The task of any tourist is to have time to see as much as possible interesting places city, while having a limited supply of time (and, sometimes, money). The route we propose will allow you to visit the key sights of Old Riga on your own.
The length of the route is about 4 kilometers, taking into account the inevitable stops, as well as, if desired, visits to museums and observation deck Church of St. Peter, its total duration will be about 4-5 hours.
We would like to draw your attention to the fact that there are several tourist information centers, where you can get a variety of information publications for free, as well as a map of the city.
Riga Central Tourist Office Address:
Rātslaukums 6
+371 6703 7900
Town Hall Square is one of the most beautiful squares Riga, completely recreated in the last 15 years. Most of the buildings on this site were destroyed at the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War, later it was rebuilt, and only at the beginning of the 21st century the square was returned to its historical appearance.
The square became the center of medieval Riga after the building of the Town Hall was erected here in 1334. The market was also located here (therefore, before the construction of the Town Hall building, the square was called Novorynochnaya). With the construction of the city government, the square became the political center of Riga - from the balcony of the Town Hall, the city council's orders were announced to the residents of Riga.
Rat - the magistrate of Riga - existed for more than 600 years. In 1878, its functions were transferred to the City Duma. Only judicial functions remained behind the council, and later, in 1889, it suffered the fate of complete liquidation.
For tourists, the house of the Blackheads, opened in 2001, and the new building of the Town Hall opposite are of the greatest interest. In the center of the square there is a monument to Roland, the protector and patron of Riga, a traditional figure for many Hanseatic cities.
The statue is a copy, the original can be seen in the premises of St. Peter's Church, which we will visit ahead of us.
House of the Blackheads in Riga
Town Hall Square Address
Kalku iela
information phone
+37167037900
Dome Cathedral and Dome Square in Riga
Continuing the walk, we are approaching the very center of the capital of Latvia - Dome Square.
Located in the very center of the old town, Dome Square is often called the heart of Riga, and the majestic building of the Dome Cathedral is one of the main attractions of the Latvian capital.
The construction of the Dome Cathedral began 10 years after the founding of the city - in 1211. By this time, the townspeople had founded St. Peter's Cathedral, and Bishop Albert, the father of Riga, decided to erect an even more grandiose building. The construction lasted more than 50 years and Albert was never destined to see his offspring completed - his remains lie inside the cathedral.
The main attraction of the cathedral is the orin of the largest musical organs in the world with a nine-story building height - 25 meters!
Video essay "10 interesting facts about the Riga Dome Cathedral"
Address of the Dome Cathedral in Riga
Doma Laukums 1, Riga
Phone: +371 67227573
Please note that you will approach the Dome Cathedral along Jauniela Street:
Doesn't it remind you of anything? Yes, this is the most cinematic street of the former USSR - our Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson lived here - there was a house at 221b Baker Street, and in "Seventeen Moments of Spring" Professor Pleischner fell into the trap of the Gestapo!
You can read more about Domskaya Square in the following articles:
Having made a small detour, we return almost to the starting point of our excursion.
If the Dome Cathedral is the main attraction of Riga, then St. Peter's Church is its symbol. And do not take us at our word - just the most tall building medieval Riga is visible and dominates almost any panoramic image of the city.
For a long time, the spire of Peter's Church was considered the tallest wooden structure in Europe. The church was first mentioned in the city chronicles in 1209, so without exaggeration the building can be called the same age as Riga.
Roland's original statue
If you have time and the weather permits, go up to the observation deck on the second tier of the tower. The entrance is paid, but it's worth it, you will see the classic perspective of the old city!
Panorama of Riga from the tower of St. Peter's Church
Video essay "10 key facts about St. Peter's Church in Riga"
Address of St. Peter's Church
Skarnu 19, Riga
Phone: 26888078
Conventa Seta (Courtyard of the Convent)
Ahead of us is a meeting with the most picturesque medieval streets of Riga. Next in line is the Convent courtyard, which, without exaggeration, can be said to be one of the most atmospheric corners of the old city.
The meticulously recreated buildings, narrow pedestrian streets, car-free beautiful view Church of St. Peter, towering directly overhead.
The court not only managed to act in films, but was also immortalized by Nicholas Roerich in one of his paintings.
Before you dive into the gates of the Convent of Set, look around - you will see the Church of St. George on the left - the oldest building in the city, and on the right is a majestic building.
Set Convention Address
Kalēju iela 9/11
Livu Square
The most broken place of the old city, and the equator of our trip. Nice place to take a breather and eat!
IN summer time Livu square resembles a human anthill - open cafes in the center, restaurants around the perimeter, loud live music, the trend of recent years - cycle rickshaws, and people, people, people ..
Pay attention to the freshly restored building of the Riga Russian Theater - this is the oldest Russian foreign theater in the world. How many more of these "most" awaits us while exploring the city!
Kalku 16, Riga LV-1050, Latvia
Telephone. +371 67224660
By the way, did you most likely decide that the theater was named after the outstanding Russian writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov? So no - and whose name is the Riga theater - read in our essay.
Architectural Ensemble Three Brothers
Continuing the walk, we pass once again the Dome Square and plunge into the narrow streets of old Riga. Ahead of us are waiting for the Three Brothers - the most famous medieval architectural complex old city.
Three stone houses crowding together form an ensemble known to all residents of Riga as "Three Brothers". The eldest of the brothers has already celebrated his 400th birthday: a respectable age, but he looks cheerful!
Did you know that in Tallinn, the Riga peasants have girlfriends - in the capital of Estonia, a similar complex is called the Three Sisters!
Address: Maza Pils 17
Information phone +37167037900
Riga castle
Here we have crossed Old city.
Riga Castle, despite its proud name, can disappoint seasoned travelers his appearance, he is so unlike fairytale castles France or Bavaria. Essentially, this medieval fortress, built by the river and able to withstand years of siege.
Looking around, not far away we see the Cable-stayed bridge and the modern multi-storey building of the Ministry of Agriculture.
swedish gate
We return to the old city and approach the Swedish Gate.
The Swedish Gate is the only gate of Old Riga that has survived to this day. There were eight such gates in the walls of the city, but time, wars and the development of the city did not preserve most of the fortifications medieval city.
We immediately examine the house of the last Riga executioner and try to hear.
Bastion Hill
Despite such a heroic name, Bastion Hill is a relatively young building in Old Riga (excuse the somewhat awkward expression) and does not have a glorious military past.
It was erected in the middle of the 19th century, when the demolition of fortifications began in Riga. In total, the city was surrounded by a chain of 14 bastions; in memory of these buildings, the place was named Bastion Hill.
Freedom Monument
The Freedom Monument is one of the most significant, and perhaps the most significant, architectural and historical monument in Riga.
Here ends our trip to the main sights of Riga. Next in line is a walk around Riga of the last century -. See you!
I was absent here for some time, because I went to Riga for several days, where, among other things and meetings, I had a good walk around the old city. So today I propose to take a short photo walk along the streets of Old Riga with me.
Let's start our walk from the Town Hall Square. Here are very famous sights of the Latvian capital - the City Hall, the statue of the knight Roland, the House of the Blackheads, the House of Shvabe.
In the Middle Ages, it was a market square, but with the construction of the Town Hall building in 1334, it also became the center of the political life of the city. At the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War(Latvia was then part of the USSR) during the offensive of the German army, the square and the buildings on it were almost completely destroyed. Their restoration, which began in the post-war years, dragged on for many years, until the early 2000s.
The City Hall building has been rebuilt many times during its existence. The building was restored in its current form in 2003. Now the Riga Duma is sitting here. 
Opposite the Town Hall stands a statue of the knight Roland. The statue of Roland is a symbol of a free medieval city. (Such statues can be found in a number of cities in Germany, as well as in Central and Eastern Europe). In Riga, the first documentary mention of the statue of Roland dates back to 1412. Since then, the monument has been renovated several times. The last time this happened in 1895-96, but in 1970, due to dilapidation, the monument was dismantled, restored and installed in the nearby church of St. Peter. And its exact copy was installed on the Town Hall Square in 2001.
The absolute decoration of the Town Hall Square are two red brick buildings with richly decorated facades - the House of the Brotherhood of the Blackheads (to the right) and the Shvabe House (to the left). Now these houses form a single architectural complex, but this was not always the case.
The Brotherhood of the Blackheads was founded in the middle of the 14th century as a military organization, but later gradually turned into a trading one. Only wealthy citizens, merchants, ship owners, foreigners living in the territory of Livonia (modern Estonia and Latvia), and necessarily unmarried, could become members of the brotherhood. (By the way, I can see the House of the Blackheads in Tallinn). There is an assumption that this name of the brotherhood came from the fact that its patron Saint Mauritius was dark-skinned.
The building on the Town Hall Square was used by the Brotherhood from the 15th century, and passed into ownership in 1713. Interestingly, the Brotherhood itself, founded in the middle of the 14th century, existed until 1940. In June 1941, the House of the Blackheads was destroyed, and in 1948 it was finally dismantled. The house that we see today was restored to its original location in 1996 - 2000 for the celebration of the 800th anniversary of Riga.
Now about the House of Schwab. An extension to the House of the Brotherhood of the Blackheads existed from the very beginning. It was a small nondescript building that served at different times for different purposes - it was both a warehouse and a police and court building. Since 1842, the unsightly house passes to the wine merchant H.P. Shvabe. He owned a fairly prosperous company and a distillery. The enterprise was very popular in Riga and soon the building near the house of the Blackheads received the well-known and today the nickname "Shvabe's house". The next owner of the House of Schwabe, the rich and ambitious merchant Emil Schmidt, dreamed of joining the Brotherhood of the Blackheads, but he was denied this. And then he decided to "take revenge" and ordered the famous Riga architect Karl Felsko to make a complete reconstruction of his house, so that it would look no worse than the house of the Blackheads located nearby. Which is what was done.
In 1941, the House of Shvabe shared the fate of the House of the Blackheads, and at the end of the 20th century they were restored as a single complex.
Now it is not possible for tourists to get into these buildings, because. currently there is the residence of the President of Latvia. In fact, the residence is located in the Riga Castle, but since 2012, large-scale restoration work has been underway there, which is planned to be completed by 2016. Then the House of the Blackheads and the House of Shvabe will again become public.
If you walk a little to the right from here to the Daugava River, you can see monuments of a not so distant history. On the square of the Latvian Red Riflemen there is a monument to these very revolutionary shooters, erected here back in the days of Soviet Union in 1970. The building behind the monument once housed a museum dedicated to the Latvian Riflemen. Since 1993, there has been a museum of the occupation of Latvia in 1940-1991, where we, of course, did not go, but went for a walk along the streets of the old city towards St. Peter's Church.
St. Peter's Church is one of the most famous sights of Riga. About the temple, which now serves as a museum, I. Therefore, in a nutshell, I will say that the first mention of the church dates back to 1209 and that to this day the church of Peter remains the most tall building Old Riga. The height of the church tower with a spire is 124 meters, and at a height of 72 meters there is an observation deck from which they open.
East facade of St. Peter's Church 
Right under the walls of Peter's Church in 1990, a monument to the Bremen Town Musicians was erected. The sculptural composition was made by the Bremen sculptor Krist Baumgartel and presented as a gift to the Latvian capital by the sister city of Bremen. It is believed that if you rub the nose of the sculptures, then the wish made should come true. And the higher you can reach, the higher the chances of fulfilling your desire.
Behind the Church of Peter there is a very picturesque area where narrow streets and old houses and temples have been preserved. This is the Church of St. John - one of the oldest churches in the city, the first mention of which refers to the chronicles of 1297. Today in the temple, in addition to church services, you can hear organ concerts. If I understand correctly, for tourists the entrance to the temple is paid - 2 euros.
Let's walk along Skārņu street 
There is another building on this street, which was originally a temple. St. George's Church is one of the oldest stone buildings in Riga that have survived to this day. Mentions of the Church of St. George date back to 1208. Then it belonged to the castle of the Order of the Sword. In 1297, the rebellious inhabitants of Riga destroyed the order castle, but the temple remained untouched. For various reasons, in the 16th century, the church was no longer used as a religious building and was adapted for a barn, which existed here until 1989.
In 1989, the Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts was opened on the premises of the church. 
Here at this house we turned and went to a very picturesque Livov Square 
Livov Square is quite new - it was formed in the middle of the twentieth century, after the Second World War. But here a complex of interesting residential buildings of the 18th century has been preserved, as well as the buildings of the Big Guild (merchants) and the Small Guild (artisans), the "House with Cats" built in the 19th century. And next to Livov Square is the Russian Drama Theater named after Chekhov. I must say that this is generally a very busy place. There are many cafes here open sky and restaurants. And the waves formed by flower beds, which are repeated in the drawing on the sidewalk, remind that once (as far back as the 16th century) the river Riga flowed here, later called Ridzene.
The building of the Small Guild. 
In the Middle Ages, the community of artisans was called the Small Guild, as opposed to the Big Guild, whose members were Riga merchants. The masters considered St. John the Baptist as their patron. The building of the Small Guild begins its history simultaneously with the founding of Riga in the first decade of the 13th century (more precisely, in 1210). Later it was repeatedly rebuilt, and in the XIV century it even served as a castle of the Livonian Order for several years, until a new castle was built. The modern building was rebuilt in the middle of the 19th century in the English neo-Gothic style, while the old one was simply demolished as it did not fit into the new exterior.
The building of the Great Guild, where the Riga Philharmonic has been located for many years, is right next to it, but for some reason I didn’t take a picture of it. Probably, she was distracted by the "House with Cats", built in 1909, which also has its own entertaining story.
Exists urban legend, according to which the wealthy homeowner Blumer, unhappy that he was not allowed to become a member of the Riga Great Guild, undertook an act of psychological retribution. He commissioned sculptural images of black cats with curved backs and placed them on the pointed turrets of his tenement house, located next to the Great Guild building. The piquancy of the situation was that the cats were turned with their tails up in the direction of the windows of the office of the elder of the Big Guild. This caused a big scandal and a lawsuit was started against Blumer. However, for quite a long time, no measures could be taken from Blumer to turn the cats around. Over time, of course, the cats were deployed in the "correct" angle.
Not far from the Cat's House stands the Powder Tower. This is the only surviving tower of the Riga fortress wall. It was originally called Pesochnaya and dated back to 1330. The tower was rebuilt several times and got its current name in the 17th century, when gunpowder was stored in it. From 1919 to the present day, the building houses the Military Museum.
Near the Powder Tower there is a very interesting Torna street (Torna iela), along which the so-called Jacob's (Jacob's) Barracks stretched. 
Jacob's barracks were built in 1695, and this event was preceded by the conquest of Riga by the Swedish king Gustav II Adolf. According to the king's order, the inhabitants of Riga were obliged to provide the Swedish soldiers with shelter and food in case of hostilities, so that the Riga burghers were left with no choice but to sponsor their construction. In 1710, after the capture of Riga by the Russian army, Peter the Great ordered to demolish the old wooden barracks and build stone ones - in this form they have survived to this day.
The promenade along the barracks is very picturesque. There are cozy cafes and restaurants, souvenir kiosks and shops in the barracks.
From the street you can dive into the Swedish Gate. The Swedish Gate is the only one of the eight gates of Riga that has survived to this day. The gate was built in 1698 to connect the inner city with barracks and houses outside the city walls. 
It is believed that the gate got its name in honor of the heroism of the Swedes during the Great Northern War. The Russians at that time occupied many significant towers and in 1710 captured Riga - pestilence and famine forced the Swedes to surrender. Peter the Great, himself being a military man, appreciated the bravery of the Swedes and let them go. They left the city through these gates, which later became known as Swedish.
Then we somehow walked through the streets and went to the Cathedral of St. Jacob. The cathedral was built at the beginning of the 13th century and is the smallest of the cathedrals in Old Riga. 
Not far from the cathedral on Maza Pils street (Maza Pils iela) there is another very famous landmark of Old Riga - "Three Brothers". This is a group of three remarkable medieval residential buildings, each built in its own century.
The oldest of these buildings - "White Brother" (house No. 17) was built in the 15th century. 
The time of construction of the "Middle Brother" (house number 19) is indicated on the facade - 1646 
And the "youngest" - "Green Brother" (house No. 21) was built at the turn of the 17th - 18th centuries. 
Today, the buildings house the State Inspectorate for the Protection of Cultural Monuments, the Union of Latvian Architects, the Latvian Museum of Architecture and the editorial office of the magazine "Latvian Architecture". 
From the "Three Brothers" we reach the Riga Castle. The Riga Castle has a rich and complex history that began in the 14th century. During its existence, the castle was repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, survived more than one siege and was administrative center rulers of several states. At first the castle belonged to the Livonian Order. After the Order ceased to exist, the Riga Castle at various times became the residence of Polish, Swedish and Russian governors. In Soviet times, the castle housed the Riga Palace of Pioneers and Schoolchildren. Since 1991 Riga Castle has been the residence of the President of Latvia.
As I mentioned above, in 2012, large-scale restoration work began in the building, due to which the residence was moved to the House of the Blackheads. 
(The photo is not mine. I took it from Wikipedia - "Riga, hrad" by Dezidor - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons -https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Riga,_hrad.jpg#/media/File:Riga,_hrad.jpg)
In the 18th century, Castle Square with a small park was laid out in front of the castle. In Soviet times, this square was called Pionerskaya, and in 1991 the old name was returned to it. Here is the Catholic Church of Our Lady of Sorrows, built in 1765.
Today is the second half of yesterday, entirely dedicated to Riga. I understand that it is difficult to compete with St. Petersburg, but the Latvian capital has something to show its guests. ;-) So, what happened on the third day of our travels? temples, bridges, trading places, hangars for airships, climbed to different heights to explore the city panoramas, visited the islands and the boulevard half-ring of the city, as well as a few more medieval sights. And a traditional lunch at the mill. In general, it is better to see once than hear a hundred times ...
Authorship of photos is marked with asterisks as in the previous post. But the first half of the report is entirely photographs from olesya_go
- it turned out to be a painfully interesting look at our city!
So, in the morning after breakfast began hiking on Riga sights.
1. The beginning of the route was laid at the Old Gertrudin Church in the city center, surrounded by Art Nouveau houses:
2. The neo-gothic interior of the church served as a filming location:
3. Monument to Barclay de Tolly, about which many copies were broken at one time:
4. Fragment of the Orthodox Cathedral on the Esplanade:
5. Detail of the Freedom Monument with characters breaking their chains:
6. Bastion Hill, built at one time from hidden city ramparts and a park around it:
7-8. There are several bridges in the park, and all of them, of course, are hung with wedding locks. Here are some of them:
9. The Powder Tower, once the most powerful tower of the medieval fortifications in Riga and the only one more or less surviving. View of the tower from the Bastion Hill:
10. A foal is a favorite of many generations of little Rigans. As a child, I also loved to climb on this sculpture:
11-12. Laima clock, a favorite place for city dates and a fountain near the Opera:
13. And the Opera House itself:
14. The best mayor in the history of Riga. I wrote about it here:
The monument immortalized George Armistead with his wife and dog for a walk:
15. On the left is the so-called "House under the Three Atlantes", located in the Old City:
16. Former hangars for airships from the First World War, now the pavilions of the Central Market:
17. And pleasing to the eye multicolor inside one of the pavilions:
18. Pigeons are already as cheeky as they are in Europe:
19. Near the tea pavilion near the city canal:
20. Owl for sale:
21-22. Views of the Old Town, so beloved by local artists:
23-24. The spire of the church of Peter, which you have to climb and the internal view of the central nave of the church:
25. And the views from above, from the observation deck of the Church of Peter:
26. These angles are quite famous on the Internet, thanks to the strategic location of the church in the heart of the Old City, so I show only a few of them.
27. In the foreground - the Reformed Church, in the background are the same hangars for airships:
28-29. The original rooster, which once crowned the spire, and the model of the wooden structure of the spire of Peter's Church - the tallest wooden structure in Europe of its time:
30-31. Monument to the Bremen Town Musicians (a gift to Riga from the sister city) and a live musician nearby:
32. Trading on stalls of various kinds of souvenirs and objects of arts and crafts:
33. Janya set (John's Compound) with the remains of the city fortress wall:
34. Thinker of the Court of the Convention:
35. Houses on the street. Meistar (Masters), attached directly to the Riga fortress wall and thereby absorbing it:
36-37. On the left, the "Cat's House" so beloved by tourists for some reason, on the right - the building of the Main Architectural Department of the city:
38. Do you see a boy reading here?
39. Do you see a horseshoe here? The legend says that Tsar Peter I once drove along Kalku (Izvestkova) Street and his horse became loose. The blacksmiths who lived here quickly shod the royal horse, while Peter, who possessed remarkable strength, took the old horseshoe and threw it without looking away. The horseshoe hit the wall of a house under construction and stuck to the fresh plaster. True, in the new guidebooks around Riga they now write that this is a horseshoe from the horse of Charles XII :-))
On this we say goodbye to the Old Town and move on.
40. Zakusala Island (Hare Island). The TV tower is now considered the tallest technical structure in the European Union. It is now to be climbed:
41.** Inside you can see the layout of the TV tower and the diagram of the telecommunications network throughout Latvia:
42.** However, an unpleasant surprise awaits upstairs - the viewing windows here are dirty: - (Here are photos taken in October 2006 - - then everything was much more decent. Nevertheless, our home photojournalist managed to find several points almost at floor level, where the views were better, and I still had to suffer with the processing of photos, which you will see below.
43.** View of Zakusala island:
44.** In order not to repeat with the previous reportage, there will be only those objects that were not there before. South bridge:
45.** Multi-level interchanges of the South Bridge:
45.** Island Bridge:
46.** Moscow suburb with a high-rise building of the Academy of Sciences:
47.** Old Town:
48.** Shopping mall"Riga Plaza" and new residential buildings:
49-50.** What was really visible through the glass, unfortunately. The husband wrote a letter to the Riga City Council asking if something could be done so as not to disgrace the city in front of tourists. Let's see if they answer...
51.** A hang glider circled the TV tower in the sky. Who cares, here on the Internet there were photos taken from this hang glider, although not on this day: http://fotki.yandex.ru/users/aleksandr-gonduras/album/112499/?&p=1
52.** Good panoramas opened up from Hare Island and from below:
53. Traditional lunch for our guests - here. Mill "Lido" - part of the largest wooden frame in Europe:
54. Improvement of the territory of the restaurant:
55. I won’t show goldfish in the pond there, but the show of gnomes to the delight of visitors.
We just arrived at the old town. The weather that day decided to test our body and in the morning gave out 3 degrees of heat. All warm clothes were put on and the walk began.
The beginning was taken from the statue of liberty
And the house at number 20 is connected by history with Russia and Peter 1. During the siege of the city by Russian troops, Tsar Peter 1 dressed as a beggar and studied the city to obtain information about the enemy. During such a detour, he noticed that the Swedish army had planted explosives under the Powder Gate. When trying to put out the candle, he was noticed and barely managed to escape. To save Riga, a quick capture of the city was organized and the explosion was avoided. In memory of this, a horseshoe from Peter's horse was nailed to the house.
Nearby is another reminder of Russia - at Kaļķu 16 is the Riga Russian Theater, which was opened on October 2, 1883.
“Until 1883, there was no permanent Russian theater in Riga. Occasionally, only amateur performances were given, and there were several cases of small provincial troupes arriving here.
Only in the early 80s of the 19th century were the constructions of the house of the Russian craft artel and the Uley society completed, in which there were halls with scenes. It was only here that the opportunity opened up to put into practice the idea of arranging permanent Russian theatrical performances in Riga, which had occupied leading Russian people since the 1960s, i.e. since the awakening of the Russian social movement here, the result of which was the appearance of the first Russian public institutions ...
This was achieved in 1883, which year should be considered the year of foundation of the permanent Russian theater in Riga.
Reading a story about the Russian theater, we reached Livov Square. Square story.
Next, we continue our walk. To do this, we will walk along the street between the buildings of the Big and Small Guilds - Amatu Street.
As soon as we enter this space between buildings, it immediately catches the eye fairytale castle with their towers. This is house 4 on Amatu street. Except appearance interesting for his boy on the ledge. Here, at such a height, he sits with his legs crossed, scratches his head and reads a book. Serious work at this height. We go further until we hit Šķūņu street. A little to the left of the exit to the street, house 12/14 will attract attention. The so-called house with a dog (as opposed to a house with cats). Beautiful building hard not to notice. Harder to notice the dog on the most high point canopy, as the street is very narrow. The legend says that the owner loved his dog very much and decided to perpetuate the memory of her.
Further on the path through the streets of Old Riga led us again to the Town Hall Square, and then to Menzendorf's house. But more about this in the continuation of our walks - the day part.
What to see in Riga in 1 day. My short guide - How to get there, where to stay, where to eat, as well as transport and attractions.
My trip to Riga, like most trips to Europe, was determined by a chance, or rather a $30 discount for booking 3-5 star hotels, which was most successfully used in Riga. After that, it remains only to watch out for the action on Minsk-Riga-Minsk bus tickets, and here, too, it was lucky to start a sale with a 50% discount.
How to get to Riga
You can get to Riga, like most European capitals, by plane, bus and train. I took a night bus from Minsk for 6.9 €, but I can’t guess your option, so I’ll tell you about the main directions.
- : a ticket for a city bus from the airport costs 1.15€ if you buy an E-Talon in advance, a single ticket from the driver will cost 2€. Transfer from the airport for 30 € can be ordered and.
- : buses run up to 10 times a day, average price ticket 13 €, you can buy or. Flights from €30 can be found at.
- : buses to Riga run up to 4 times a day, tickets are sold or from 15€. The train costs from 40 €.
Accommodation in Riga
- Apartments: apartments for a day are best booked on Airbnb, and to save money, use. Most apartment owners speak Russian.
- Hotels: if you don’t want to overpay and there are no shares, then use a combination of a search engine and the function. The search engine will find the best offer, and CashBack and coupons will reduce the price by up to 20%.
I was lucky enough to book a 4-star hotel for 13€ for two with breakfast (using a discount coupon), but such promotions are very rare. The hotel is located almost in the very center of the city on the island of Kipsala. Breakfast is a buffet with a large selection of food, the hotel also has a free sauna for guests.
public transport in Riga
The tourist part of the city is very small, and is also located next to the railway station, and if you arrived in the city for less than a day, then public transport may simply not be needed.
If your route involves the use of public transport, then you should know that there are electronic system fares, and tickets are called E-Talon. You can buy them at any newsstand.
It is best for a tourist to use single-use yellow E-Talon tickets. A ticket for one trip is 2.5 €, but if you are going to travel more than 1 time, then it is advantageous to buy a day pass for 5 €.
Sights of Riga
Before proceeding to the description of my walk in Riga, as usual, I will give a few links that should help you organize your trip in advance and save time.
- Tourist bus Riga Sightseeing Tour - and. More expensive than a travel card for public transport, but it is more convenient to get to some attractions.
- — 15€.
- Excursion - - 25 €.
- — 69€.
What to see in Riga in 1 day
Although I was in Riga for almost two days, but due to bad weather, my stay in Riga itself as a tourist was reduced to 3-5 hours. This is enough to see tourist centre cities and main sights of Riga.
Central station
Mine walking route I will start covering from the Central Station - the place of arrival of almost all tourists in Riga.
Latvian National Opera
You don’t have to go straight to the historical city, so as not to make an extra circle later and go for a walk to the Bastion Hill park, where you can see several sights at once. The first thing that will be on the way is the building of the Latvian National Opera, built in 1863.
The next point will be the Freedom Stella, located in the center of the park. It was erected in 1935 as a symbol of the freedom of the Latvian people.
We continue our walk through the park to the place that gave it the name Bastion Hill. Little is left of the hill itself, but you can get good views from it. good weather. Our case was an exception and the weather let us down.
powder tower
We go down the hill and go towards the Powder Tower, the peak of which is visible in the previous photo. The Powder Tower is practically the only thing left of the city's defensive wall. Nearby are some more remains in the form of the Ramer Tower and a piece of the fortress wall.
powder tower 
Next to these structures is the corresponding thematic Latvian War Museum. The museum is open every day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. the entrance is free, the address is Smilšu iela 20.
cat house
We continue to move deep into the historical part of the city and go out to the building called the Cat's House, which has come up with a whole legend about cats on the spire of its roof. According to this legend, the cats were originally turned back to the building of the Riga Merchants' Guild, and this was done because of the refusal to admit one of the merchants, who was the owner of this building, to the guild.
Today, the spiers of this building with cats are one of the symbols of the city, even a tourist magnet rarely does without the image of these cats.
cat house From the cat's house we are moving towards the Dome Square, where the Dome Cathedral is located, but we will not go into the square itself and the cathedral for now, but we will walk a little to the right to Cathedral Saint James.
And now we go to the Dome Square and the cathedral of the same name.
Nearby is Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation. The entrance to the museum is 4.27€, for adults, but it’s better to immediately buy a subscription to 3 museums for 5.69€ ( Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation, Mentzendorf House and Museum of Photography of Latvia).
If the museum is not interested, then we move to central square Riga and the House of the Blackheads located on it, as well as the Monument to the Bremen Town Musicians, which is hidden around the corner of the House of the Blackheads.
Not far from the House of the Blackheads is another of the main attractions of Riga - the Church of St. Peter.
This is almost all that I managed to capture during a walk around Riga and the whole story “What to see in Riga”, more photos were prevented from taking a fine rain. But in Riga, in the old town, there are still a dozen or two interesting houses that could be photographed, and you can also find the house that was filmed in the Soviet film about Sherlock Holmes and passed off as his place of residence on Baker Street.
Latvian National Library
And the last photo is now also a landmark of Riga - the new building of the National Library of Latvia, opened in 2013. I got here because my hotel is located nearby.
Where to eat on a budget in Riga
I will finish my story about Riga with a snack, or rather lunch. In Riga, if you do not want to overpay for restaurants and expensive cafes, it is better to go to LIDO. It is tasty, satisfying and inexpensive, and also somewhat similar to canteens, but much prettier and cozier.
There are 4 such establishments not far from the center, and one of them is right in historical center. Lido in the center is constantly crowded due to good location, so it's better to walk a little and dine in any other. Below the address as far as the distance from the center.
