Medical tourism: Laser Eye Surgery in Vilnius, Lithuania

Disclaimer: The procedure described in this article is a personal experience. If you wish to turn to this clinic, please contact the clinic directly. Please remember that before the surgery takes place, you will be examined by clinic doctors and advised on possibility to perform the surgery as well as all the risks.

Wearing glasses can be tedious and annoying. Luckily, fixing your sight has become a routine procedure with almost 100% rate of success. Thanks to the laser technology, the surgery takes merely 10 minutes and is almost painless. However, usually it doesn’t come cheap.

Why Laser Eye Surgery in Vilnius?

After comparing the prices, we realized the cheapest and closest clinic for us is in Lithuania. Without giving it much thought, we booked the surgery time with their doctors and headed off to Vilnius. The great thing about Vilnius is that it’s a generally very affordable city, so you can easily combine this medical trip with city sightseeing (just make sure to do the sightseeing part before the surgery!).

The Clinic

The clinic we turned to is called New Vision. They specialize in Laser eye surgery, astigmatism and cataract treatment. The Personnel is very friendly, attentive and speaks good English. We got all instructions needed and questions answered, even before some of them arose. Y

The location is very central – in the old town. In our case this meant no possibility for parking, so we opted for cheap and efficient public transport. One ride costs only 1€. On the positive side – there were lots of cafes, a pharmacy and sightseeing options. If you arrive without a car, you can book one of the cozy central guesthouses.

Day One of LASEK Eye Surgery

On the day of the surgery, we came to the clinic without knowing what to expect. A series of checks and tests followed, along with proper consultation. Once the agreement was reached and all the risks explained, we signed the contract, made the payment and were placed in the queue for the surgery.

The surgery was done in batches, so 5-7 people went at once and returned in about one hour. It’s crucial to have a friend with you, because you will hardly see anything in the first few hours. Also, you definitely need good sunglasses.  Once the surgery is over, you are free to go.

According to my friend who had the surgery on that day, the laser procedure was not painful, but the eyes felt itchy for the rest of the day. Bright sunlight is also difficult to bare (that’s why you need sunglasses), so we stayed indoors with the curtains closed.

Day Two after LASEK Eye Surgery

The next morning was already much better – my friend could stand the sunlight (with sunglasses). The best of all – she could actually see everything clearly and sharply! We went for a second check in the clinic, where the doctors examined her eyes and let her go. Next check is in one month since the surgery.

On both first and second days eye drops had to be taken every hour – medicine and artificial tears. Taking the drops is crucial for fast healing. Moreover, it is forbidden to touch your eyes, rub them or wash them in order to prevent infection.

Price of Laser Eye Surgery in Vilnius

At the time of writing this post, the price of LASEK surgery in Vilnius was around 800€ for both eyes. Additionally to this, 40€ is paid extra for the pre surgery tests and around 15€ for the medication.

Final thoughts

We certainly had some doubts before going to Vilnius for this LASEK surgery. First of all, we didn’t know anything about the clinic. Luckily, their Facebook page has lots of feedback and ratings, so you can actually read about other peoples’ experiences.

Although it is advisable to do such surgery during the darker months of the year, summer time is generally not a problem. In fact, a few days after the surgery my friend could easily stand the bright sunlight, but has difficulty during the dark time (car headlights too bright). We were able to continue our road trip to Slovakia and even went hiking few days after the second check.

Based on what happened, I can now confirm that their service is great, the results are fantastic and the price is reasonable. The clinic has highly professional team or doctors and medical personnel, who will take good care of you. They are open for everyone and speak good English, so can be attractive for other foreigners like us. We have received some referral coupons for 40€, so if you’d like one, let me know through the contact form.