- Place
- Kaunas City Municipality
- Region
- Kaunas
- Type
- city square
- Address
- Vienybės Square, Kaunas
- Coordinates
- 54.89952, 23.91356
- Visit duration
- 20-45 minutes; 1-2 hours with the War Museum and Laisvės Avenue
- Best time
- a warm-season day or evening, when the fountain may operate
Vienybės Square
How to read the redesigned square
Vienybės Square begins as an open plane of pale granite, yet it was not designed simply for crossing. Hand-formed white concrete pieces curve into seats, planted edges, and surfaces used by skaters. Birches, pines, and more than 5,000 low plants soften the geometry with a changing planted landscape.
The square connects different layers of Kaunas. A contemporary glass business centre stands on one side; the Vytautas the Great War Museum, Freedom Monument, and interwar ceremonial garden lie on the other. Walk around the perimeter rather than straight across to see both architectural eras in relation.
The 2020 redesign and its authors
Work began in the second half of 2017 and concluded in May 2020. International studio 3deluxe created the architectural concept, while architect Rimantas Giedraitis helped prepare the implementation design. An underground car park was built below, with new access routes, lighting, seating, and water elements above.
The concept received a German Design Award before completion, and the finished square won an iF Design Award in the architecture category in 2021. The jury valued not only form but the square's ability to bring residents, families, young people, and nearby communities together.
Fountain, stream, and memory trees
In the warmer season the principal attraction is a 40-jet fountain set flush with the paving. A shallow artificial stream runs nearby, while evening lighting changes the mood of the open space. The fountain may stop for winter, weather, or maintenance, so check municipal information if it is the purpose of your visit.
Planting also carries local memory. An oak associated with Vydūnas, Vaižgantas, and the era of the Constituent Assembly survives beside the business centre. A sapling grown from the former willow also stands here; official accounts describe the claim that singer Antanas Šabaniauskas planted the old tree as a city legend.
A practical stop in central Kaunas
The square is a free public space open around the clock. Most paving is level and seating is plentiful, although events or winter work can close sections temporarily. Supervise children around the water and remember that pedestrians and skaters share some of the flowing concrete forms.
Allow 20-45 minutes for the square itself. For a longer route, begin in the War Museum garden, cross Vienybės Square, look into Students' Square, and continue along Laisvės Avenue. The sequence makes the square a clear bridge from interwar civic Kaunas to the city's present-day life.
