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Jan

10

Riga Travel & Sightseeing Guide

Filed Under Baltics

A trip to Riga
Latvia has been free from the Soviet Union for more than a decade now, and in that short time, Riga has set itself apart as one of the fastest-growing and most contemporary destinations in the entire region. Equal parts hip and historic, Riga is complete with marvellous ancient architecture; slummy, communist-era blockhouses; and a rambunctious nightlife—all of which coalesce to make Riga an important stopover for international tourists.

Flights to Riga
Riga International Airport sits approximately eight miles south of the city centre. Most incoming flights hail from other European destinations, though less frequent flights occasionally head across the Atlantic from North America. The most common direct connections are from Prague, Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Frankfurt and Moscow.

The port at Riga is just as popular with international travellers, with frequent and regular traffic to and from the ports in Germany, Finland and Sweden. Latvia’s rail network gets a lot of use, though it isn’t especially efficient. Trains are commonly used to make domestic connections, with a few lines heading across the border to St Petersburg and Moscow. If you are looking for a cheap flight to Riga try Expedia.

Riga

Sightseeing in Riga
The contrasting mix of old and new architecture in Riga make it popular with photographers. The Old Town specialises in historic architecture, and it usually gets more attention from tourists. Riga Cathedral is frequently pictured in guidebooks and pictorials of Riga. Begun in the 1200s, this church blends Romanesque and Gothic architectures. St Peter’s Church is almost a couple hundred years younger and features a climbable spire with panoramic views of Riga.

The New Town holds the ins and outs of day-to-day life in Riga. Most of the architecture here follows trends set during the German Art Nouveau movement, characterized by ornate doorways, strange towers looming over the rooftops, and ghostly faces engraved in the walls. The bars, restaurants and markets here are most popular with locals and offer a candid view into daily life in Riga.

Fun by night – eating drinking and partying
At the dawn of its independence, Latvia knew that the best way to boost tourism was to fuel an energetic night scene. Years later, the result is a feisty, bohemian nightlife that attracts patrons from multiple continents spanning both hemispheres. The bars and clubs in the Old Town are the most touristy, and some nights the drinking and dancing lasts well past the midnight hours. A variety of tastes and budgets are represented in the Old Town’s commercial districts.

Head into the New Town and you may be surprised to find the nightlife is just as healthy here, though you won’t find nearly as many tourists. Locals party in and out of several bars and clubs across the New Town, and interestingly, Russian expats have staked a claim on a few of these nightspots. Stay on your toes in the New Town, as you may find yourself stumbling into a bar haunted by the old Soviet remnant, in which case you’re better off on the street. This brand of clientele steers clear of international tourists for a reason.

Fun by day - shopping and activities
The best shopping options in Riga are located on Audeju Street. Here you’ll find the city’s oldest shopping mall along with several designer outlets and boutiques. International visitors are often pleased to find that Riga actually has quite a bit to offer the modern shopper, especially given its ex-Soviet status. The Central Market is an interesting place to shop, housed in a sprawling complex of old zeppelin hangers. Most of the commerce here revolves around produce and other edible goods.

Daytrips
The lively Baltic city of Riga, Latvia, known for its eclectic combination of old and new, offers not only a number of things to see and do within the city itself but also several daytrips of interest. A beach daytrip to Majori boasts several cafés and boutiques in addition to sunbathing and people-watching in the popular coastal town of Jurmala.

The Nuclear Bunker Tour, offered through Out There Riga, organises visits to the Pension in Ligatne, a secret, underground 2,000 square metre fallout shelter designed in the 1970s to protect the Soviet high command. Lunch within the bunker’s canteen, complete with vodka, is provided.

Another daytrip tour offered through Out There is the Sigulda Experience, which brings visitors from Riga to the Gauja Valley, a once popular recreational area throughout the Russian Empire. Known for its scenic natural beauty, hiking trails, red sandstone caves and cliffs, and medieval castles overlooking rivers and expansive wilderness, this daytrip offers travellers a visit to the castles of Sigulda and Turaida, the surrounding gardens and sandstone grotto, and a cable car ride overtop the valley.

Must-see attractions
Popular with photographers for its blend of ancient and more modern architecture, Riga Old Town comprises the city’s beginnings, revealing the most ancient structures of Gothic and Romanesque designs. The Riga Cathedral, often shown in guidebooks and on postcards, is an excellent example and dates back to the 1200s. St Peter’s Church, built a couple of centuries later, claims an accessible observation spire from which those prepared to climb it can enjoy a panoramic view of the city.

The ornate New Town presents a part of the city in contrast to the forbidding communist architecture of Old Town and is the centre of local life and commerce. Constructed during the German Art Nouveau period, the buildings, bars, restaurants and markets of New Town reveal looming towers, extravagant doorways and indistinct faces engraved upon walls.

Best time to go
Receiving between 100mm and 200mm of precipitation a month year round, the chance of rain or snow depends only upon the season. With temperatures in the hottest months seldom above 20°C and hovering around or below the freezing mark during the winter, Riga’s high tourism season is between June and August. Price and temperature are intertwined in Riga, so the best time to go rests upon either budget or tolerance of the cold.

Rainy day suggestions
For something a little out of the ordinary, and more of a must-do than a must-see, try the Big Gun Shooting and Summer Bobsleigh at an old nuclear bunker in the heart of the city. Plenty of guns and ammunition lend themselves to a promised heart-pounding shooting spree. A golden bullet goes to the day’s best marksman.

Afterwards, partner up with a professional bobsleigh pilot and hang on for an 80kph downhill blast along a championship track upon an ice-bobsleigh fitted with wheels.

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