Riga

The largest city in the Baltics, where Hanseatic Old Town architecture sits alongside Europe's greatest concentration of Art Nouveau; the House of the Blackheads is its landmark.

Riga lies in central Latvia where the Daugava River flows into the Gulf of Riga. It has about 600,000 residents and is both the capital of Latvia and the largest city in the Baltic states. It was founded in 1201 by a German bishop, joined the Hanseatic League in the Middle Ages, and prospered on river and sea trade. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries it expanded rapidly as the third-largest industrial city of the Russian Empire, leaving about 800 Art Nouveau buildings. They make up a third of the buildings in the city center, the highest density in Europe. The Historic Centre of Riga was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1997. Areas to explore: first, the Old Town on the east bank of the Daugava, about 1 sq km, where you can walk between Town Hall Square and the House of the Blackheads, St. Peter's Church, Riga Cathedral, the Three Brothers, the Swedish Gate, the Powder Tower and Riga Castle. Second, the City Canal and the ring of parks, which link the Old Town with the new town, with the Freedom Monument as the dividing point. Third, the Art Nouveau district in the new town's "Quiet Centre", most concentrated on Alberta iela and Elizabetes iela. Fourth, the Central Market south of the Old Town, housed in converted Zeppelin hangars, and the Moscow District. About 30 km away is the seaside resort town of Jūrmala. Climate: June–August is about 17–23°C. Midsummer (Līgo/Jāņi) on 23–24 June is the most important national holiday. Winters are around -5°C, and in December the Old Town has a Christmas market; Riga claims to have raised the world's first Christmas tree in 1510. Getting there: bus 22 from Riga Airport takes about 30 minutes to the center. Trams, trolleybuses and buses in the city accept contactless bank cards or Rīgas Satiksme tickets. Long-distance buses such as Lux Express take about 4 hours to Tallinn or Vilnius. We suggest staying 2 days: one day for the Old Town, half a day for the Art Nouveau district, and half a day for the market and riverbank, plus one more day for Jūrmala. Notes: the Old Town has lots of cobblestones. Some Old Town bars overcharge tourists, so confirm prices before ordering. The currency is the euro.

Top sights

Where to eat

Itineraries