It's hard to believe that 10 years have passed since we started our first Vilnius free tour! Over the years, each of us has taken a unique path to becoming a guide, but what unites us is a shared love for traveling, learning new things, and meeting travelers from all over the world. Our goal as always is to introduce you to Vilnius in the way we’d want to explore it ourselves.
One of our first Vilnius Old Town and Užupis free walking tours with Martyna back in 2014. Can you believe it?
However, as a small, local company, the challenges we face from larger international businesses are growing every year. These big companies often have massive marketing budgets and hidden fees that overshadow local talent and businesses. Despite this, we are fortunate that, here in Vilnius, we can still support our families through tour guiding. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case for many tourist destinations around the world.
That’s why, during the pandemic, we joined the Free Tour Community. Never heard of it? Let us tell you more about this incredible organization, our closest friends within the community, and why you should consider joining one of their member tours!
What is The Free Tour Community?
Check out website freetourcommunity.com to book the local free tours directly and support small companies.
It’s a worldwide family of 80+ local free tour initiatives operating in 40+ countries. We are all incredibly proud of our cities, and it's our mission to help you discover them from a local's point of view. We deliver top-rated, quality-oriented free walking tours and promote the pay-what-you-wish concept around the world.
The Community only accepts the best-rated free tour companies (average rating of 5 stars on TripAdvisor) who put the satisfaction of their guests first, so you can be sure the tour will not be a disappointment. Additionally, we are all local companies, so going on one of the tours found here supports the local economy. You get the best, and so does the city!
A walking tour with the Free Tour Community is a lesson of local history and general culture served with funny anecdotes and tips on how to enjoy your stay like a local. We love to educate and inform in an enjoyable way, and we are always happy to offer advice.
Look out for Free Tour Community logo when booking the Free tour.
How to recognise the members? Look for the logo of the Community on the landing page of the free tour website. Alternatively, you can just go to freetourcommunity.com and see if the company is on our partner list for the given city.
Who are our friends in Riga?
Photo from Riga Free Tour Facebook page
Riga Free Walking Tour is the longest running public free tour in the Latvian capital. They started offering free walking tours way back in 2008 when a group of tour guides and Riga enthusiasts from different backgrounds came together to start the project that would later become "Riga Free Tour". Since then they have grown into a tight knit team that hopes to keep the travelers inspired and curious about the city and its future.
Their free walking tours of Riga lead groups around a number of different areas of the city with various themed tours:
Daily Old Riga free walking tour, focused on the historical center and main tourist sites of the city. This tour is perfect for first time visitors to get to know what Riga is all about, the broader history, who founded it, who invaded, occupied and developed the city into what it is today.
The Alternative Walking Tour shows a bit more of daily life as it is today in Riga and covers the Central Market, Moscow District and inner Central Riga. If you want to see the good, the bad and the ugly then this tour is definitely for you to join.
They also offer an Art Nouveau Free Tour that is running seasonally. This tour is a great way to learn about the amazing architecture of Riga and life in the early 1900's.
They also added a seasonal Soviet Riga Free Tour which was created due to demand from our travelers. This new tour is offered to allow people closer access to understanding the Soviet occupation of Latvia and to explore Riga through this specific theme.
So, if you are visiting Riga for the first time or returning for another visit, feel free to join them and discover what the Riga Free Walking Tour has to offer!
Website: Free tour Community: Riga
Who are our friends in Warsaw?
Photo from Orange Umbrella Free Tour Warsaw Facebook page
Orange Umbrella Free Tour is the oldest and the best rated regular English walking tour in Warsaw. Their guides are true Varsovians who love their city and want to share their passion and knowledge. On each tour a traveler will get an original local perspective. When guiding they focus on stories rather than bare facts and they are determined to show you Poland’s Capital as they see it: a colorful, lively city, with a turbulent past but with an immense energy to move forward.
Warsaw guides are trained, licensed professionals with university education and high language competence. You will easily identify them by orange umbrellas with the British flag mounted on top.They run tours every day, all year round, regardless of holidays and weather conditions. Their classics, in schedule since 2011 include: the Old Town Tour, the Best of Warsaw Tour, the World War 2 Tour and the Jewish Warsaw Tour.
Website: Free tour Community: Warsaw
Who are our friends in Krakow?
Photo from Krakow Explorers Facebook page
Krakow Explorers team consists of professional guides and historians who know inside and out of the former Polish capital. Their motto is don’t be a tourist, be an Explorer! They have been guiding visitors from all over the world for 5 years and have helped more than 10,000 happy travelers. Thanks to great reviews from their clients, they are proud to hold the #1 spot on TripAdvisor among 400 tourist companies in Krakow!
Their free walking tours of Krakow lead groups around a number of different areas of the city with various themed tours:
Old Town and Wawel Castle. The most popular tour in Krakow about the dramatic history of Krakow and its top attractions;
Jewish Quarter and former Jewish ghetto. It is here where you can find Jewish synagogues, cozy and tiny streets on which the hustle and bustle of Jewish life was prevailing before the catastrophe of WW2;
Under the Regimes. The tour is about the cruelty of German Nazis and Soviet occupants, the resistance of the brave and their suffering when hope was taken away;
Sin City. During this walk you’ll focus on serial killers, man-eaters, and untold secrets which for many remain a taboo even till these days.
Apart of it Krakow Explorers organize paid tours such as:
Food tour: Krakow Eats
The Schindler’s factory museum
The Underground museum
The Salt Mines
The Auschwitz concentration camp museum
The Plaszow concentration camp museum in Krakow
Website: Free tour Community: Krakow
So here you have it. All you need to know about the Free Tour Community. The next time you’re wondering what to do in a new city, visit website freetourcommunity.com first. By joining our partner tours, you support small businesses and passionate local guides who love sharing their knowledge and stories about their cities.
For these guys, just like for us, it’s not just a job—it’s a lifelong passion to show you the best of their hometowns. Whether you’re visiting for the first time or coming back for more, Free Tour Community member tours are a great way to explore and learn!
With Love,
Vilnius with Locals Team
And we have Free Tour Community logo on our tour signs!