Review: Courtyard by Marriott Vilnius City Center [Lithuania]
| Positives | Negatives |
|---|---|
| Decent location close to top attractions | $10 daily credit not appliocable to market |
| Clean and functional rooms | Mediocre breakfast |
| No suites |
The start of my Baltics trip starts in Lithuania via Finnair where I spent a 9-hour layover in Helsinki just before landing in Lithuania for the first time.
There’s only two Marriott hotels in Vilnius, with the other being the Hotel Pacai located in Vilnius Old Town. That one looks more appealing than the Courtyard, but is twice the price so I decided to book the Courtyard instead.
Courtyard Vilnius- Booking
I booked a 3-night stay on a Weekend City Break rate where breakfast is included for a total of 216 EUR. The rate would not appear on every weekends, but can be a good deal compared to standard rates since Courtyards in Europe typically don’t offer breakfast as an elite benefit.
You can expect rates to float around 100 EUR per night here and discounts are typically offered when you stay 3+ nights.
Courtyard Vilnius- Location
Courtyard Vilnius is located on the north of Nevis River, on the more business-y side of Vilnius compared to the south of the river where Old Town resides and where more tourist attractions are. But, the walk down across the river isn’t too bad and roughly took me 15 minutes to Gediminas Avenue, the main street of Vilnius that’s very lively, filled with restaurants and shopping eestablishments, and is converted to full pedestrian street where cars are prohibited.
If you need a taxi, I recommend downloading the Bolt app where you’ll get the fairest prices. For example, the ride from the airport VNO to the hotel costs in the range of 7-10 EUR. The same price range goes for the main bus/train station which you’ll go to if you’re interested in day trips to Trakai or Kaunas.
Courtyard Vilnius- Check-in
I arrived at the hotel at 10pm from VNO. The process was smooth, and I was thanked for my Titanium Elite status.
At Courtyard hotels, you’re typically presented points or daily $10 credit for food and beverages if you’re at least Platinum Elite. Since breakfast is included, I thought that I’d pick the $10 credit to get help myself to some free snacks and drinks at the hotel’s to-go market section.
Unfortunately, the credit only worked for the bar and the restaurant which is disappointing since other Courtyards I’ve stayed at let you use them in the market. It would’ve been handy too since the nearest grocery store (Lidl) takes around 10 minutes of walk.
Outside of that, the hotel upgraded me to the best room of the hotel. Courtyard Vilnius has no suites at all, so the highest category is Superior King.
Courtyard Vilnius- Superior King
The Superior King is on the far right corner of the highest floor (7th). My particular room 744 has a view of Gediminas Tower.
The layout is typical of a Courtyard hotel in Europe where you’ll be greeted with a bathroom inside frosted glass right after entry. Let’s cover the bathroom first.
The bathroom utilizes the compact space well, combining the toilet and sink in one with the walk-in shower next to it.
Across the bathroom is where the closet and pantry are.
On arrival, a bathrobe was placed on top of the bed. Across it is the TV with a long desk under it.
Room service menu is available on the QR code.
There’s no chair for the long desk, but there’s one lounging chair by the window. Free water bottle is given everyday, but tap water is safe to drink in Vilnius as the sign suggests next to the water bottle.
Then, there’s the Geminidas Tower in the distance, and it glows distinctly at night.
Courtyard Vilnius- Breakfast
Breakfast is served at Solt Dining, the hotel’s sole restaurant. They serve typical western breakfast like scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage.
Quality wise, they’re nothing to write home about. Normally, breakfast would cost 18 euro per person, and I would rather go out and have breakfast somewhere else if I didn’t have it for free. Although, Marriott elites can use the daily $10 F&B credit in lieu of the 500 Welcome Points to go towards the breakfast cost.
Courtyard Vilnius- Fitness Center
The gym is located on the 3rd floor and is open 24/7 and you’ll just need your keycard to access. The entry somewhat blended with the hallway’s walls so just look for the sign that points to Fitness Center.
It’s a decent gym that even include a mounted pull-up bar. The signed jersey frame is apparently from Lithuanian football club.
Conclusion
The Courtyard is a fine hotel to stay at in Vilnius. While I feel it’s not the most center location wise (despite its name, and there are other hotels with City Center on their name with more desirable location), it’s very walkable to some of Vilnius’ top attractions like Old Town, Gediminas Avenue, and Tower. It’s one of the closest hotels to the Neris River, and I found it nice to take a stroll alongside it. The rooms are clean and functional and comes at a very fair price.
The other downsides of this hotel are the fact that you can’t use the $10 daily F&B credit towards the market like other Courtyard hotels, and the breakfast was nothing noteworthy. There are no suites at this hotel as well, so big families may have to take that into consideration.