11 Essential Things to Do in Riga, Latvia, Riga, Latvia

The Baltic States were always somewhere I’d been curious to visit and in August of this year I thankfully had the chance to do so. My first stop was to be Riga, the capital of Latvia and I was pretty excited. My arrival may not have been met with the greatest of weather but I didn’t care once I started exploring.

Riga had this feeling of familiarity about it that I just couldn’t shake - I felt instantly at home there. While it had plenty of aspects that reminded me of other places, Riga still very much felt like its own place. Here are 11 things to see and do in Riga that you cannot miss.

If you’re looking for somewhere to start with Riga, then its Old Town makes the most sense. Riga’s Old Town is an immensely walkable area, in part because of the way it’s laid out but also just because of how interesting the streets are. You will come across big squares with fascinating churches but the smaller streets have plenty to offer too. Great for lovers of architecture and for photo opportunities too. Don’t miss the Three Brothers houses, the oldest complex of houses in the city.

One of the larger squares of Riga is the square below Riga Cathedral. Dome Square is lined with plenty of beautiful buildings that are also quite different to each other. There is also the great big Lutheran Cathedral looming large over the public place. But my favourite thing about the square is that it has my favourite piece of street art that I came across in Riga. The painting looks like something out of a whimsical novel from the 20th century or something. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).