Riga, Vilnius, Tallinn or Kaunas: which airport is cheapest?

By the Baltic Flights team · 2026-11-06 · 6 min read

Living in one Baltic country does not mean you have to fly from it. The airports are close enough that a cheaper flight one border away can be worth the trip, as long as you count the whole journey. Here is how to think about it.

What each airport is good for

Riga is the biggest airport in the region and the home hub of airBaltic, so it has the widest choice of routes and connections. Vilnius and Tallinn are the national airports of Lithuania and Estonia, with a good mix of full-service and low-cost airlines. Kaunas is smaller and popular with low-cost carriers. Palanga, on the Lithuanian coast, and Tartu, in southern Estonia, have a much smaller network.

How far apart they are

Distances are short by European standards. Vilnius and Kaunas are roughly a hundred kilometres apart. Riga to Vilnius and Riga to Tallinn are each roughly three hundred kilometres, typically four to five hours by bus. Intercity buses connect the capitals many times a day.

Count the whole journey

A fare that is thirty euros cheaper from another airport is not a saving if the bus, the extra night or the taxi costs more. Add the transport to the airport, any extra accommodation, and the value of your time.

Cheap flight, long transfer: worth it on a long trip, rarely on a weekend away.
Early morning departures from a far airport may need a night in a hotel.
Return flights landing late can leave you without public transport.

Let the site do the comparison

Change the departure city at the top of any page and compare the same destination from each airport. For routes without a direct flight from your nearest airport, the connection through a hub is sometimes cheaper than a direct flight from a farther one.

Heading to Finland?

Tallinn and Helsinki are linked by frequent ferries that take around two hours. If your destination is in Finland, compare a flight against the ferry, and remember that flights from Helsinki can open up routes that are expensive from the Baltics.