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It’s very rare that I pass up the opportunity to see someplace new.
Honestly, there’s no place in this world that I’m not at least a bit interested in seeing. Call it a reckless curiosity, but my bucket list grows longer every single day, and I’ll basically jump at any chance to go somewhere I’ve never been before.
This is precisely how I found myself last week in Latvia.
Booking my ticket to Helsinki a few weeks back, I noticed a certain pattern with Baltic Air flights to Finland – the longer your layover in Riga, the cheaper your flight. Now, a lot of people dread long layovers, but to me, they offer not just a chance to save your hard-earned dollars, but an opportunity to stretch your legs and explore someplace new, even for a little while.
So, with that in mind, I said a sad goodbye to Munich and soon found myself lost in the winding streets of Riga.
Riga: my first long layover!
It must be said: Riga is a tremendously lovely city. As I would discover during my short stay, this Latvian capital (the largest of all Baltic capitals) is far more than a cheap party destination. While on the surface, Riga offers a quiet, cobblestone-studded charm, you can tell from its modern mix of hip restaurants and museums that there’s a vibrant energy bubbling beneath its classic beauty. With my limited time frame, I was sadly unable to dig deeper into this ‘cooler’ side of Riga, and my short stay was a bit of a tease, but I can’t complain. I mean look at these streets:
Riga’s Old Town
How is this place real?
Riga is an old city dating back to the early 13th century, but its charm runs far deeper than simply being ‘old’. It’s a clever mix of metropolitan meets medieval, with toy town-esque buildings sharing skyline space with glassy modern structures. Despite the brevity of my 18 hour layover, I got a chance to see most of the main tourist attractions in Riga and was able to witness (and appreciate) that it’s a city of layers and contrast.
The view of Riga from St Peter’s Church – doesn’t it look like a toy town?
On a cold and cloudy March day, Riga was hardly buzzing with activity. The city was so empty in fact that I ran into people from my plane several times. By the end of the day, I was a master at awkward, knowing bouts of eye contact. I liked the quiet vibe though, and after a long break from solo travel, having Riga all to myself was really nice. For about an hour, I just walked around the Old Town, which blends together a mix of architectural styles across 500+ buildings. Naturally, this meant that I would go a little snap-happy with photos (as usual). The House of Blackheads was my personal favourite:
There were points when I felt like I had walked into a cartoon…
And by complete accident, I actually stumbled upon the narrowest street in the city, Rozena Street… straight out of a medieval storybook:
The Old Town made for a lovely walk, but when the hunger pangs began to settle in, I knew it was time to shift locations. To settle my rumbling stomach, I knew exactly where I needed to go: Riga’s Central Market (Centraltirgus), one of the largest and busiest markets in Eastern Europe. Housed in repurposed zeppelin hangars, the market is organized into five pavilions selling vegetables, dairy, meat, fish and gastronomy products. I spent over an hour browsing the 3000+ stands of the market, communicating with gestures and simple English to secure myself a delightfully cheap assortment of baked goods. I ended up with a big sack of sweet and savoury snacks for only 2 euros!
Central Market
Riga Central Market
Cheap and delicious goodies
To round off my day, I decided to go on a little walk towards Albert Street (Alberta Ieta) – a street famous for its elaborate Art Nouveau architecture. When researching things to do in Riga, this came up as one of the main “must-sees”, so I was excited to see the street for myself. When I eventually got there (after a 30 minute walk from the Old Town), I admit I was a little disappointed. The street is pretty, don’t get me wrong, but at the end of the day it’s simply a street, with mostly residential buildings. Unless you have a lot of time in Riga, I wouldn’t go out of my way to see it.
Art nouveau!
My little Albert Street jaunt wasn’t in vain though, because the walk there turned out to be a scenic little tour of Riga’s Central District. I got to walk through Bastejkalns Park, see the Freedom Monument and pass by the beautiful Nativity of Christ Cathedral – all major sights within the city.
And after a very long, touristy day, I spent the rest of the evening unwinding in my room at the Bellevue Park Hotel Riga. Tea, pastries and a fuzzy bathrobe might have been involved…
There was honestly no more relaxing way to cap off a day of sightseeing. I mean, look at this magical room:
In all, this trip to Riga was certainly short but sweet. With my limited time frame, I wasn’t really able to explore museums or see Riga in depth, but I suppose it was just enough to give me a taste of the Baltics. No doubt, I hope to be back sometime soon.
Until next time!
xx christina
So have you ever been in Riga, or spent a long layover somewhere awesome? Let me know in the comments!
During this trip, I was a guest of the Bellevue Park Hotel Riga and was provided with free entrance to St. Peter’s Church courtesy of Visit Riga, but as always, opinions are my own.
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Marteen Lane says
Riga looks so beautiful Christina! I have a thing for architecture and you captured the buildings brilliantly. Love it!
https://itsatravelfullife.com
Christina Guan says
Thank you so much, Marteen! I definitely have a thing for architecture as well, especially when it’s as pretty as what I saw in Riga. Cheers!
Doreen Pendgracs says
This is a lovely post, Christina. Your photos have really give me insight into the look and feel of Riga. I’ve never been to Latvia, and like you, have never had a desire to go. But after looking at your post, I am certainly tempted!
Christina Guan says
Thanks for reading, Doreen!! It’s a lovely city for sure. I would love to go back and explore more of the Baltics sometime. There’s definitely value in exploring less touristy cities!
Karla | karlaroundtheworld says
My friend just came from Riga and showed me pictures. Never really knew about this place till she showed me and then now you. It’s really pretty. She also got to experience eating in underground restaurants. I would definitely visit Riga on my next trip.
Christina Guan says
Riga is definitely a bit off-the-radar when it comes to European capitals, but I’m so glad I got to see it! I’m pretty jealous that your friend had some time to explore the city’s food scene. When I go back, that’ll be at the top of my list!
chandi says
Interesting architecture. Nice pictures. Did it seem like a lot of travelers are going there?
Christina Guan says
Thanks Chandi! To be honest, it was quite empty when I went… but that’s likely because March is the off-season for them. I did spot a few other travellers around the main touristy bits, but for the most part, it felt like I had the city to myself, which was very nice 🙂
Cai Dominguez- Travelosyo says
Never heard anything about this place. Thanks for introducing Riga to me. They have an awesome and unbelievable architecture. Hope to visit it someday!
Christina Guan says
I don’t blame you, Cai! The Baltics are definitely less well-known when it comes to European travel destinations. Riga was a really pretty city for sure… I hope you get to see for yourself sometime 🙂
Liesbeth says
Awesome! I had a long layover like this in Moscow once when I was on my way to China. And even though I was exhausted, it was great to be able to get this extra bonus of a day in Moscow! 🙂
Christina Guan says
Ahh I would LOVE to go to Russia someday! Moscow must have been a great city to stop over in. The problem with long layovers is you’re usually left wanting more, but I guess a little time to explore is better than none at all!
Kimberly Erin @ Walkaboot.ca says
oh my gosh, Riga looks fabulous I had no idea. The architecture and colours are so great and it looks really really clean. I could picture myself chillin at a cafe there… very cool
Christina Guan says
Tons of nice cafes and restaurants. I’d like to go back someday for sure 🙂 I feel like I barely scratched the surface with this layover!
Mar Pages says
It does look like a toy town, but beautifully so! A layover doesn’t sound long enough, I always feel like I could spend days just walking around cities are beautiful as Riga. The central market looks stunning too, just check out those desserts!
Christina Guan says
mmm yesss! The pastries at the market were to die for. Crazy cheap too (usually less than 20 cents a piece!)
Anete says
I can’t wait to go back To Riga!!! I was visiting my friend in Talling and we went to a little road trip to Riga and it’s simply amazing! Old Town is like fairytale! They have so nice restaurants there and they make excellent coffee too!
I was lucky to stay in the best Airbnb I have ever stayed in the heart of Old Town and it was simply magical!
My host was simply awesome!!! She showed me so many nice places!!!
I will be visiting my friend in Tallinn next month and we are goinng back to Riga for a week!!!
If you stay in Old Town Airbnb I highly recomend this amazing place:
https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/11887586
Keep up the good work! Love your blog!!!
Christina Guan says
Ooh thanks for the recommendation, Anete 🙂 That AirBNB looks SO lovely!! I wanna go back and do the Baltics properly, so I’ll be sure to keep it in mind. I’m so bummed I didn’t get to experience the coffee scene in Riga because I saw sooo many cute cafes but had so little time haha. Next time I’ll be more thorough 😉 Thanks for reading!
Jamson says
Hi, Christina! Your blog is so nice to read. And pictures… they are really amazing. 🙂 The same like you, I love spending time in Riga. I just came back from this beautiful country and I realized I would love to live there. By the way, if you are planning to come back, try one of this https://baltictours.com/info/tours-in-latvia/ tours. They are really amazing, since the tour itself is planned very nicely.
Pablo says
Great Post and excellent data. Planning a trip and looks like we are having 10 hours (7am to 5pm) in Riga on an AirBaltic layover…so great info above. Did you find it easy to go to-back from the airport? I guess our visit will be short in museums and big in walking, leaving our stuff in the Airport Thanks for the info!.
Christina Guan says
Hey Pablo, yup you can just hop on the #22 bus into the city center! If I remember correctly it only takes about half an hour and is super cheap 🙂