Vilnius Grand Resort is a 4* resort set amongst 2 scenic lakes and calming forests of pine and birch trees, the 180-room hotel is home to the V Spa and Wellness Centre which has 48 bedrooms and a 7500 sqm spa area which is completely dedicated to wellness and relaxation. The resort is also home to an 18-hole championship golf course, private sandy beach, tennis courts, volleyball courts and a boating lake.
Just a 2-hour flight away from the UK with regular flights to the capital of Lithuania, Vilnius is a great location for an Eastern European city break and is also home to the biggest Old Town in Europe. The resort is just a 20-minute drive from the centre and 30 minutes from the airport, making it a great spot to experience history, culture and relaxation, set away from the hustle and bustle of the centre.
The Hotel
There are 180 rooms in total, 140 in the main hotel and 40 in the V Wellness Centre, with the majority of rooms offering lake views. All guests booked onto a wellness programme stay in the V Wellness Centre where the rooms are modern, spacious and comfortable, and the bathrooms have a separate bathtub and walk in shower. The rooms in the main hotel are more dated and decorated in a more authentic and classical Eastern European style, with some offering balconies and private Jacuzzis.
Dining
Breakfast is served buffet style and has a tendency to be more on the indulgent side with a range of cheeses, cereals and American-style dishes. I visited in the low season where during the day and evening, only Le Paysage restaurant was open which serves French-inspired meals with a range of healthy and indulgent options. The friendly waiters told us that during the high season, the resort also opens an Italian restaurant at the Golf Club as well as a floating Polynesian-style BBQ restaurant on the lake. The V Spa and Wellness Centre has the Japanese restaurant which is exclusively for wellness guests, with a fresh menu of sushi and other Japanese dishes. Guests on the Ayurvedic programme also have an exclusive Ayurvedic wellness menu.
The Wellness Facilities
The state-of-the-art V Spa and Wellness Centre is well-equipped for the ultimate wellness experience. There are plenty of facilities aimed to restore your wellbeing with 16 treatment rooms, relaxation areas, 2 indoor swimming pools, salt room, Finnish sauna, Russian sauna and steam room and indoor and outdoor jacuzzi. The Vitality pool also has a not-to-be-missed waterfall Grotto experience, where you can escape to a hidden oasis to the sounds of nature. There is an extensive treatment menu combining Eastern and Western treatments and featuring a range of holistic, medical and beauty treatments and consultations, from Ayurvedic treatments to rejuvenating messages, aimed to cleanse and refresh the mind, body and soul. My favourite treatments were the Immunity Boost, which was an energising head, back, neck and shoulder massage, ending with foot reflexology and the Gemology Sanctuary, which involved lying on a soft quartz sand bed and started with a body scrub followed by a top-to-toe massage using semi-precious gem stones, where my thoughts slowly drifted away into 90 minutes of total calm and relaxation.
Fitness
There are 2 modern fitness centres, including 1 exclusively fitted with Pendex equipment, a unique complex of 12 simulators that trains humans better than the human train humans. By analysing exercises, they reveal weak parts of the body and develop individual training programs based on the information they gather during these exercises. There are also a variety of group wellness activities such as Yoga, circuit training and nature walks.
Highlights
I especially liked the exclusivity of the wellness centre, where it’s easy to escape to a sanctuary of calm. The Vitality pool area is exclusive to adults on a wellness programme or who have booked treatments, while only the Aqua Pool area is available to all hotel guests.
Lowlights
There isn't much else to do at the resort during the low season apart from the spa or walks around the lake. The resort itself is in a secluded area with nothing directly in the vicinity but several shuttle buses a day are offered to the centre or an Uber/Bolt is just 12 euros.
While the hotel can happily accommodate most dietary requirements, there aren’t that many options for vegan diets.
Insider Tips
There are a lot of treatments included in the wellness programmes, so I would recommend extending your stay and spreading out the inclusions of the programme so that you can have time to appreciate the spa faculties and visit Vilnius centre.
Find out how to book your stay at Vilnius Grand Resort here