Only 90 km separate Joniskis and the Riga Airport. It is 240 km from Joniskis to Vilnius and 200 km from Joniskis to Palanga.

The Joniskis district is an agricultural area, famous for fertile soils. Those who grow agricultural products usually specialise in grain crops, sugar beets and rape. There are agricultural industrial branches such as meat and dairy processing and forage production.

The Musa, the Sidabre, the Svete and other small rivers flow through our district. There are 18 ponds in the district.

Woodlands, mostly mixed forests, cover 16% of the territory. The Zagare Regional Park was established in 1992. More than 160 cultural monuments are located in Joniskis district. The battle of Saule took place in 1236 not far from Jauniunai. The town of Joniskis covers about 9 km2 and has a population of 12,500.

The name Sidarbe is first mentioned in written chronicles in 1289. It was the forerunner of the present town. In 1522 the bishop Jonas from Vilnius found paganism here. He christened all the inhabitants and founded a parish, giving the name of Joniskis to the settlement. Magdeburg rights were conferred on the town in 1616. It became the largest town in the Siauliai economic region, far more important than the centre itself, and was well known for its agricultural products, flax fibre, tobacco and fairs.

Zagare is situated on both sides of the Svete River just by the border with Latvia. It is a very interesting and unique town. If we believe the legends, it is clear that Zagare was founded much earlier than Riga. In 1198 Rakte castle is mentioned as a strong defence post for Ziemgaliai. In 1861 there were 4000 inhabitants in Zagare and in 1914 there were 14,000.

The network of street built in the 16th century and remaining almost unchanged till the present time, characterise the old part of the town. There are also two churches built in the 16th century and the palace complex with 63 ha of park designed in the English style and now considered to be an architectural and natural monument of national significance. The Naryskinas palace was constructed in the 19th century by a Russian count.