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Vilnius is turning a one-day gathering of fantasy and science-fiction enthusiasts into a broader cultural invitation this weekend. Lituanicon XXXVII, titled “Voyage”, will take place on Saturday, October 10, 2026, at the SMK higher education institution on Kalvarijų Street. The programme runs from 10:30 to 21:00, and admission is free.
For visitors, the event offers a different way to experience the Lithuanian capital: not through a conventional sightseeing route, but through stories, imagined worlds, games and conversations about technology, science and society. The festival is organised by volunteers and is described by its organisers as Lithuania’s oldest gathering dedicated to speculative fiction, bringing together interests ranging from literature and cinema to comics, role-playing and video games.
A festival organised around the idea of travel
This year’s theme, “Voyage”, gives the programme a common thread. In the festival’s presentation, travel is treated both as a physical movement and as a metaphor for expanding knowledge, crossing cultural boundaries and seeing familiar surroundings from a new perspective.
That idea is reflected in the range of activities planned for the day. The schedule includes talks, panel discussions, creative workshops, role-playing sessions, board and console games, an art gallery and opportunities to meet authors and creators. Some sessions will be held in English, making the programme accessible to visitors from outside Lithuania as well as local audiences.
The format also makes Lituanicon relevant to city-break visitors looking for participatory culture rather than a single performance or exhibition. A visitor can move between a literary discussion, a hands-on workshop, a display of fantastical art and a gaming area, creating a flexible programme within one venue.
International guest and Lithuanian voices
The festival’s principal guest is Alastair Reynolds, the Welsh science-fiction writer and former astrophysicist. According to the published programme, Reynolds will meet festival participants for a conversation, readings and an autograph session. His presence connects the Vilnius event with the international science-fiction community while keeping the focus on direct exchange between creator and audience.
The programme also includes Lithuanian writers, researchers and artists. Announced sessions address subjects such as technological innovation, the relationship between science and fiction, invasive species and the ways speculative stories interpret unfamiliar realities. This combination gives the festival an educational dimension without turning it into a formal academic conference.
Among the scheduled activities are a conversation with writer Neringa Vaitkutė, a discussion comparing scientific progress with fictional visions of the future, drawing workshops and several role-playing sessions. A cosplay carnival, LEGO displays, a makers’ and artists’ area, analogue photography and a selection of board and video games add a more visual and social layer to the day.
Museum history enters a digital setting
The Lithuanian National Museum is also joining the programme. Its contribution will present “Vilnius Museum of Antiquities: A Sanctuary of the Past”, an interactive exhibition and computer game reconstructed from historical information.
The project introduces visitors to the nineteenth-century Vilnius Museum of Antiquities, its collections and its founder, Count Eustachy Tyszkiewicz. At the Lituanicon stand, visitors will be able to try the virtual exhibition and explore how museum history can be interpreted through a digital, game-like environment.
That connection between heritage and imaginative culture is one of the event’s most distinctive features. Lituanicon is not presenting fantasy as an escape from history; instead, it places books, games, technology and museum interpretation in the same public space. For visitors, the result is a compact cultural programme that links Vilnius’s past with questions about future worlds.
A low-threshold cultural invitation
Because the event is free and concentrated in one location, it is accessible to residents, families, students and travellers who may want to discover a different part of Vilnius’s cultural life without advance ticket planning. The organisers describe the convention as a community event, while the programme offers enough variety for both established fans and newcomers.
The practical appeal is simple: arrive during the day, choose from several parallel activities and stay for as long as the programme suits. In a city already known for its historic centre, museums and contemporary cultural venues, Lituanicon adds a more informal route into local creative communities.
For October visitors, “Voyage” therefore works on two levels. It is the subject of the festival, but also a description of the experience: a day in Vilnius moving between literature, science, art, games and the city’s own historical imagination.
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