City Defence and the Basilisk Legend

Plan your visit

Tuesday to Sunday 10.00 to 18.00

The ticket office closes 30 minutes before closing time.

See working hours during public holidays.

Ticket prices

  • Adult – 6,00 €
  • Concessions* – 3,00 €

Family ticket

  • Small family (1 adult and 1–4 children) – 9,00 €
  • Small family ticket (1 adult and 1–4 children) with access to an educational class – 12,00 €
  • Large family (2 adults and 1–4 children) – 15,00 €
  • Large family ticket (2 adults and 1–4 children) with access to an educational class – 18,00 €

Additional services

  • Guided tours in Lithuanian or a foreign language (for groups of 1–20 people) – 20,00 € + admission tickets
  • Educational classes for children from 4 years old and schoolchildren – 3,00 €
  • Educational classes for adults – 3,00 € + admission ticket
  • Audioguide – free of charge
50% discount on admission tickets applies to the following visitors:

Full-time pupils of schools of general education; full-time students of schools of higher education; citizens of the Republic of Lithuania and other countries of the European Union studying full-time in schools of higher education in the member states of the European Union; students of vocational education institutions; pensioners (under 80); persons who suffered from the occupations between 1939 and 1990 – political prisoners and deportees, former inmates of ghettos and concentration or other forced labour camps; persons who fought for the independence of the Republic of Lithuania and suffered from Soviet aggression on 11–13 January 1991 and onwards; participants in the resistance movement against the occupations between 1940 and 1990 – volunteer soldiers and freedom fighters; teachers; for soldiers in permanent compulsory military service and volunteer soldiers, soldiers of NATO forces serving in Lithuania; members of the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union; cadets of the General J. Žemaitis Lithuanian Military Academy; members of the Lithuanian Armed Forces Volunteer Union. Discount is applied upon presentation of an appropriate ID.

Exposition is free of charge for the following visitors:

pre-school children; orphans and children who have lost guardianship by their parents; people with a disability and their one accompanying person; pupils with special educational needs and their one accompanying person; persons from 80 years of age; persons presenting a POLA (Association for Support of Oncological Patients) card; employees of Lithuania’s museums; members of the International Council of Museums (ICOM); residents of children care homes and socially supported children; teachers accompanying groups of schoolchildren; Vilnius Pass card holders (valid for visiting The New Arsenal, The Old Arsenal, The House of Signatories, Gediminas Castle Tower, The Bastion of the Vilnius Defence Wall, Kazys Varnelis House-Museum, House of Histories); students of Lithuanian art schools for children and youth; students of Vilnius College of Technologies and Design; students of Balys Dvarionas decennary music school; members of the Lithuanian Association of Art Historians; members of the International Association of Art Critics; members of the Lithuanian Association of Archaeologists; guides with valid guide ID; guides accompanying groups of tourists; journalists; Family Card holders; students of Vilnius Academy of Arts; students of the Faculty of History at Vilnius University; students of the Faculty of Communication at Vilnius university; students of the Klaipėda university; organised groups of up to 15 people by members of the Karaim Cultural Community in Lithuania, with the exception of Gediminas Castle Tower; members of the Public Institution “Public Initiatives Support Fund” accompanying Ukrainian groups; citizens of Ukraine; all visitors on the last Sunday of each month, except for temporary exhibitions at the House of Histories.

Educational activities of the National Museum of Lithuania’s expositional locations are free of charge for the following visitors:

children under 3 years of age; residents of children care homes and socially supported children; people with a disability and their one accompanying person; teachers accompanying groups of schoolchildren; citizens of Ukraine.

Concessions are applied upon the visitor providing valid ID that prooves right to specific concessions. This ID requirement does not apply to pre-school children and all visitors on the last Sunday of each month.

Guided tours are available in Lithuanian, English and Russian languages. Guided tours must be ordered in advance by phone or e-mail +370 (5) 261 21 49, [email protected].

The tours in the museum are only led by the museum tour guides or the tour guides from the institution with which the museum has concluded an appropriate agreement.

Filming and photography

Visitors are allowed to take photographs in the exhibitions and displays without a flash or tripod, provided that these photographs are not reproduced or published. The Administration reserves the right to prohibit photography and filming in certain exhibition halls or temporary exhibitions. Journalists may use special equipment with the permission of the museum administration. The visitor is responsible for copyright infringements.

Adaptation for people with reduced mobility

Most of the museum’s exhibitions and sanitary facilities are accessible to visitors with reduced mobility. There is a ramp at the main entrance to the museum. Car parking is available outside the museum. If you have any questions about visiting the museum or about meeting us at the entrance, please contact us on +370 (5) 261 21 49.

Accessibility for the visually impaired

Some of the information about the museum’s exhibitions is designed for the blind and partially sighted. Information is available in Braille at the main exhibits, and at the ticket office, ask for a special guide for the visually impaired and in Braille with relief illustrations. The museum also has a touchable model of the Bastille, printed with a 3D printer, and touchable reconstructions of armour and weapons. Touching the Bastille’s symbol, the Basilisk sculpture, allows you to hear 4 different stories-legends about this monster that once lived in Vilnius.

If you have any questions about visiting the Museum or about meeting us at the Museum, please contact us on +370 (5) 261 21 49.

Adaptation for the hearing impaired

A video guide to the exhibition in Lithuanian sign language is available for visitors. You can use it by scanning the special QR code available at the checkout. You can also view the video guide on the LNM website .

Social stories for parents of children with ASD

Scared to venture into a new and unfamiliar space? The Social Stories will help you get to know the museum and what to expect when you arrive.

Exhibitions

Exhibition “That Flower Looks Like a Drone”

Exhibition

2026 05 20–09 06

Bastion of the Vilnius Defence Wall

Events

Unveiling of the Sculpture “Wolf” on Gediminas Hill

Event

2026 06 16

Gediminas Castle Tower

Guided tour “Stories of the Vilnius Bastion”

Tour

2026 07 07; 2026 07 17; 2026 07 18

Bastion of the Vilnius Defence Wall

About us

The museum at the Bastion of the Vilnius Defence Wall tells the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania’s weaponry and defence practices.

What will you see?

Artillery weapons and small salute canons used for events, as well as smaller calibre weapons; a long speared gun called an arquebus, a hand grenade, a pistol and a rifle; elements from 17th–18th century Grand Duchy of Lithuania soldiers’ armour – helmets, breastplates, half-armour. The history of Vilnius and its defence is further illuminated by such exhibition pieces as an executioner’s sword, locks from the gates of the Vilnius defence wall, etchings and sketches of city plans, and intriguing excerpts from Kazimieras Simonavičius’s mid-17th century work “The Great Art of Artillery”.

News

Contacts

Address

Bokšto g. 20, Vilnius

+370 (5) 261 21 49

[email protected]

How to find us?

Entrance to the museum from Bokšto Street.

The nearest paid parking lot is at 1 O. Šimaitė Street.

The museum can be reached by public transport – Užupio bus stop (buses 10, 11, 33).