Discover Riga with Liden & Denz

Riga - The Baltic Pearl

Riga, the historic capital of Latvia, is the largest city among the Baltic States and home to a third of the country's population. The city is located at the mouth of the Daugava river in the Bay of Riga. Riga was founded in 1201 and was a member of the Hanseatic League, which linked a number of trading cities on the North and Baltic Seas. Riga and Latvia then came under the rule of Poland-Lithuania and later Sweden. After a siege by Peter the Great, the city fell to Russia, but retained many of its former privileges. At the beginning of the 20th century, Riga was the third largest city in the Russian Empire after St. Petersburg and Moscow.

Occupation

Latvia gained its independence in the aftermath of the October Revolution, but was retaken by the Red Army 20 years later. This was followed by a three-year occupation by Hitler's Germany before the Red Army under Stalin retook all Baltic States. Latvia became a Soviet Republic in 1944.

Independence

The country gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but the large population of ethnic Russians in the capital means that Riga still has a Russian-speaking majority to this day, making it an excellent place to learn Russian. Latvia became a member of the European Union and Nato in 2004 and joined Schengen in 2007. The country adopted the Euro in 2014.

Riga today

Riga's historic city centre is recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and has some of the most beautiful Art Nouveau architecture in Europe. The old town Vecriga, the medieval heart of the city, is home to the widely famous Blackheads' House in the town hall square. Just outside the city is Jurmala, a wonderful seaside resort with wide beaches and pretty parklands - a great place to unwind from the busy city centre.

  • Year of foundation
  • thousand citizens
  • thousand Russian-natives
  • square km
  • sq.km of green space
  • Universities

Discover Riga and the Baltic States with us

The team of Liden & Denz Riga has put together exciting city tours and themed excursions for you. Some of the activities are free of charge, others can be booked for a fee. As our language school in Riga is relatively small, excursions are offered on an ad-hoc basis and only on site. However, our travel department will be happy to help you plan and book excursions of one or more days in the Baltic States.
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Student testimonials
Ayla Opats
The trip to Maslenitsa Festival in Pavlovsk was exciting and informative! I definitely recommend to discover St.Petersburg with Liden & Denz!
Tilly Hicklin
The walking tour was a brilliant way to get to know St.Petersburg and it really gave me a sense of the layout of the city. Our tour guide, Varvara, was very informative and was good at explaining the cultural and historical significance of the attractions. There were also plenty of opportunities for questions and photographs!
Claire Burchett
I went on a couple of tours through Liden & Denz and was really impressed with the standard. The tour guides are super enthusiastic and knowledgeable and there was not one dull moment!