Riga Itinerary: Build Your Perfect Trip - She is Lost Around the World

I’ve been to Riga three times and spent more than two months there, so I don’t think you need me to tell you exactly what time to wake up, where to have lunch, and when to move on to your next attraction.

Instead, this Riga itinerary gives you the things I’d actually consider doing and lets you build your own trip around them. You can pick the places and activities that interest you, skip the things you don’t care about, and decide how much you want to pack into each day.

I hate following rigid itineraries myself, so this is much closer to how I’d actually plan a trip to Riga.

Planning your trip to Riga? Start Here!

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🎟️ Book the best tours and activities

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Build your Riga Itinerary: Things to Do in Riga

Riga Old Town

If it’s your first time in Riga, I’d make the Old Town one of the main parts of your day. This is where you’ll find many of the city’s most recognizable buildings, and you can see several of them without spending your entire day going from one attraction to another.

You don’t need to visit every single sight. Pick the ones that interest you and spend some time wandering around the streets between them.

Things you can see in Riga Old Town:

House of the Blackheads
St. Peter’s Church
Riga Cathedral
Three Brothers
Town Hall Square
Swedish Gate
Powder Tower
Dome Square

If you want to learn more about the history instead of just looking at the buildings, a walking tour is an easy option.

→ Book a Riga Old Town walking tour

Riga Central Market

I’d also put the Central Market on a Riga itinerary, particularly if you like food. It isn’t somewhere I’d just rush through for ten minutes. You can spend some time looking around the different market halls, seeing what people are buying, and then stop for something to eat.

It’s also a good place to try some Latvian food without having to plan an entire restaurant meal around it.

Things to look for:

Rye bread
Smoked fish
Local cheeses
Pickles
Meat products
Fresh produce
Pastries
Latvian snacks

If you want someone to take you around the market and explain what you’re eating, you can also book a food tour.

→ Book a Riga food tour

Riga’s Art Nouveau Architecture

Riga is known for its Art Nouveau architecture, so this is worth adding if you’re interested in buildings and architecture.

You don’t need to dedicate half a day to it. I’d simply include it while you’re exploring central Riga and walk through the main streets to see the buildings.

Places to include:

Alberta Street
Elizabetes Street
Strelnieku Street
Art Nouveau district
Riga Art Nouveau Museum

If you really like Art Nouveau, you can spend more time in the area or visit the museum. Otherwise, walking through the streets and seeing the buildings is enough for me.

Freedom Monument & Riga’s Parks

The Freedom Monument is another easy stop to add because it’s close to the Old Town and several other central sights.

I’d combine it with the surrounding parks rather than making a separate trip just to see the monument.

Things you can see nearby:

Freedom Monument
Bastejkalna Park
Esplanade Park
Vērmanes Garden
Latvian National Opera

This is a good section to add when you’re moving between the Old Town and the Art Nouveau area.

Take a Riga Boat Tour

If you want to add an actual activity to your Riga itinerary, I’d consider a boat tour.

It’s an easy way to see the city from a different perspective, and you don’t have to give up an entire day to do it. Depending on your schedule, you can also choose something during the day or make it part of your evening.

Boat tour options include:

Riga Canal cruise
Daugava River cruise
Sunset cruise
Evening boat trip
Private boat tours

I’d especially consider this if you’re only in Riga for a day or two and want to add something that isn’t just another sightseeing stop.

→ Book a Riga boat cruise

Try Latvian Food

If you’re visiting Latvia, you should actually try some Latvian food rather than spending your entire trip eating whatever you could find at home.

You don’t need to turn it into a complicated food itinerary. Add a few traditional dishes to your meals and see what you like.

Foods to look for:

Grey peas with bacon
Rye bread
Pīrāgi
Smoked fish
Potato dishes
Cold beet soup
Sklandrausis

You can try these at restaurants, markets, bakeries, or through a food tour.

If you’re particularly interested in food, I’d choose the food tour and let someone else introduce you to the local dishes rather than trying to research everything yourself.

→ See Riga food tours

Experience Riga at Night

I’ve spent plenty of nights in Riga because I lived there for work for months, so nightlife was part of my normal experience of the city rather than something I specifically planned as a tourist.

If you’re only visiting for a few days, I’d still leave at least one evening free to go out. The Old Town has plenty of places where you can have drinks and continue your night from there.

Options for your evening:

Old Town bars
Cocktail bars
Pubs
Clubs
Live music
Pub crawls

If you’re traveling solo and want to meet people, a pub crawl can be an easy way to do that.

→ Book a Riga pub crawl

Spend a Day in Jūrmala

If you’re visiting Riga in summer and want some time away from the city, Jūrmala is probably the easiest addition.

I’ve stayed in Jūrmala myself, and it feels completely different from Riga. You’re going from a city break to a beach and resort area, so it works well if you have an extra day.

Things you can do in Jūrmala:

Spend time on the beach
Walk along Jomas Street
Explore the resort area
Have lunch
Visit the Dzintari area
Go to a spa
Stay overnight

I wouldn’t stay in Jūrmala if my main purpose was exploring Riga, especially on a first visit. But if you have extra time, it’s a good way to see a completely different side of the area.

Take a Day Trip to Sigulda & Gauja National Park

If you’d rather spend your extra day in nature, Sigulda is another option.

This gives you something completely different from spending another day sightseeing in Riga. You can explore the area, see the castle and spend time around Gauja National Park.

Things to see and do:

Sigulda
Gauja National Park
Turaida Castle
Gutman’s Cave
Gauja River Valley
Forest trails
Cable car

This is the option I’d choose if you’re getting tired of city sightseeing and want to get out of Riga for a day.

→ Book a Sigulda day trip

Visit the Hill of Crosses

This is a much more unusual option, but if you’re already traveling around the Baltics, you can use your time in Riga to see something in Lithuania too.

The Hill of Crosses is in northern Lithuania and makes sense as a longer day trip rather than something to squeeze into a few hours.

You can combine the trip with:

Hill of Crosses
Rundāle Palace
Jelgava
Other stops in southern Latvia or Lithuania

It’s a long day, so I’d personally look at an organized tour rather than trying to make the whole thing work with multiple connections.

→ Book a Hill of Crosses tour

Take a Day Trip to Another Country: Riga to Tallinn

And then there’s the option that is much more my style: use Riga as part of a much bigger Baltic trip.

If you’re already in the region, you can travel from Riga to Tallinn and turn your trip into a two-country adventure instead of treating Riga as an isolated city break.

Your options include:

Riga → Tallinn by bus
Organized Riga–Tallinn day trip
Stay overnight in Tallinn
Continue through Estonia afterward

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend doing Tallinn as a day trip to everyone because it’s a long day.

But if you’re trying to see as much as possible in a short trip, it’s absolutely something you can do.

And yes, I’ve traveled through the Baltics by bus myself, so this is much closer to how I’d actually travel than spending three days following a perfectly timed sightseeing schedule.

→ Find Riga to Tallinn transport

How I’d Build My Riga Itinerary

You definitely don’t need to do everything on this list. That’s the whole point.

If you have limited time, I’d start with the Old Town and then add the activities that actually interest you.

If you have one day in Riga

I’d focus on the city itself:

Old Town → Central Market → Freedom Monument → Art Nouveau → Boat Tour

You can read my full One Day in Riga itinerary if you want a more specific plan.

If you have two days in Riga

I’d use the first day for the main sights and then make the second day more flexible.

Day 1: Old Town → Central Market → Freedom Monument → Art Nouveau → evening in Riga

Day 2: Choose between Jūrmala, Sigulda, more Riga sightseeing, food experiences, or a boat tour.

→ Read my 2 Days in Riga itinerary

If you have three days in Riga

This is where I’d start adding a day trip rather than trying to cram more and more attractions into Riga itself.

Day 1: Riga Old Town + Central Market + central Riga

Day 2: Riga activities + food + nightlife

Day 3: Jūrmala or Sigulda

Or, if you’re feeling particularly chaotic:

Day 1: Riga
Day 2: Tallinn
Day 3: Hill of Crosses

That second option is definitely not the itinerary I’d give someone who wants a relaxed holiday. But if you’re like me and would rather see three countries than spend three days sitting in the same city, it’s an option.

→ Read my 3 Days in Riga itinerary

Getting to Riga

Riga is easy to add to a wider Baltic trip, whether you’re arriving by plane or traveling overland.

I first arrived in Riga from Lithuania by bus, and I traveled through Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia entirely by bus.

Ways to get to Riga:

Fly into Riga International Airport
Take a bus from Lithuania or Estonia
Travel from other European cities by bus
Use Riga as a stop on a wider Baltic trip

→ Find buses to Riga

If you’re flying into Riga and don’t want to figure out public transportation after landing, you can also book an airport transfer.

→ Book your Riga airport pick-up

Where to Stay in Riga

For a first visit, I’d stay in central Riga near the Old Town.

That’s where I’d base myself if the main purpose of the trip was exploring the city. You can get to the main sights easily, and you’ll also have restaurants, bars and nightlife nearby.

I’ve stayed in different parts of Riga during my visits, including hostels, central hotels and near the airport. Where you stay really depends on what you’re doing.

Here are 4 accommodation options I’d recommend, according to your budget:

Backpacker: Blue Bird Boutique Hostel – Riga Old Town
Budget: Ibis Riga Centre
Mid-Range: Wellton Riverside SPA Hotel
Luxury: Grand Palace Hotel – Small Luxury Hotels of the World

→ Find my favorite Hotels in Riga: The 6 Best Hotels in Riga Latvia

If you’re traveling on a budget, I also recommend looking at hostels.

→ Find my favorite hostels in Riga: The 5 Best Hostels in Riga, Latvia

Stay Connected in Riga

I normally use an eSIM when I travel instead of buying a physical SIM card every time I arrive somewhere new.

For a short trip, having mobile data is particularly useful because you’ll probably be using maps, checking transport, booking tours and looking things up while you’re out exploring.

→ Get an eSIM for Latvia

Travel Insurance

I recommend having travel insurance whenever you travel internationally, even if you’re only going to Riga for a few days.

You don’t need to overcomplicate this. Just make sure you have coverage for the things that could actually cause problems during your trip, such as medical issues, travel disruptions or lost luggage.

I use SafetyWing for my own long-term travel, so that’s the option I normally recommend.

→ Get travel insurance for Riga

Final Thoughts

There isn’t one perfect way to build a Riga itinerary.

You can spend your entire trip exploring the Old Town and central Riga, add a boat trip or food tour, spend a day at the beach in Jūrmala, head into nature around Sigulda, or completely ignore the normal city-break itinerary and start crossing borders into the other Baltic countries.

That’s how I’d approach Riga. Pick the things you actually want to do, put them together in whatever order makes sense, and don’t feel like you have to see every attraction just because it’s on someone else’s itinerary.

If you want a more structured plan, use my One Day in Riga, 2 Days in Riga Latvia, or 3 Days in Riga Latvia itineraries instead.