A Visit to the Hill of Crosses, Lithuania
What a special place to visit. The Hill of Crosses is one of the most unique destinations I’ve ever been to, and I actually felt quite emotional on my visit. It’s made up of well over 200,000 crosses, and is one of Lithuania’s most popular sites – it’s easy to see why.
What is the Hill of Crosses?
The History
People began planting crosses here en-masse in the 1800s, although the tradition probably began much earlier. Following the failed 1831 Uprising against the Russian Empire, people placed crosses on the hill both as a sign of their religion, and also to honor victims and relatives of the uprising, many of whom were deported to Siberia.
During Soviet times in the 1900s, the Hill of Crosses took on an even greater importance—as a sign of resistance to the totalitarian regime. The Hill of Crosses was bulldozed by the Soviet authorities several times, but people would risk their lives in peaceful protest by planting crosses again, even overnight to avoid detection. The Hill of Crosses became a symbol of Lithuanian national identity, as well as a significant religious site.
Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass on the Hill of Crosses on September 7th 1993, to a huge crowd of 100,000 people. There is a small chapel commemorating the spot where he celebrated Mass.
Today
Today, people still leave crosses in memory of loved ones. I’ve talked a lot about my infertility issues, and I found a small comfort in leaving a little cross in memory of my 13 (at the time of writing) miscarried little babies, who even though never older than a few weeks were loved regardless and who I wish in another world might have been visiting with me.
How to get to the Hill of Crosses
Getting to The Hill of Crosses is easiest by car. The nearest town is ?iauliai (pronounced show-lay), 12km away. If you’re coming from Vilnius it’s a 2.5 hour drive, or 2hrs from Kaunas. We drove from Vilnius, en-route to Riga, as the site is about half way, making it the perfect stop off.
If you don’t have a car, you can also take a train from Vilnius or Kaunas to ?iauliai. From there, head to the bus station and get the next bus to Joniskis and get off at Domantai, from where it’s a 2km walk to The Hill of Crosses site. Buses are to and from ?iauliai to the site are unreliable though, so I really recommend a car if you can do so.
Other helpful information
- The Hill of Crosses is open 24hrs a day
- It is free to enter, though there is a charge to use the toilets on site and there is a charge of EUR1 for carparking
- There is a small gift shop at the site where you can buy crosses if you want to leave one
- There are over 200,000 crosses at the site
- Walking round the Hill of Crosses takes around 30-45 minutes. In total we spent 1hr here.
- Bring insect repellant as there are mosquitoes everywhere! I was bitten 6 times even in trousers and a jumper!
