Latvia
Latvia stretches from the Art Nouveau streets of Riga to the beach resort of Jūrmala, the fortress city of Daugavpils, and the windy port of Liepāja. The currency is the euro. Latvian is the official language, with Russian widely heard in the east.
- Currency
- Euro (EUR)
- Language
- Latvian
- Capital
- Riga
Cities
Riga
Riga is a Hanseatic port on the Daugava, with a compact old town and one of Europe’s richest streets of art nouveau. Most of a first visit fits between the cathedral, the market halls, and the parks along the canal.
Jūrmala
Jūrmala is a string of beach resorts along the Gulf of Riga, pine woods behind a long sand shore and wooden houses with carved eaves. Majori and Dzintari are the part most visitors mean. The train from Riga is the sensible way in.
Daugavpils
Daugavpils is Latvia’s second city, a Russian-speaking industrial town on the Daugava with a huge 19th-century fortress and a hill of four churches. It is not a resort. The fortress and the Rothko centre are the reasons to come.
Liepāja
Liepāja is Latvia’s western port, a windy city with a famous organ, a long beach, and the old naval quarter of Karosta out along the shore. It feels further from Riga than the map suggests. Coaches, not a frequent train, are the ordinary way in.