All places

Latvia’s most important Catholic pilgrimage centre: an Italian Baroque basilica built in 1768–1780 and consecrated in 1800. In August thousands of pilgrims come for the feast of the Assumption; the grounds are large and include a spring.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

In winter and early spring, icefalls up to 10 m tall form on the rocky banks of the Amata, the biggest usually near the Vizuļu and Dzilnas rocks. Depending on minerals in the water the ice is white, clear, yellowish or even pink. The trail is free, with free parking at the Melturi and Veclauči bridges.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on Lake Bābelīte in Riga. Awarded a Blue Flag for 2026. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

A three-day Christmas fair at the Ķīpsala exhibition hall that bills itself as the largest in the Baltics: free entry, free creative workshops in the “Rotaļnīca Quarter”, an inflatable park and the Baltic Food Zone. In 2026 it runs 11–13 December.

A 42 m monument unveiled in 1935 in honour of the soldiers who fell in the War of Independence, by sculptor Kārlis Zāle. The granite, travertine and copper composition is crowned by a woman holding up three stars, and it is a symbol of Latvia’s freedom and independence. An honour guard stands at its foot.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on Lake Būšnieki in Ventspils. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on Lake Ciecere. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Riga. Awarded a Blue Flag for 2026. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

The main Orthodox church of Daugavpils, with room for 5,000 people. It stands on Church Hill in the Jaunbūve district next to Catholic, Lutheran and Old Believer places of worship — four faiths side by side is a Daugavpils hallmark.

An early-19th-century fortress whose construction began in 1810 by order of Tsar Alexander I ahead of Napoleon’s invasion. It is the only fortification of its kind and age in Northern Europe to survive without significant changes; the Mark Rothko Art Centre is within its walls.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

A 33.5 m viewing tower in Dzintari Forest Park with 12 platforms at different heights; from the top you look out over the pine tops to the sea horizon. Free to visit; open daily 9–22, during the park’s hours.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on the Lielupe in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Latvia’s highest point, 312 m above sea level in the Vidzeme Upland near Madona. The unfinished observation tower was demolished in 2012 and a small replica now stands by the flagpole; in winter the hill has ski slopes.

Latvia’s largest national park (about 918 km²), along the ancient valley of the Gauja from Sigulda to beyond Cēsis, established in 1973. Sandstone outcrops and caves such as the Ērgļu cliffs, the river valley, trails and castles make it ideal for hiking and canoeing.

A fishing village from the late 19th and early 20th centuries at the foot of Raga Dune: a net shed, a dwelling house, a granary and a fish-smoking hut, plus a large collection of anchors and fishing boats. On Thursdays in July and August there are rope- and net-making masterclasses and fish smoking. Tue–Sun, free entry.

A quarter of restored 19th-century wooden houses across the river. On Saturdays 10:00–16:00 there is a market of local producers and craftspeople with free workshops for kids, and seasonal festivals bring concerts, exhibitions and open-air plays.

A Byzantine-style Orthodox cathedral with gilded domes in Liepāja’s Karosta district, built in the early 20th century for the Russian Empire’s naval port. One of Latvia’s four Orthodox cathedrals and the landmark of Karosta’s skyline.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on the Daugava in Riga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Baltic Sea. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

The northern tip of the Kurzeme peninsula on the Livonian coast, where the Baltic Sea meets the Gulf of Riga. The two waters collide here, so swimming is dangerous, but watching it from the shore is impressive; in spring and autumn the cape is one of the best bird-watching spots.

Official bathing site on Lake Kovšu. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Riga’s Orthodox cathedral in Esplanāde park, built in Neo-Byzantine style in 1876–1883 to a design by Nikolai Chagin and Robert Pflug. In Soviet times it housed a planetarium; today it is a church again, with gilded domes and a richly decorated interior.

The Latgale liberation monument “United for Latvia” in central Rēzekne, unveiled in 1939; it was made by sculptor Kārlis Jansons to a design by Leons Tomašickis. The Soviet authorities pulled it down and it was restored in 1992; it is a symbol of Rēzekne and of all Latgale.

A wooden boardwalk across the raised bog in Ķemeri National Park: the short loop is 1.5 km (about an hour) and the long one 3.5 km (about an hour and a half), leading to an observation tower. The boardwalk is free; the car park, about 800 m away, costs €3 for the first hour (Mobilly). Not wheelchair accessible, slippery in rain, and snow isn’t cleared in winter.

Official bathing site on Lake Lielais Stropu in Daugavpils. Awarded a Blue Flag for 2026. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Baltic Sea in Liepāja. Awarded a Blue Flag for 2026. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

An 8 km white-sand beach with a Blue Flag every summer since 2001, lifeguards, and access for people with visual and mobility impairments.

Official bathing site on Lake Limbažu Lielezers in Limbaži. Awarded a Blue Flag for 2026. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on Lake Lubāns. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on the Daugava in Riga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

The ruins of a Gothic Livonian Order castle in the centre of Ludza, built on the site of an older Latgalian wooden castle as an eastern outpost guarding trade routes. Impressive fragments of wall survive, one of them three storeys high, and the hill looks out over Ludza’s lakes.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site on the Venta in Kuldīga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga in Jūrmala. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Gulf of Riga. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

A lit 3.5 km cross-country trail in Mežaparks plus the paths around it. Equipment rental at Kokneses prospekts 39; the park is open around the clock, with cafés nearby.

A 12 km cross-country trail through the hills between Ikšķile and Ogre; a 10 km section is lit from October to mid-March. At the park’s highest point stands a 30 m viewing tower with views as far as Riga; rest areas and rental on site.

Official bathing site on the Lielupe in Jelgava. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.

Official bathing site: a beach on the Baltic Sea. The Health Inspectorate tests the water regularly during the bathing season.