Latvia

Understand

History In the ancient and medieval world, the territory of today's Latvia was known for its particular significance to commerce. The famous route from the Vikings to the Greeks mentioned in ancient chronicles stretched from Scandinavia through Latvian territory, along the river Daugava, to the Kievan Rus and Byzantine Empire. In the 12th century, German traders arrived, bringing with them missionaries who attempted to convert the pagan Finno-Ugric and Baltic tribes to the Christian faith. The Germans founded Riga in 1201, making it the largest and most powerful city on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea during the Late Middle Ages. After gaining independence in 1918, Latvia achieved considerable results in social development, economy, industry and agriculture. On 16 June 1940, Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov presented the Latvian representative in Moscow an ultimatum, accusing Latvia of violating a pact and conspiring against the Soviet Union. The Soviet forces invaded Latvia soon after and "People's Governments" were formed to provide a legal backing for a complete takeover, followed by Latvia being incorporated into the Soviet Union on 5 August 1940. Nazi Germany occupied the country the following year, ruling Latvia until the Soviet Red Army reoccupied the country in 1944. Both Nazi Germany and the USSR under Stalin were extremely brutal and murderous during their rule: the Nazis and their local collaborators murdered over 90,000 Latvians, including 75,000 Latvian Jews, while the Soviets, also having local collaborators, threw well over 90,000 Latvians into Siberian Gulags, from which many never returned, and had many thousands arrested locally, with many being shot or tortured. During the time of the Iron Curtain, when Latvia was a province of the So

Getting there

Visas Latvia is a member of the Schengen Agreement. See Travelling around the Schengen Area for more information on how the scheme works, what countries are members and what the requirements are for your nationality. In summary:

There are normally no immigration controls between countries that have signed and implemented the treaty; there may be such controls temporarily, such as in connection with important events and various crises. The operators may carry out identity checks before passengers board international flights, ferries or trains, even between Schengen countries. Citizens of the EEA countries and Switzerland do not need visas to travel in the Schengen area, and may stay up to 90 days with no requirements other than having a valid ID card or passport. See European Union#EEA citizens. Normal visas granted by any Schengen member are valid in all countries that have signed and implemented the treaty (with exceptions for some overseas territories). The granting country may offer additional rights (such as longer stays or right to work) that apply only locally.

By plane

Riga International Airport (RIX IATA) is the only airport in Latvia with regular international flights and is 10 km southwest of Riga. Bus 22 operates on a route from the airport to the centre of Riga (and vice versa), a ticket from the driver costs €2. Alternatively, you can buy yellow e-tickets (for 1, 3 or 5 days) from the Narvesen kiosk just outside the airport. Various other methods of transport are available on-site such as taxis. Alternatively, you can fly to Kaunas in Lithuania and take the Flybus to Riga.

By train The Estonian company Elron operates one daily train each way between Tallinn, Estonia and Riga (via Tartu and Valga). Elron also operates two daily trains from Tallinn

Getting around

In Latvian, the word for street (as in street names) is iela. An example is Brīvības iela which is translated as Freedom street.

By car

National and regional roads in Latvia have been through a process of update since the accession to the European Union. All national roads are paved and are signposted in red with numbers from A1 to A15. Most of the national roads are also part of the European route grid of roads. 84% of the regional roads are paved and they are signposted in blue with numbers from P1 to P133. 78% of local roads are gravel roads and they are signposted in grey with numbers from V1 to V1489 — on maps, but not necessarily on the roads. The only motorway in Latvia is a 12-km stretch of the A7 around Ķekava, opened in 2023. Some national roads ar