Old Town and Art Nouveau Walking tour with Balsam Tasting

General information

Destination
Riga, Latvia

Program details

Walk along the narrow streets of the Medieval Old Town with our knowledgeable guides. The tour starts from the Town Hall Square- the central square of the city from 13th to 19th century. You will find out why Riga is called the capital of the decorated Christmas tree, where the key of Riga is being kept and much more.


You will have the opportunity to enjoy the architectural pearls from different centuries – from the oldest stone building in Riga dating back to 13th century to our Castle of Light – the National Library which was opened in 2014.


Pay a visit to the biggest churches in the Old Town- St. Peter’s, the Dome Cathedral and St. Jacob’s and find out why their spires are decorated with roosters instead of crosses.


Riga is also proud of its magnificent heritage of Art Nouveau architecture. It was included in the UNESCO World Heritage list by virtue of the outstanding quality and quantity of Art Nouveau buildings, which is unparalleled anywhere in the world. The most significant expression of Art Nouveau architecture in Riga is marked by a wide variety of individual styles.


The walk will lead you through Old Riga to the Art Nouveau district in the quiet centre of Riga which features the creations of the most controversial Art Nouveau architect Mikhail Eisenstein and where each building is worth seeing.


You will have a walk along the famous Albert Street, where Art Nouveau buildings range from richly decorated to modest, from Decorative Art Nouveau to National Romanticism. The buildings are highly decorative yet deeply functional.


Decorated with various symbols and mythological characters, each building tells us a different story. Scary lion and screaming men masks side by side with contemplative women’s faces, mysterious sphinxes, delicately carved flowers, birds and animals- it is easy to get lost in such an abundance of images. Don’t worry-our guides will help you interpret the symbolic content of the decorations and tell you a lot of myths and legends.



Duration: 3 hours.

Languages: English, German, Russian, Spanish, French, Italian, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Polish, Japanese and Chinese.

Others: It includes a Riga Black Balsam tasting and a question-answer session with the guide.