{"id":128396,"date":"2016-04-09T19:16:08","date_gmt":"2016-04-09T17:16:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T10:47:41","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T09:47:41","slug":"riga-latvia-tips-facts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Interesting Facts and Practical Tips About Riga, Latvia"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>At the end of January, Luk\u00e1\u0161 and I headed on a trip to Riga, Latvia. It probably wasn&#8217;t the best time to visit, because it was freezing cold and rainy on top of that. But Riga Latvia has its charm even in the kind of weather that makes you want to crawl into bed and stay there.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/GiFuv6Iv0vw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/youtu.be\/GiFuv6Iv0vw<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Here are a few of our observations.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_1 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#1_Getting_Around_Riga\" >1) Getting Around Riga<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#2_Where_to_Buy_Public_Transport_Tickets\" >2) Where to Buy Public Transport Tickets<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#3_Getting_from_the_Airport_to_the_City_Centre\" >3) Getting from the Airport to the City Centre<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#4_Sending_Postcards\" >4) Sending Postcards<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#5_The_Most_Important_Word_in_Latvian\" >5) The Most Important Word in Latvian<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#6_Ham\" >6) Ham<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#7_English\" >7) English<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#8_What_to_Bring_Back_from_Riga\" >8) What to Bring Back from Riga<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#9_What_to_See_in_Riga\" >9) What to See in Riga<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/riga-latvia-tips-facts\/#10_Fur_Coats\" >10) Fur Coats<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_Getting_Around_Riga\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_Getting_around_Riga\"><\/span>1) Getting Around Riga<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Whenever I travel somewhere, the first thing I want to know is how to get around.<\/p>\n<p>The good news about Riga is that you can walk practically everywhere in the centre, so on one of our days we didn&#8217;t even need to use public transport at all.<\/p>\n<p>We couldn&#8217;t figure out their timetables in three days. It didn&#8217;t help that they have tram no. 3 and also bus no. 3, which was a bit confusing for us as tourists. And there&#8217;s no decent app that works offline either.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_655\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-655\" style=\"width: 634px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/20160129-IMG_0520.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-655\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160129-IMG_0520-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Academy of Sciences\" width=\"634\" height=\"423\" title=\"\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-655\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Academy of Sciences<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_Where_to_Buy_Public_Transport_Tickets\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_Where_to_buy_public_transport_tickets\"><\/span>2) Where to Buy Public Transport Tickets<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Be careful \u2014 don&#8217;t buy tickets directly from the driver, because they&#8217;re more expensive. Buy them from the ticket machines at stops, or at a newsagent. A three-day pass costs \u20ac10, and a single ride is \u20ac1.15, but from the driver it&#8217;s \u20ac2. The Riga Latvia currency is the euro, so no need to worry about exchanging money.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/20160128-IMG_0384.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160128-IMG_0384-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Riga\" width=\"634\" height=\"423\" title=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_Getting_from_the_Airport_to_the_City_Centre\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_Getting_from_the_airport_to_the_city_centre\"><\/span>3) Getting from the Airport to the City Centre<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>It takes about half an hour. Buses 222 and 22 run from the airport to the centre. Riga International Airport (airport code RIX) is well connected and quite easy to navigate.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_659\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-659\" style=\"width: 634px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/20160128-IMG_0402.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-659 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160128-IMG_0402-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"View from the Sky Bar in Riga\" width=\"634\" height=\"423\" title=\"\"><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-659\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">View from the Sky Bar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"4_Sending_Postcards\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"4_Sending_postcards\"><\/span>4) Sending Postcards<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Wherever I go, my second priority is finding out where to buy stamps. In Riga, it&#8217;s just like back home \u2014 you can buy stamps at any newsagent or kiosk.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"5_The_Most_Important_Word_in_Latvian\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"5_The_most_important_word_in_Latvian\"><\/span>5) The Most Important Word in Latvian<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Kafejnica = caf\u00e9<\/p>\n<p>Caf\u00e9s are everywhere here, and given the weather we had, we visited quite a few. Some even offer soy milk options, and all the ones we went to felt super modern. An ideal destination for caf\u00e9 lovers \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160130-IMG_0549.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-656\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160130-IMG_0549.jpg\" alt=\"Caf\u00e9 in Riga\" width=\"658\" height=\"439\" title=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"6_Ham\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"6_Ham\"><\/span>6) Ham<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Latvian ham is not like what you&#8217;d find at home. It&#8217;s fatty and thick. Bleh.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/IMG_3092.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-663\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/IMG_3092-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Latvian ham\" width=\"651\" height=\"488\" title=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"7_English\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"7_English\"><\/span>7) English<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Riga is very multicultural, and almost everyone speaks excellent English. So is Riga Latvia safe for English-speaking tourists? Absolutely \u2014 you&#8217;ll have no trouble communicating and getting around.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"8_What_to_Bring_Back_from_Riga\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"8_What_to_bring_back_from_Riga\"><\/span>8) What to Bring Back from Riga<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Definitely pick up some eco or organic products \u2014 there&#8217;s a huge selection here, and at great prices. Or you can buy a mushroom-shaped nutcracker at the market (Why not?)<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/20160129-IMG_0497.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-653\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160129-IMG_0497-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Riga Central Market\" width=\"671\" height=\"448\" title=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"9_What_to_See_in_Riga\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"9_What_to_see_in_Riga\"><\/span>9) What to See in Riga<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Riga, the capital of Latvia, has a beautiful historic centre. Even if you&#8217;re not religious, don&#8217;t be afraid to peek inside the churches \u2014 in St. Peter&#8217;s Church, we truly felt as if earth and heaven were connected for a moment\u2026<\/p>\n<p>You can also visit the National Library, a massive glass-walled, imposing building where you get a visitor card and can wander around freely.<\/p>\n<p>As for museums, we&#8217;d recommend the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia. For views, our favourite was the Sky Bar, where we spent most of our time hiding from the freezing weather. If you&#8217;d like to explore the city with a guide, you can easily find walking tours and activities on <a class=\"thirstylink\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"GetYourGuide\" href=\"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/doporucujeme\/getyourguide\/\" data-shortcode=\"true\">GetYourGuide<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>We also recommend the app <a href=\"https:\/\/www.likealocalguide.com\/pages\/mobile-app\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Like a Local<\/a> \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/20160128-IMG_0411.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-658\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/20160128-IMG_0411-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Historic centre of Riga\" width=\"634\" height=\"423\" title=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"10_Fur_Coats\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"10_Fur_coats\"><\/span>10) Fur Coats<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Everyone in Riga wears real fur coats, or at least has a jacket with real fur trim. In my regular coat, I felt terribly out of place. Given the Latvia weather in Riga during winter, I can&#8217;t really blame them!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/IMG_3099.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-662\" src=\"https:\/\/www.loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/IMG_3099-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Winter in Riga Latvia\" width=\"634\" height=\"476\" title=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At the end of January, Luk\u00e1\u0161 and I headed on a trip to Riga, Latvia. It probably wasn&#8217;t the best time to visit \u2014 it was freezing cold and rainy \u2014 but Riga has its charm even in the worst weather.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":657,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","rank_math_title":"10 Practical Tips About Riga Latvia | Travel Guide","rank_math_description":"Discover 10 interesting facts and practical tips about Riga Latvia \u2014 from transport and souvenirs to caf\u00e9s and sightseeing. Plan your trip today!","rank_math_focus_keyword":"riga latvia","rank_math_seo_score":""},"categories":[326,355],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-128396","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-europe","8":"category-latvia"},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/20160129-IMG_0428-e1460147080261.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Lucie Kone\u010dn\u00e1","author_link":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/author\/lucie-konecna\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=128396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/657"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=128396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=128396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudavymkrokem.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=128396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}