Highlights
Riga Old Town
The cobbled centre of the capital is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the House of the Blackheads, St Peter's Church and its viewing platform, the Three Brothers houses and the old guild halls. It is compact enough to explore on foot in a day.
Riga's Art Nouveau district
Just north of the old town, streets such as Alberta iela and Elizabetes iela are lined with richly decorated Art Nouveau facades, many by Mikhail Eisenstein. Riga has one of the largest concentrations of the style anywhere in the world.
Riga Central Market
One of Europe's largest markets, housed in former German zeppelin hangars. Come for smoked fish, rye bread, honey and seasonal berries and mushrooms, and to see how Latvians actually shop.
Gauja National Park
An hour from Riga, the Gauja river valley has sandstone cliffs, caves and forest trails. Sigulda has cable car views and bobsleigh tracks, Turaida's red-brick castle overlooks the valley, and Cēsis has a medieval castle you can explore by lantern.
Rundāle Palace
A Baroque palace in the south designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli, the architect of St Petersburg's Winter Palace. The restored state rooms and formal French gardens are best in late spring, when the rose garden starts to bloom.
Kuldīga
A small town in Kurzeme with wooden houses, a brick bridge and the Venta Rapid, often called Europe's widest waterfall, although it is only a couple of metres high. In spring you can watch fish leaping up it. The old town is on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Jūrmala
A string of resort villages along a long sandy beach, half an hour by train from Riga. Wooden villas, pine forest and the pedestrian street of Jomas iela make it the classic summer day trip.
Liepāja and Karosta
Latvia's western port city is known for its music scene and wide beach. Karosta, its former Soviet naval district, has a striking Orthodox cathedral and a former military prison you can tour.
Interesting facts about Latvia
- Riga's guild of the Blackheads is often credited with one of the earliest recorded decorated Christmas trees, in 1510, and a plaque in the old town marks the spot.
- The painter Mark Rothko was born in Daugavpils in 1903; the town now has an art centre dedicated to him that holds some of his original works.
- The Latvian Song and Dance Festival, held every five years, brings together tens of thousands of singers and dancers and is recognised by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage.
- Midsummer, called Jāņi, is the biggest celebration of the year: people head to the countryside, wear flower and oak-leaf wreaths, eat caraway cheese and stay up through the short night.
- Forests cover more than half of Latvia, and foraging for mushrooms and berries is a national pastime.
Best time to visit
Late May to early September is the main season, with long days, outdoor cafés and beach weather on the coast; around midsummer it barely gets dark. June and late August are a good balance of warmth and fewer crowds. September and October bring autumn colours in Gauja National Park. Winters are cold and dark, often with snow, but Riga's Christmas markets and frozen landscapes have their own appeal. Spring can be chilly and changeable until mid-May.
Practical information
| Capital | Riga |
|---|---|
| Currency | Euro (EUR) |
| Languages | Latvian |
| Plugs | Type C, F |
| Voltage | 230 V, 50 Hz |
| Emergency | 112 (all emergencies) |
| Driving | On the right |
| Tipping | Around 10% in restaurants for good service is normal if a service charge isn't already included; rounding up for taxis is enough. |
Getting around
Riga is walkable, with trams, trolleybuses and buses covering the rest of the city. Suburban trains run from Riga to Jūrmala, Sigulda and Cēsis, and a network of intercity buses connects most towns, often more frequently than trains. Ride-hailing apps work well in Riga. To reach Kuldīga, Rundāle and the coast at your own pace, renting a car is worth considering: roads are quiet outside the capital, but watch for wildlife at dusk, and headlights must be on at all times.
Staying connected in Latvia
Latvia has fast, reliable mobile internet, with good 4G and growing 5G in Riga and other cities, and decent coverage along main roads. Coverage can thin out deep in the forests and along stretches of the Kurzeme coast. Free Wi-Fi is common in cafés, hotels and on many buses. As an EU country it follows EU roaming rules for EU plans, but visitors from outside the EU should arrange data in advance: install an eSIM before you fly and switch it on when you land.
See Latvia eSIM plans · How to install an eSIM
Useful apps for Latvia
- Bolt: The most widely used ride-hailing app in Riga for cars and scooters.
- Mobilly: A Latvian app for buying public transport tickets and paying for parking.
- Google Maps: Reliable public transport directions in Riga and walking routes in the national parks.
- Google Translate: Latvian signs and menus are often bilingual with English in Riga, less so in small towns.