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Friedrich Guesthouse

Friedrich‘s guest house is conforming to modern standards while keeping the spirit of the historic Klaipeda old town. The luxurious guest house furnished in classical style opened its doors in July of 2009. It houses 5 double and 3 four-bed apartments equipped with modern appliances. We offer for our guests various suites – from economy class to deluxe king apartments.

Friedrich‘s arcade is one of the most vivid symbols of Klaipeda. Long and colorful history of the old town and progressive modernism meets here. This unique space represents the lively tradition of the biggest European capitals to transform whole streets into arcades that unite cozy cafes, restaurants, stylish boutiques and guest houses in one place.

The arcade opened in 2006 and was named to commemorate a historic personality – King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia who resided in Klaipeda during the Napoleon war. Today Friedrich‘s arcade is rightfully titled by Klaipeda citizens and city‘s guests as probably the coziest attraction centre with the most unique aura on the Lithuanian coast. Everybody who comes for a cup of coffee, business lunch or dinner with a company of friends is welcomed here.

Navalis Hotel

“NAVALIS” is an elegant 4+ star business class hotel located in the centre of Klaipėda. The hotel building was built in 1863 with the funds of J. L. Wiener, a philanthropist merchant of Klaipėda. The hotel offers guests a quiet and comfortable stay in standard, business and deluxe rooms or suites with balconies (terraces). “NAVALIS” is listed as a cultural heritage object for its architecture. This Klaipėda hotel has preserved its authentic 19th-century red brick walls. The interior of the lobby is decorated with a fragment of a wooden ship.

Michaelson Boutique Hotel

MICHAELSON boutique HOTEL is one of the best rated hotels in Western Lithuania, from where you can easily reach any corner of the Klaipeda region and the Baltic coast. The people of the seaside always influence the architecture of the port city, and of course our character and identity. Located in a restored 18th century building. In a warehouse building where the action took place on a regular basis, the MICHAELSON boutique HOTEL is named after his first owner, the merchant Epraheim Michaelson, in his honor and memory. Warehouses at Žvejų g. 18 and 18A are authentic 18th – 19th century. The legacy of the Lithuanian maritime heritage, unique and protected, they are included in the Register of Lithuanian Cultural Heritage.

16 unique rooms, each designed for your relaxation and comfort. The special architecture is full of centuries-long stories and mysteries. Here you will feel like nowhere else in Lithuania. The attention to detail and the wishes of each guest ensure that guests will find EVERYTHING for a great holiday, a moment of respite or relaxation during a business trip. We designed the Michaelson Resto-bar to surprise. Tastes, harmony, presentation, unique menu. Breakfast, lunch or dinner – every time we try to create a mini performance for you. Because food is more than taste. A romantic evening, time with friends or business partners – Michaelson Resto-bar will create unique moments and smiles.

Exploring Klaipėda on the Shekel Road

On this sightseeing tour, you’ll travel around present-day Klaipėda (historic Memel) and get to know the multicultural city. You will find out to whom Israel is grateful for its national flag and currency; how many synagogues there were in Klaipėda; what links the Jews of Klaipėda with amber; how a doctor of Jewish origin helped stop the spread of leprosy to Europe; why one of the richest and most famous philanthropists of Memel, merchant Ludwig Wiener, who after his death bequeathed his entire estate to the city magistrate and the poor, was buried in the city cemetery instead of the Jewish cemetery; and why the tour is called “Exploring Klaipėda on the shekel road”. The route will take about 2.5–3 hours, and you will travel about 4 km.

The History of Aukštoji Street, Market Square, and Synagogue Street

Do you know where the tallest fachwerk warehouse in Klaipėda stands? And where was the first synagogue and ritual sauna? What was called Friedrich’s Suburb and what was sold at the suburban market? Or maybe you are wondering what the “East Prussian May Drink” is and where the old townspeople could taste it? From fachwerk to the post road, from amber to the life of the Jewish community in Klaipėda – on a theatrical excursion from Aukštoji to Sinagogų Street.

Synagogue and Former Jewish Cemetery

After the restoration of Lithuania’s independence, the territory of the cemetery was fenced off, and the surviving tombstones and their fragments were embedded in the wall of remembrance. An avenue of thuja trees is planted in honor of the 29 World Righteous of Klaipėda County who risked their lives to save Jews. The former radio station building is now home to the Klaipėda Jewish Community.

Jewish Quarter (Jüdische Volksbank)

A building at the Sukilėlių st. 12 (former Grabenstr.) housed the Jewish Folk Bank. During the interwar period, such banks werw established in almost all the larger towns and cities of Lithuania. Providing small credits to merchants and craftsmen, these banks saved many Jewish families from grave poverty. Due to the peculiar situation of the Territory of Memel (Klaipėda region), the Jewish Folk Bank here also played a rather unusual role – it helped to “Lithuanianize” the region.

A Memorial Plaque to Rudolph Valsonok

In 1926 Rudolf Valsonok (1889-1946) was driven to Memel (Klaipėda) by journalism and politics – two spheres he remained loyal to for the rest of his life. Here in Memel Valsonok spent his most creative years, worked as an editor, not only wrote a lot on the economic and political issues in a local newspaper but also published several books. At the same time, he actively represented the interests of the Nafthal family. After surviving Kaunas Ghetto and the Dachau concentration camp, in the last years of his life, Valsonok became the editor of the first port-Holocaust Jewish newspaper, Ladsberger Lager Tsaytung in Landsberg. He resided in several places in Memel.

Julius L. Wiener Tombstone

Memorial to Julius Liudvikas Vyneris (Wiener, 1795-1862) was one of the most impressive in all the city cemeteries. Openwork monument of white marble reminds of an ancient Greek temple, whereas gravestone marble slab with carved text – stylobate. On the top of it, six Doric order columns with flutes stood. On the columns – entablature with a gable roof and triangular pediments, carved from a large monolithic block. Monument was surrounded by an ornate metal fence. During the destruction of the cemetery, monument was moved to the Jewish community territory; after having restored the Independence it was returned to its place.

The Jewish Story of Kedainiai, Lithuania

Kėdainiai is one of the oldest towns in current-day Lithuania. The noble Radziwiłł family owned the town for a longer part of the town’s history. The Jews settled in Kėdainiai at the beginning of the 17th century, when in 1627, the town’s owner Krzysztof Radziwiłł allowed the Jews to settle around the Old market square.

The first synagogue in Kėdainiai was mentioned in 1655, which stood in the Northern part of the Old market square. The Kacenelenbogen family made the town a center of Talmudic studies that even famous Vilna Gaon (Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman) studied here when he was young. It is believed that he was a student of a famous rabbi, Moses Ben Simeon Margoliot (1710-1780). Also, Moshe Leib Lilienblum (1843-1910) – a famous Jewish scholar and proponent of the Haskalah movement was born in Kėdainiai.

Alma Pater, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commonsns

At the end of the 19th century, Jews constituted about half of the total town population. High-density living space formed favorable conditions for fires that often ravaged the town. During WW1, the Jews of Kėdainiai were expelled from the town by the Tsarist regime. However, after the end of the war, many local Jews returned to their hometown. In 1923 about 2500 Jews lived in the town. The majority of the Kėdainiai Jews engaged in certain crafts and small trade, and even during the interwar period they dominated in the town’s economic life. In 1941, when Nazi Germany occupied Lithuania, Jews from Kėdainiai and surrounding towns were forced to abandon their homes and were taken to the newly established ghetto. In August 1941, 2076 Jews were killed in nearby Daukšiai village.

The Kėdainiai Jewish community ceased to exist, however, the traces of former shtetl could be visible to this day. The town has a synagogue complex that consists of two synagogues: The Great Synagogue and the New Synagogue, which were built in the 18th and 19th centuries. Since 2002, the building of the New Synagogue has been used as a multicultural center, where people have an opportunity to get acquainted with the history of the Jewish community and attend various cultural events. In the cozy old town of Kėdainiai, there are many surviving Jewish buildings and objects in Kėdainiai, including the Jewish cemetery, Wulf Polones Pharmacy, the old 18th-century Jewish-house with the Sukkah, that remind us about the town’s Jewish past.

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