Pandemic Statistics
Lithuania’s 14-day coronavirus infection rate currently stands at 251.4 per 100,000 people. A total of 3,253 people have died from Covid-19 in Lithuania so far. The overall number of deaths directly or indirectly related to the pandemic has reached 6,500. A total of 2,091,539 molecular (PCR) tests for Covid-19 have been carried out. In all, 164,382 people have received their first coronavirus vaccine shots so far and 73,103 have been given the booster.
Airport Tests
Travellers arriving or leaving from Vilnius Airport can take paid coronavirus tests as of March 1. Testing is performed by a private contractor, Rezus.lt, from a makeshift site built in the airport’s parking lot by the arrivals terminal. Kaunas and Palanga Airports plan to launch testing services in April, according to Vilnius Airport officials.
All international travellers coming to Lithuania must present a negative Covid-19 test or get tested within 24 hours. Most countries in Europe also require arrivals to get tested. At Vilnius Airport, travellers can sign up for either PGR or rapid antigen testing. The price ranges from 33 to 140 euros, depending on the type of test and the speed of the results. The schedule of testing has been adapted to flight schedules according to airport officials. People must register in advance online or by phone.
Vilnius Airport has serviced about a tenth of its usual passenger flow over the first months of 2021, according to the company’s spokesman Tadas Vasiliauskas. In January and February, the airport serviced 90,768 passengers, compared to 902,159 during the same period last year.
Book Fair Postponed
Vilnius’ annual international book fair, a highly popular event, has been postponed to next year due to the epidemiological situation in the country, said CEO of the Litexpo Exhibition Centre in Vilnius Justinas Bortkevičius. The Vilnius Book Fair was meant to take place in May, but has now been moved to February 24–27, 2022. The organizers said they had considered various options, such as holding the book fair online, outside the Litexpo Centre or elswhere in the city. Held in the Lithuanian capital annually since 2000, the international book fair attracts 60,000 to 70,000 visitors every year.
