Although there were lots of really interesting excursions for Riga a travel friend had told us that this was a walk-able city with an attractive Old Town and lots to do on your own. He was right. We spent our day wandering Riga and had an amazing time in this port city.
It was a short walk from the pier where we were docked to the Saint Christopher statue. From there we crossed the
main street and entered the Old Town. It was easy to navigate with the handy, well laid out tourist map that was provided as we disembarked which included its own recommended walking tour. They could not have made it any easier for us.
The Old Town is surrounded by green space, which was the former city walls. You can easily exit the Old Town to see adjacent sites such as the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia, the Christ Orthodox Cathedral, the Art Nouveau Museum and lots of shops and restaurants.
We stayed inside the Old Town for the better part of the day enjoying Parliament Buildings, cathedrals and the unique architecture of the “Three Brothers” and Jacob’s Barracks. We ended up in the park near the Freedom Monument where we joined a Canal Boat Tour aboard “the art nouveau style boat Darling of 1907”, a beautifully restored canal boat. There was a recorded commentary which was helpful because the Captain could not speak English. He did know Canada though because he has a brother in Toronto which practically made us the best of friends.
The boat took us through the city by canal, past the Central Market and out into the Daugava River where our ship
was docked. We were able to get a great view of the very impressive National Library of Latvia. To see the contrast of medieval architecture on one side and the best of modern on the other was a highlight of the tour. For more information on this canal tour visit https://rigabycanal.lv/en/. Tickets were only €18 for adults for a 1 hour tour, and we highly recommend it.
We continued our walking tour past Riga’s St.Peter’s Church and the Blackhead’s House towards Riga Dome Cathedral located in Domas Square. The buildings were all open to explore and worth the time to do so. Along they way we shopped for souvenirs, had a coffee break and enjoyed the easy pace.
This was the first time I had found the port of Riga in Latvia on a Baltic cruise itinerary. It should be a staple. Now that St. Petersburg will not be a standard stop for the forseeable future I do hope that cruise lines include this port, along with a few others we will talk about in future articles.
If not be sure to include Riga in your travels. It is an easy to navigate, friendly city that will surely be one of your favourites too.