The 15 Best Hill of Crosses Day Trips from Riga

1.2 countries! Hill of Crosses, Rundale Palace and Bauska castle

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 225 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $157Our pick

Spend about eight hours traveling from Riga through southern Latvia into Lithuania. Visit Rundale Palace, Bauska Castle, and the Hill of Crosses, with a brief border photo stop. The shared vehicle holds up to eight people, and guides such as Jānis and Viesturs add local stories along the way.

“The tour guide was knowledgeable, engaging, enthusiastic, and a genuine passion for people and place, making it feel connected, included, and creating lasting memories by sharing experiences.”

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2.Hill of Crosses & Jelgava Highlights

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 149 reviews · 7 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $54

Travel from Riga into Lithuania for the moving Hill of Crosses, then return through Jelgava for an Orthodox cathedral, riverside lunch, and Jelgava Palace. Guides such as Viktorija, Erlens, and Janis add history and local stories, while the air-conditioned van handles the long drive.

“Dont forget to bring your passport. Janis was a wonderful guide, with many stories. The bus driver was also great!”

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3.Hill of Crosses, Guided Rundale Palace & Bauska Castle

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 140 reviews · 8 hours · from $130

Travel from Riga in a comfortable van with an English-speaking guide such as Erlens. Visit the Hill of Crosses, Rundale Palace with a live guide, and Bauska Castle. Expect a small-group pace, border photos, planned lunch, and thoughtful touches including water and local treats.

“We had a fantastic trip with Arlens. We felt really comfortable and not rushed as we have on other tours. This tour is also nice small groups as opposed to a large coach load, so it's a more personal experience. Arlens went out of his way to make his customers trip enjoyable and find things they wanted to buy/do along the way. The other tour guide at Rundale Palace was also exceptional. Practical info (because that's what I like in reviews!): -Water provided (and a couple of surprise treats) -Plenty of toilet and food/drink stop opportunities -Opportunities to buy souvenirs -Nice clean and comfortable bus -Lunch isn't included payment wise…”

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4.5,5 Hour Small Group Tour to Hill of Crosses from Riga

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 127 reviews · 5 hours 40 minutes (approx.) · from $90

Travel from Riga to Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses in a small group of up to eight. Guides such as Jānis, Krista, and Viesturs share local stories during the drive, with a possible Latvia-Lithuania border photo stop, one hour at the hill, and a drive through Jelgava.

“Collection from a convenient place in Riga, exactly on time. Richard greeted us warmly in his lovely nine seater Mercedes minibus. There was five of us, so loads of room. The two hour ride was made interesting by Richards observations and historical anecdotes. We had plenty of water and really moreish sweets supplied. The Hill of Crosses was a truly moving experience, something none of us will forget. On the way back the route deviated slightly to take in differing building styles and the grand winter palace. We were home on time, with enough of the day left to carry on sightseeing. We only had a limited time in Riga…”

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5.Group Day trip to Rundale Palace, Hill of Crosses & Bauska Castle

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 92 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $151

Travel from Riga in a small, air-conditioned van with a multilingual guide such as Paul, Gints, or Kristine. Spend the day at Rundale Palace, Bauska Castle, and Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses, with free time at each stop and a border crossing along the way.

“Rundale: stunning as beautiful palace is filled with authentic furniture etc; excellent iphone app + interactive screens in each space. also nice restaurant, with good food and nice ambiance. Hill of Crosses: amazing, original, but a long ride to it... Bauska: dispointing: we saw the inner court only, no visit of the interior. Driver told us, it's just medieval - and that the stop was only for climbing the tower for the view (this limitation should be highlighted in the trip explanation), but nobody was interested in the flat winter landscape and Tom did not show any enthusiasm to encourage us. The van: fine but driver could not be heard…”

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6.Tour from Riga – Vilnius via Bauska, Rundale, The Hill of Crosses

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 54 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $114

Use this one-way Riga to Vilnius transfer to visit Bauska Castle, Rundale Palace, and the Hill of Crosses. You travel by comfortable van with room for luggage, a driver-guide or guidebook, and about an hour at each stop. Guides such as Adam, Andris, and Andrew have led this route.

“This is a convenient way to get from Riga to Vilnius, whilst pulling in some sights that are hard to get to otherwise. The tour is well run and runs to a schedule. However, some of our group were 5 minutes late at one stop and they were inappropriately yelled at. The guide did apologise but it tainted the atmosphere of the tour. I also don’t think he should be hugging people who appeared to not be comfortable with this.”

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7.Private trip – Hill of Crosses / 2 countries in 1 day

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 44 reviews · 5 to 6 hours (approx.) · from $150

Travel privately from Riga to Lithuania with guides such as Krista, Armand, or Elrens. Hear the story behind the Hill of Crosses, spend an hour exploring on your own, and pause at the Latvia-Lithuania border. Bottled water, WiFi, hotel pickup, and an air-conditioned vehicle are included.

“Krista was a wonderful tour guide! Wish we had her to show us around more of Latvia. Hill of crosses is definitely worth the visit. Highly recommend this tour!”

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8.Private Full-Day Trip to Hill of Crosses, Rundale Palace & Bauska

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 36 reviews · 8 hours (approx.)

From Riga, your private English-speaking guide takes you across the Lithuanian border to the Hill of Crosses, then back to Latvia for Rundale Palace and Bauska Castle. Expect flexible stop times, hotel pickup, private transport, and a lunch break. Guides including Norman, Normund, Normands, and Andrejs have led this outing.

“The trip was outstanding and the driver was courteous and knowledgeable. Everything on the itinerary was worth seeing, especially the Hill of Crosses. Simply amazing.”

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9.Hill of Crosses and Jelgava Gems Tour – 2 countries in 1 day

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 35 reviews · 7 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $46Best value

Travel from Riga into Lithuania for one hour at the moving Hill of Crosses, then return through Jelgava for an Orthodox cathedral, Trinity Church Tower, riverside walk, and optional lunch. Guides such as Tomas and Paul provide history and live commentary in a comfortable minivan or bus.

“Great trip! Bonus were the stops in Jelgava. Our guide was fantastic and very accommodating. Highly recommend!”

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10.Hill of Crosses, Bauska & Rundale Full-Day Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 33 reviews · 7 hours

Travel from Riga into Lithuania and southern Latvia with a private guide such as Normunds, Māris, or Juri. See the haunting Hill of Crosses, ornate Rundale Palace, and medieval Bauska Castle, with time adjusted to suit your group.

“We enjoyed the trip very much! Our guide Normunds was friendly, he gave us a lot of interesting information and recommendations and answered all our questions on the way :-) It was a pleasure to have him as our guide! Thank you! Concerning the monuments: The Hill of Crosses is something you should definitely visit! The atmosphere is even bleaker when it's raining. The Rundale palace is really nice from inside and outside - it costs 17 euros but if you like visiting chateaux it is worth it! Anyway, go to the trip and you will not regret it! :-)”

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11.Hill of Crosses & Guided Rundale Palace with Bauska Castle

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 20 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $119

Leave Riga with an English-speaking guide for the Hill of Crosses in Lithuania, then tour Rococo Rundale Palace with a certified palace guide, pause for lunch, and climb Bauska Castle tower. Small groups of up to 19 travel by air-conditioned vehicle with Wi-Fi and bottled water.

“An excellent full day trip exploring key sites outside of Riga and Hills of Crosses in Lithuania. Erlens was a fantastic knowledgable guide. He was very friendly and made our trip.”

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12.Sunrise at the Hill of Crosses – 2 countries in 1 day

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 19 reviews · 5 to 6 hours (approx.) · from $150

Leave Riga before sunrise for Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses with a private guide such as Krista, Jānis, Janis, or Matiss. Hear the site’s stories, explore alone, take photos, and plant a cross if you wish. Hotel pickup, bottled water, and private transport are included.

“Really cool site to see, I highly recommend it. The amount of crosses is shocking. We loved our guide Janus, he was a wealth of information and a super chill, nice guy.”

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13.Hill of Crosses & Rundale Palace Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 18 reviews · 7 hours (approx.)

Travel by private, air-conditioned vehicle from Riga to Rundāle Palace in Latvia and Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses. Expect hotel pickup at 10:00, English guidance, admission to Rundāle, and time to explore the pilgrimage site. Guide Laura is especially praised for her warmth and local insight.

“Great way to see the area and travel from city to city. The places selected to visit on the way were interesting and the information provided helped in the understanding of the history”

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14.Private transfer Riga – Hill of Crosses – Riga

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 11 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $138

Travel from central Riga to Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses in about 1 hour 50 minutes each way. Your English-speaking driver, such as Janis or Krista, handles the road while you explore the eerie, moving site on your own schedule.

“Over a million crosses Very different If you want to enter Lithuania it fits the bill. It makes for a nice half day tour”

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15.Private Castle tour from Riga:Rundale, Bauska+Hill of Crosses(LT)

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 3 reviews · from $171

From Riga, your private driver takes you to ornate Rundale Palace, Bauska Castle, and Lithuania’s Hill of Crosses. Expect a 4 to 6 hour trip, air-conditioned transport, water, included admission, and a flexible format. Confirm language needs carefully before booking.

“A german tour was booked, but unfortunately not kept. We were disappointed. The driver was very nice.”

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