Riga

World : Europe : Eastern Europe : Baltic states : Latvia : Riga

Riga is the capital of Latvia.

Understand

It is helpful to know that from 1940 to 1991 Latvia was a republic of USSR and though official language is Latvian, over 30% of Riga's population are Russian, so Russian language is widely spoken and understood in Riga, though ethnic Letts do not like this fact too much.

Get in

By Plane

  • Riga International Airport, [1]. Arrivals from and departures to various European (London, Munich, Oslo, etc) and Middle Eastern (Tel Aviv) cities as well as New York City. Bus 22 and 22A links the airport (Lidosta) with downtown. Tickets are purchased from the conductor. Have small change ready. The bus to the airport runs until late at night. Bus 22 goes to the central station south of Old Riga, the fare is 20 santimi. Bus 22A is an express bus to the cathedral between the freedom monument and Reval Hotel Latvija, the fare is 25 santimi.

Get around

  • Taxis can be cheap but you must be careful, sometimes the try to get more money than they should and they don't care about giving a long tour through the city to arrive where you want. Some drivers speak a few words in English. One good company is Taxi.lv, white cars.
  • There are trams, buses and trolley buses which are pretty easy to use. At each stop, the conductor goes to each person who alighted and sells them a ticket for that ride. Each ride costs 20 Latvian cents (25 for some buses, e.g. the express service bus from the city to the airport, and some buses are totally free!). You cannot buy tickets in advance. It's also possible to buy the Riga Card, which you can use in all kind of public transports and includes discounts for museums and some touristic attractions.
  • There's also a train service that extends to all country as well as another big cities like St. Petersburg. However, the tickets don't have information about the times and place where to catch the train.

See

Riga has several districts. The most popular among travellers is the Old Town (Vecriga), German influenced architecture and magnificent Doma Cathedral with the world famous organ inside, along with vivid nightlife, makes Vecriga the most interesting spot. You will need approximately half a day to walk Vecriga around.

The area around Vecriga is mostly built in 18-19 centuries are has lots of European-style buildings that resembles the ones in Paris or Rome. Many movies about "foreign life" were filmed here during the soviets, as it was a lot easier to film here than going overseas.

But Riga has the surrounding area that are build in typical "Soviet" style with ugly apartment blocks. Those areas were built using the same model project as in the other Russian cities and there is nothing really to be proud about. But at least you can imagine yourself in a typical Russian city, if you haven't been to Russia itself yet.

  • Wander round the old town - lots of beautiful buildings.
  • At Christmas there is a small market which offers lots of festive fare.
  • The three brothers, the oldest houses in Riga.
  • The Occupation Museum is an absolute must.
  • The Jugendstil architecture in Alberta and Elizabetes streets are one of the better places to see the creations of Art Nouveau artists like Einsestein
  • Mezaparks is a nice large park in the outskirts of Riga. A nice place for quiet walks in the summertime.
  • The TV Tower, a 368 metre high tower built of concrete standing on three legs. It has an observation deck in a height of 97 metres.
  • St. Peters Basilica has an elevator to the top from where you can see all Riga. However in days of intense cold the elevator might freeze inside the tower.
  • The CentralTirgus market near the central train station is a must! Everything you need is just there waiting for you.
  • Take the train that goes to Tukums until the stop called Majori and go to the Latvian Baltic Coast. In snowy days it's amazing!
  • The parks throughout the city are just wonderful. Spend some time around them! ;)

Do

Sit outside in the summer months and enjoy the day. Go to the river and take a walk during summer days to see the sunset, just perfect.

Buy

The markets next to International Bus Terminal are full of people selling their wares at stalls, both inside the large halls and around the outside. The market is actually quite non-touristy with more emphasis on selling things like second-hand clothing, food, furniture or kitchen supplies. In here you can buy almost anything... Very good for souvenirs.

Don't go to the souvenir shops, instead buy items like ambar and wool mittens and socks in the central market or throughout Old Riga in little stands. You might haggle and get good prices for souvenirs.

If you want some soviet union era items, like hats, medals, pins, or complete uniforms, go to a street fair like market that is held on Saturday and Sunday mornings in Sadovnikova iela (iela means street in Latvian). To get there just take Gogola iela near the central market. On the way there you will see old buildings that aren't exactly well conserved, but there are some that are just breath taking.

Eat

Latvian food tends to be rather heavy, using a lot of potato, cabbage, beef, pork and fish. Riga as the most vibrant and cosmopolitan city of the Baltics offers countless opportunities to sample both local cuisine and international favorites. There's even a sushi restaurant!

There are plenty of of restaurants (called 'Restorans') and cafés around the old town, many of which serve food until midnight, some later.

If you want to eat cheap, try "Čili Pica" (pronounced like Chilli pizza). They have several restaurants. One is on the ground floor of Stockman shopping mall near central station. Another is next to the freedom monument. You'll get nice pizzas for a very good price!

If you want to try some Russian/Latvian type of food go to "Smilsu Pulkstenis" in Kalku iela #7 ;) cheap and tasty! :)

Lido is another chain of restaurants, where you can get lots of food for good prices simply by pointing at it.

Drink

Latvia produces a number of excellent and award-winning beers (alus), which are widely available. Aldaris is a major brewery with several kinds of beer.

Latvia is also Europe's northernmost winegrowing region, and local wines and even sparkling wines can be bought in supermarkets and restaurants. Expect neither the grandeur nor the pricetag of a Bordeaux.

Pulkvedis is a trendy place, 3 Lats on popular days, free on others. The basement offers technoish and/or alternative sounds. Beware of extremely high prices for taking care of bags (2.5 Lats per bag), thieves who steal bags, and last but not least, entrance personnel not giving back sufficient money, calling very aggressive security on complaints, with possible bloody nose as a consequence.

Also try Riga Balsam. It's available almost everywhere and I guarantee that if you're cold... you won't be after a shot of it! ;)

Sleep

Budget

  • Riga City Camping, [20]. A nice place in the center of town.
  • Elizabeth's Youth Hostel, [21]. Affordable and friendly hostel in the centre of town with free internet access. Just outside the Old Town near the main train station but within easy walking distance of everywhere.
  • Riga Hostel, Marstalu iela 12, tel 00371 7224520, [22]. Friendly, multilingual staff with a location in the old town center. 62 beds in various hostel configurations.
  • The Riga Old Town Hostel, [23], also has a nice pub which is open quite a lot, and is somehow also a hospitality exchange hang-out.
  • The BaltHostel, Markela iela 1, tel 00371 7224258, [24]. Friendly, multilingual staff just over the road from the central station and a five minute walk from the old town.

Mid-range

Apartment rental is a fairly popular option.

  • Apartments for rent in Riga & Tallinn by RED Group Apartments, great number of comfortable and fully furnished apartments in Old Town and centre for short and long stay. Expect more - apartment is a great alternative to hotel to feel like at home on your business trip or vacation. Private and cosy. See apartments for rent in Riga or apartments for rent in Tallinn. RED Group Apartments +371 616 9604, info@redgroup.ee, www.redgroup.ee.

Some dealers include Riga Old Town apartments and Riga Accommodation.

Splurge

  • Hotel Bergs, 83 Elizabetes Street, 371 777 09 00, fax 371 777 09 40, [25]. An internationally regarded hotel that opened in 2003 located in the heart of Riga. Rooms from €164.

Get out

From here you might wander north to Tartu or Tallinn in Estonia, or south to Vilnius or Klaipeda in Lithuania. Or drive the 40 kilometers to the National Park at Sigulda. You can even take a ferry to Sweden.

If you have more than just a couple of days in Riga, take a local train from the main Railway station to Jurmala. It is a famous seaside resort. It only takes 25 minutes to get there from Riga. Get out of the train in Dzintari and walk down the main street to the Concert Hall. Jurmala once was a popular resort amongst Russians and people went there from the whole USSR for a holiday. Great crowds wandered the streets in the summertime. Now it is a bit different, as Russia and other former USSR citizens need a visa to go to Latvia, so they switched their preferences towards easier destinations. The Concert Hall stages international singing competitions once a year and if you come at the right time it is the one not to be missed.

In Jurmala, there's also a big aquapark Livu Akvaparks http://akvaparks.lv. Viestura iela 24.

Walk down the beach and try to find a piece of amber that is often washed by the waves from the Baltic sea, thus the name Dzintari - The Amber.

External links

http://www.riga.lv/EN/Channels/About_Riga/default.htm

http://www.riga-airport.com/

Riga Public Transport:

http://www.ttp.lv/ (Trolleybus and Tramway)

http://www.rigassatiksme.lv/maps.php (Interactive Route map)