you just want a ticket, but if you enter your credit card info on the app the first bus ride is free, so I actually never paid any money for a substantial bus ride. Got to my hotel and passed out, ready for meeting my tour the next day!
Latvia: the strictest about Covid among the three Baltic states. Finland also required a negative test but the rapid test was ok there, Latvia required PCR. Your results (from the test taken in Lithuania) are sent to your email, and you get a digital QR code that various entities ask for. As we crossed the border from Lithuania to Latvia in our tour van, our guide told us that most people never notice the border - you just drive past an empty guard building and go on your way. But our van was stopped (!), and a police officer boarded and asked for documents. We assumed he meant Covid tests, but he actually wanted to see passports. Depressingly, the situation in Belarus has gotten so severe that Belarusians are trying to "illegally" cross into the Baltic states, so the officer was making sure none of us were on the run. Our guide was absolutely shocked - she had never been stopped at the border in all her years of the tour. So no one ended up checking that Covid test, but I was definitely glad to have it just in case.
Estonia: no test needed. Masks were not even required indoors, and vaccination cards were not checked. Again, I entered Estonia via land border, so with a direct flight it may be more complicated. I still wore my mask because I had more travel coming up and didn't want to risk it, I was definitely not the only one masked.
Finland: vaccination and test needed. As long as you book in advance (I booked when I was in Estonia), you can take a rapid test at the Estonia ferry building on your way to the ferry ride between Tallinn and Helsinki, and have your results in 1-2 hours. Just an FYI for regular readers who want interesting tidbits: Finland has the highest number of saunas per capita, averaging about one per household, but their sauna obsession does not stop there. Our guide pointed out a distant ferris wheel in the city center, and asked if we noticed that two of the cabins on the wheel were a different color than the rest (they were!). "Those are saunas," she said. THERE WERE MULTIPLE SAUNAS ON A SINGLE FERRIS WHEEL. I figured it must be an oddity for the benefit of tourists, but I never would have known if it hadn't been spelled out to me. They just really like saunas, man.
Anyway, disclaimer that this information was accurate in early August 2021. All told, I would definitely do it again - despite the added unknown variables and discomfort of testing, I'm thrilled I got to leave the states for the first time since March 2020. I hope you get to go wherever you want to go!
