Explora Journeys in Riga

Riga is the largest city in the Baltic states and a UNESCO-listed center where a medieval Old Town sits next to the densest concentration of Art Nouveau architecture in the world. It earns the day on contrast alone: cobbled guild squares and church towers within a short walk of the pier, and a few streets north, blocks of facades crawling with stone faces, lions, and sphinxes. Standard ships dock within an easy walk of the Old Town.

What to do on a day in Riga

• House of the Blackheads, the rebuilt 14th-century guild hall with its red-brick facade on Town Hall Square
• St Peter's Church, with an elevator to a 72-meter observation deck over the rooftops and the river
• The Three Brothers, the oldest group of stone dwellings in the city, showing three centuries of building side by side
• Alberta iela, the Art Nouveau street designed largely by Mikhail Eisenstein, the showpiece of a city with more Art Nouveau than any other
• Riga Central Market, five former Zeppelin hangars now full of smoked fish, bread, and local produce
• Bastion Hill park and the Freedom Monument, marking the edge of the Old Town toward the boulevards

Getting ashore

Standard and premium ships use the central Riga Passenger Terminal, a flat 5 to 15 minute walk past Riga Castle into the Old Town. The largest ships instead dock about 9 to 10 miles downriver at the KS cargo terminal, requiring a 35 to 40 minute shuttle or Bolt ride. One day handles the Old Town and the Art Nouveau quarter on foot; the market and Alberta iela are a 15-minute walk north.

When to book the ship's excursion vs your own →

Weather and when to visit

• June. Mild and long-lit, with highs around 20 degrees C and cool evenings. Rain falls roughly one day in three, so a packable shell is sensible.
• July to August. The warmest stretch, with highs around 22 degrees C and lows in the mid teens. Pleasant for walking, with occasional showers and the wettest of the summer rainfall around 80 to 85 mm.
• September. Cooler and crisper, with highs near 17 degrees C and shortening days. Generally comfortable for walking with a light jacket.