TRIP OVERVIEW
Day 1 – House of the Blackheads · Latvian Occupation Museum · Bastejkalns Park · Riga Cathedral
Day 2 – Freedom Monument · National Museum of Art · Art Nouveau Museum · St. Peter's Church
Day 3 – Ethnographic Museum · Motor Museum · Riga Zoo · Mežaparks
Day 1
1.House of the Blackheads~1 hr
A lavishly restored Gothic-Renaissance merchant guild house from 1334, demolished by the Soviets and rebuilt stone by stone in the 1990s — the most photographed building in all of Latvia.
Tuesday - Sunday 10:00am - 6:00pm
Closed Monday
2.Latvian Occupation Museum~1.5 hr
A sober and essential museum documenting Latvia's twin occupations under Soviet and Nazi rule from 1940 to 1991, with thousands of testimonies, personal artefacts and photographs housed in a striking concrete pavilion in the heart of Old Town.
3.Bastejkalns Park~1 hr
A tranquil hillside park tracing Riga's historic city moat, with red-brick bastion terraces, weeping willows, a stone-arched bridge and swan-filled canal waters at the western edge of Old Town.
Open 24/7
4.Riga Cathedral~1.5 hr
Latvia's oldest place of worship and the largest medieval church in the Baltic, containing one of Europe's greatest Baroque pipe organs with 6,768 pipes and a richly layered cloister from the 13th century.
Monday - Saturday 9:00am - 6:00pm · Sunday 2:00pm - 5:00pm
Day 2
1.Freedom Monument~30 min
A solemn 42-metre granite and travertine column topped by a bronze Liberty figure, unveiled in 1935, preserved throughout Soviet occupation and guarded by the Latvian Guard of Honour 24 hours a day.
Open 24/7
2.National Museum of Art~1.5 hr
Latvia's leading fine-arts museum, occupying a grand neoclassical palace from 1905, with a collection of 52,000 works spanning centuries of Baltic and European painting from the 18th century to the present.
Wednesday - Thursday 10:00am - 6:00pm · Friday 10:00am - 8:00pm · Saturday - Sunday 10:00am - 6:00pm · Monday 10:00am - 6:00pm
Closed Tuesday
3.Art Nouveau Museum~1 hr
Set inside a meticulously preserved apartment house from 1903, this museum recreates the lavish living spaces of a prosperous Riga family and brings to life the ornate stucco facades that make the city a UNESCO heritage site.
Daily 10:00am - 6:00pm
4.St. Peter's Church~1 hr
A 13th-century Lutheran landmark whose observation tower lift delivers a 360° panorama over Old Town's terracotta rooftops and the wide sweep of the Daugava River below.
Tuesday - Sunday 10:00am - 7:00pm
Closed Monday
Day 3
1.Latvian Ethnographic Museum~2 hr
The world's oldest open-air museum and one of Europe's largest, with over 100 historic farmsteads, windmills, a church and a fishermen's village spread across 87 hectares of lakeside forest east of the city.
Daily 10:00am - 5:00pm
Historic buildings accessible May - October only; grounds open year-round
2.Riga Motor Museum~1.5 hr
Latvia's most theatrical museum, displaying 130 immaculately restored Soviet and Western vehicles — including Leonid Brezhnev's personal ZIL limousines — inside a dramatic building architecturally shaped like a speeding automobile.
Tuesday - Sunday 10:00am - 5:00pm
Closed Monday
3.Riga Zoo~1.5 hr
Founded in 1912 and one of the Baltic's oldest zoos, home to over 3,000 animals including rare white lions, Amur tigers and Przewalski's horses in a beautifully forested park-like setting adjacent to Mežaparks.
Daily 10:00am - 6:00pm
Closes 5pm October - March
4.Mežaparks~1 hr
A lush century-old forest park on the shores of Ķīšezers lake, designed in 1901 as a garden suburb, with open-air concert grounds, cycle paths and shaded lakeside promenades popular with Riga locals all year round.
Open 24/7
Weekly Closures
Museums · Churches · Closed Monday
Art Museums · Closed Tuesday
Tours
Viator
A private walking tour of Jewish Riga from the pre-war ghetto to the Gogol Street synagogue site, led by a historian connecting Latvia's Jewish community across 700 years of history to the Shoah.
3 hr · Private
A 2.5-hour guided cycling circuit through Old Town, along the Daugava embankment, through the Art Nouveau district and into the canal parks — bike hire included.
2 hr 30 min · Small group
A 45-minute electric bus circuit through Old Town's main landmarks with a multilingual audio guide — good for a quick city overview or for those who prefer not to walk.
45 min · Small group
GetYourGuide
GetYourGuide's top-rated Riga experience: a 2-hour guided walk through Old Town led by a certified local guide, covering all major landmarks from the Blackheads to the Dome Cathedral.
2 hr · Small group
A 2-hour Old Town walk at one of the best-value prices on the platform, covering the historic core with a friendly, highly rated local guide.
2 hr · Small group
TripAdvisor
A 90-minute guided walk of the Old Town highlights in a small group, with a local guide who adjusts pace and content to the group's interests.
1 hr 30 min · Small group
A 3-hour guided bike ride covering Old Town, the Daugava embankment, Art Nouveau district and the canal parks in one efficient circuit.
3 hr · Small group
Cappuccino
KALVE Baznīcas · 4.7 · 335+ reviews
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 6:00pm · Saturday - Sunday 9:00am - 6:00pm
MiiT Coffee · 4.4 · 2273+ reviews
Monday - Wednesday 8:00am - 7:00pm · Thursday - Friday 8:00am - 8:00pm · Saturday 9:00am - 7:00pm · Sunday 9:00am - 6:00pm
Rocket Bean Roastery · 4.6 · 898+ reviews
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 6:00pm · Saturday - Sunday 10:00am - 6:00pm
Fika kūku studija · 4.6 · 147+ reviews
Monday - Saturday 8:00am - 8:00pm · Sunday 10:00am - 8:00pm
Coffee Society · 4.8 · 115+ reviews
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 8:00pm · Saturday 10:00am - 7:00pm · Sunday 11:00am - 7:00pm
Restaurants Near Hotel
Italissimo · 4.8 · 3294+ reviews
Italian kitchen with handmade pasta, brick-oven pizza and a wine list focused on northern Italian and Sicilian producers.
Daily 12:00pm - 11:00pm
Casa Nostra · 4.5 · 2246+ reviews
Relaxed Italian trattoria known for generous antipasti, house-made gnocchi and a charming old-town courtyard terrace.
Monday - Thursday 12:00pm - 10:00pm · Friday - Saturday 12:00pm - 11:00pm · Sunday 12:00pm - 10:00pm
Lido Dzirnavas · 4.5 · 3285+ reviews
Self-service Latvian canteen with rotating daily specials of grey peas, potato pancakes, smoked meats and seasonal salads.
Monday - Friday 10:00am - 10:00pm · Saturday - Sunday 10:00am - 9:00pm
Kozy Eats · 4.8 · 1585+ reviews
All-day café serving brunch bowls, grain plates and Buddha bowls with house-fermented drinks and excellent specialty coffee.
Monday - Thursday 10:00am - 9:00pm · Friday - Saturday 10:00am - 10:00pm · Sunday 11:00am - 8:00pm
Entresol · 4.6 · 527+ reviews
Intimate fine-dining tasting menu using Latvian produce — wild herbs, lake fish and game — in a quietly theatrical Art Nouveau interior.
Wednesday - Saturday 5:00pm - 11:00pm
Closed Sunday - Tuesday
Downtown Restaurants
Vincents · 4.5 · 1389+ reviews
Riga's most celebrated fine-dining room with Baltic and French technique and one of Latvia's finest wine cellars.
Wednesday - Saturday 6:00pm - 11:00pm
Closed Sunday - Tuesday
Rozengrāls · 4.5 · 4256+ reviews
Medieval banquet cellar in Old Town serving historical Latvian recipes — beet soup, game stew and spiced mead — without electricity.
Daily 12:00pm - 12:00am
Folkklubs Ala Pagrabs · 4.6 · 8464+ reviews
Lively Latvian pub in Old Town cellars serving grey peas with smoked pork, dark rye bread and craft beer with live folk music.
Sunday 2:00pm - 1:00am · Monday - Wednesday 4:00pm - 1:00am · Thursday 4:00pm - 3:00am · Friday 4:00pm - 5:00am · Saturday 2:00pm - 5:00am
1221 · 4.5 · 156+ reviews
Modern Latvian bistro named for Riga's founding year, with seasonal menus built on local produce in a relaxed Old Town setting.
Daily 12:00pm - 11:00pm
Shōyu · 4.8 · 2779+ reviews
Japanese kitchen focusing on ramen, donburi and izakaya small plates, with house-made noodles and a curated sake list.
Monday - Tuesday 12:00pm - 9:00pm · Wednesday - Saturday 12:00pm - 10:00pm · Sunday 12:00pm - 9:00pm
Local Tastes
Pelēkie zirņi ar speķi
Latvia's most beloved comfort dish: slow-cooked grey peas with thick-cut smoked pork belly and caramelised onion, traditionally served at Midsummer and winter celebrations.
Rupjmaize
Latvia's defining bread — dense, sour and baked with caraway seeds; pick up a loaf at any local bakery or deli and eat it with butter, smoked fish and a sliced onion the traditional Latvian way.
Sklandrausis
A thin open rye-pastry boat filled with sweetened carrot and potato, dusted with caraway — an ancient Latvian pie under EU protected-origin status, best eaten fresh from a traditional restaurant.
Auksti kūpinātas zivis
Cold-smoked Baltic sprats and pike-perch — a cornerstone of the Latvian diet, sold at market stalls and specialist fishmongers; eat with dark rye bread, butter and a sliced onion.
Rīgas Melnais Balzams
A 45% herbal liqueur made to a secret 24-ingredient recipe since 1752, served as a digestif or mixed into black currant juice — Latvia's unofficial national drink, available at any bar in the city.
Food Delivery
Wolt
Foreign number: not required. — sign-up runs on Google, Apple, Facebook or email with no phone field at all, so no verification code is sent.
Premium delivery platform with a focused selection of Riga's better restaurants; coverage across the Old Town, Art Nouveau district and Centrs. Reliable 30–40 minute windows with live tracking.
Bolt Food
Foreign number: accepted. — the SMS verification code arrives on international numbers.
Food delivery arm of Bolt; strong coverage across Riga's central neighbourhoods. Wider restaurant selection than Wolt, often at lower delivery fees, with real-time driver tracking.
Shows, Performances & Concerts
Latvian National Opera & Ballet
Latvia's premier opera and ballet house in a magnificent 1863 building; season runs September to June.
Latvian National Theatre
Latvia's oldest drama theatre, founded in 1919; Latvian-language productions of classics and world premieres.
New Riga Theatre
Contemporary experimental theatre led by Alvis Hermanis, internationally acclaimed for bold physical and visual productions.
Daile Theatre
Riga's most accessible drama repertoire, with Latvian and international plays in a 1,000-seat hall.
Getting Around
Bolt
Foreign number: accepted. — the SMS verification code arrives on international numbers.
The dominant ride-hailing app in Riga; well-covered across the Old Town, Art Nouveau district, Centrs and surrounding neighbourhoods. Cheaper than a street taxi and consistently faster during evening hours around the main squares.
Tram · Trolleybus · Bus
Tram line 11 links the Art Nouveau district to the city centre; board at Mākslas muzejs, alight at Brīvības bulvāris for Old Town.
Riga has a tram system — operated by Rīgas Satiksme. Lines used on this trip: 11.
Train Stations Near Hotel
Rīga Centrālā stacija
Jūrmala · Sigulda · Vilnius · St. Petersburg.
Day Trips by Train
Jūrmala · 30 min by train
Latvia's Baltic beach resort, a 33-km stretch of white-sand coastline, pine forest and ornate Art Nouveau villas; walk Jomas iela pedestrian street and swim at Majori or Dubulti beach.
book at: Omio
Sigulda · 1 hr by train
Gateway to Gauja National Park; Turaida Castle, the Sigulda castle ruins, a summer bobsleigh track and trails through the sandstone Gauja River valley.
book at: Omio
Michelin Restaurants
Max Cekot Kitchen
Inventive Baltic tasting menu exploring Latvian seasonal ingredients.
Heads Up
Rīgas Satiksme — Validate on Every Boarding
Validate your ticket each time you board a bus, tram or trolleybus, including transfers within the same 90-minute ticket.
Hiking
Forest Trail: Old Riga to Baltezers · Hard
City streets lead into the wooded dunes of Biķernieki and Šmerlis.
19 km one way · 150 m ascent
8 hr
One-way route; arrange transport back from Baltezers.
Daugavgrīva Nature Trail · Easy
A coastal loop through reed beds, lagoons and dunes.
4 km loop · 70 m ascent
1 hr
The reed-bed boardwalk is narrow and has no passing places.
Worth Knowing
Riga's Old Town fits in an hour — but the Art Nouveau district takes all morning
Riga has one of the world's highest concentrations of Art Nouveau architecture; the blocks around Alberta, Elizabetes and Strēlnieku streets are best explored before 10am when tour groups arrive. Pick up a free Art Nouveau guide at the tourist information office on Rātslaukums.
The euro is the currency; ATMs are everywhere in the centre. Most city-centre restaurants, cafés and museums accept cards, though smaller market vendors and kiosks may prefer cash.
English is widely spoken by anyone working in tourism, hotels and restaurants. Outside those contexts Latvian and Russian are the languages you'll hear; signs in Old Town are also in English.
The Riga Card covers unlimited public transport and free or reduced entry to 25 museums including the Motor Museum and the Ethnographic Open-Air Museum — good value if visiting both on Day 3.
Amber sold in Old Town is genuine Baltic amber, but quality and price vary widely. Look for vendors displaying the Latvian Amber Association certification mark; avoid the cheapest stalls near Rātslaukums, which may sell pressed amber.
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