![\"Designer](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju114.jpg\")
Designer Justina Skurdelyte<\/p>\nA 10-minute stroll from Vilnius\u2019s baroque Old Town hangs a plaque alerting visitors that they are about to enter Uzupis Republic, an artsy neighbourhood that proclaimed its semi-serious independence from the rest of Lithuania\u2019s capital in 1997. Uzupis means \u201cthe other side of the river\u201d in the local tongue and has always been something of an outlier.<\/p>\n
Encircled by a bend in the Vilnia River to its west and by verdant Bernardinai Park to the north, the old neighbourhood was once staunchly working class, the domain of fur traders and leather manufacturers. Under communism it fell into decline and became a seedy red-light district, where its low-rise stone houses, courtyards and cobbled lanes offered shelter to the city\u2019s down-and-outs. But when Lithuania gained independence in 1990 a troupe of artists \u2013 many of whom had trained at the nearby Vilnius Academy of Arts \u2013 found creative freedom and cheap rents here.<\/p>\n
Uzupis quickly transformed into a free-spirited and vibrant quarter. So much so that a group of artists came up with the idea of founding a republic here, even going as far as writing a constitution, composing an anthem and designing a flag, which depicts an open hand (signifying friendship). Although it was all done in jest, the constitution now hangs on a wall as you enter the district and has been translated into a score of languages. The edict suggests such tongue-in-cheek tenets as \u201ca dog has the right to be a dog\u201d and insists that \u201ceveryone has the right to make mistakes\u201d. Fittingly enough, the republic came into being on April Fool\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n
\u201cLuckily the city left us to our own devices,\u201d says Tomas Cepaitis, one of the republic\u2019s founders and its self-appointed foreign minister. A steady stream of new residents who had been priced out of the Unesco-protected Old Town were followed by architecture firms, caf\u00e9s and retailers.<\/p>\n
Designer Justina Skurdelyte<\/p>\n
![\"Darius](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju107.jpg\")
Resident Darius Udrys<\/p>\n
![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju146.jpg\")
Treats at Vaisine, a former apothecary<\/p>\n
![\"Diners](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju159.jpg\")
Dining at Sweet Root<\/p>\n
![\"White](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju054.jpg\")
Knygynas Keistoteka bookshop<\/p>\n
![\"Historic](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju019.jpg\")
Sweet Root on Uzupio gatve<\/p>\n
![\"Wooden](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju044.jpg\")
Chair in the flat of architect Eugenijus Juozapavicius<\/p>\n
![\"Bronze](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju008.jpg\")
The angel of Uzupis<\/p>\n
![\"Vytenis](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/monocle_hju081.jpg\")
Vytenis Daubaras, owner of Kmynine bakery<\/p>\n
\u201cWe love how the area is developing; there is always something new happening,\u201d says Sasha Pletnev, who opened his Herr Katt barbershop in Uzupis in 2015 and considers himself lucky to have found a spot here. When Monocle visits, Egor Chizhikov is manning his white-walled boutique Vejas Gluosniuose (meaning Wind in the Willows), which he has run with his wife for two years. Having spotted a gap in the shoe market in Vilnius, Chizhikov stocks sturdy leather boots and shoes from Portugal as well as Lithuanian-produced linen scarves and books from German publisher Gestalten.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all friends here,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s a very cosy place to live and work. We feel that we are part of a community; we can participate actively and make a difference. It feels like a new frontier.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chizhikov is in the process of creating a map that visitors will be able to pick up as they enter Uzupis. Its purpose is to encourage them to look through open doorways and wander into courtyards, where they\u2019ll be rewarded with a discovery such as a pop-up art gallery or a newly painted mural. \u201cThere is a great buzz in Uzupis,\u201d says painter Kristina Norvilaite, who has had a studio and gallery here for the past five years. \u201cIt feels very free and this feeling feeds into my work.\u201d<\/p>\n
Newcomers are welcome here too. \u201cIt hasn\u2019t gentrified to the point where only rich professionals live in Uzupis,\u201d says Darius Udrys, a branding consultant whose open-plan apartment doubles as his office. \u201cI enjoy cocktail bars but if you open one here you will affect the area\u2019s character and make it bland.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite its urban renewal, Uzupis has retained its quirky charm. It is popular with students who come to while away afternoons by the banks of the river, an unfiltered beer in hand, as well as with residents and businesses putting down roots and tourists looking for somewhere with an independent edge.<\/p>\n
New to the neighbourhood is Sweet Root, an uncluttered restaurant that offers seasonal Lithuanian cuisine; many of the ingredients come from the owners\u2019 garden or are foraged in the forest outside the city. Proprietors Sigitas and Agne live a few doors down, having moved here in 2014. \u201cMore families are coming here,\u201d says Sigitas, pointing out a new residential development that will slot in place of an old beer factory on the periphery of Uzupis. \u201cIt\u2019s becoming a neighbourhood that\u2019s not just good for art galleries but that\u2019s good for living in too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Property guide<\/p>\n
Uzupis is an increasingly attractive area and investment in residential property is booming. Due to the variety of buildings, prices range from \u20ac1,300 to \u20ac2,800 per square metre. It\u2019s also an affordable place to rent office space.<\/p>\n
Prices
One-bed house:
\u20ac60,000 to \u20ac120,000
Two-bed house:
\u20ac100,000 to \u20ac180,000
Three-bed house:
\u20ac150,000 to \u20ac280,000<\/p>\n
Estate agent Stay<\/p>\n Shakespeare Hotel Eat and drink<\/p>\n Sweet Root Kmynine Uzupio Kavine Shop<\/p>\n Smart Art Vaisine Culture<\/p>\n
Centro Kubas
+370 5 212 7090
centrokubas.lt<\/a><\/p>\n
Uzupis needs to invest in an independent hotel but for now we can recommend this place in the Old Town.
8 Bernardinu Gatve
shakespeare.lt<\/a><\/p>\n
Upmarket seasonal Lithuanian cuisine reimagined for the 21st century.
22 Uzupio Gatve
sweetroot.lt<\/a><\/p>\n
Head here for freshly baked Lithuanian bread and pastries, as well as a good cup of coffee.
38 Uzupio Gatve<\/p>\n
Rambling caf\u00e9 by the river with plentiful outdoor seating that is popular for its unfiltered beer and traditional Lithuanian dishes.
2 Uzupio Galera
uzupiokavine.lt<\/a><\/p>\n
Pick up handwoven bags and rugs by designer Justina Skurdelyte.
1 Malunu Gatve
smartart.lt<\/a><\/p>\n
Pick up Lithuanian-made chocolate and dried fruit, as well as freshly squeezed juice, in this former apothecary.
20 Uzupio Gatve<\/p>\n