Private Jet to Riga

Riga is Latvia’s capital and largest city, and until recently, it was also the largest city in the Baltic States. This lively city is the main transport hub for the Baltics and has a youthful, trendy vibe. It’s famous for its preserved Art Nouveau architecture and its Song and Dance Festival. This five-yearly festival is UNESCO-listed as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Riga sits on the banks of the Daugava River. Its city center is around 9 miles from the Gulf of Riga on the north coast. Daugavpils, Latvia’s second largest city, lies in the south-east close to the Belarus/Lithuania border.

Riga is home to over 600,000 people—around a third of the Latvian population. About a third of its residents are Russian, and nearly half are Latvian. Ukrainians, Poles and Belarusians make up the majority of the remaining population. The official language is Latvian, but Russian and English are widely spoken too.

Riga has frequent autumn rains, and chilly winters, with an average winter temperature of −5 °C (23 °F) and lows of −25 °C (−13 °F). Snowy periods can last weeks or months. However, summers are mild, with an average temperature of 18 °C (64 °F) and highs exceeding 30 °C (86 °F).

The city’s young, hip vibe is at least partly due to its student population. Riga is home to Riga Stradiņš University, Riga Technical University, the University of Latvia, and Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music, which has produced many world-class performers.

Riga has numerous hiking and cycling trails, traveling along the river and over its bridges, or through the city’s parks, forests of Biķernieku and Šmerlis, and Piejūra coastal nature park. Visitors can also enjoy paintball, laser tag, go-karting, trampolining and tennis. The charming river island of Lucavsala and nearby coastal resort of Jūrmala offer swimming and plenty of outdoor recreation space.

Cultural and historical highlights include:

• the UNESCO-listed Old Town, with its narrow cobblestone streets lined with shops, restaurants, and clubs. The surrounding canal was once the castle moat. Riga Castle, dating from 1330, still stands, along with many other medieval buildings such as merchants houses and the 13th-century Riga Cathedral. There’s also the rebuilt 14th-century House of Blackheads and buildings with Jugendstil facades, dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

• the National Opera House

• Alberta Street, for the best of Riga’s 800 preserved Art Nouveau buildings

• the preserved wooden houses in the Kalnciema Quarter

• the Freedom Monument

• St. Peter’s Church, with Riga’s highest spire

• Museums and galleries, including The Riga International Biennial of Contemporary Art (RIBOCA) and the National Museum of Art

• Riga Central Market on the river bank

• the many restaurants and street food outlets, reflecting Riga’s multicultural and trendy food scene