Backpacking in Latvia: Notes from Riga
Reposted: March 31 2021
Riga, capital of Latvia, the biggest city in the Baltics, home to about 700,000, a third of the country's population. The 'old town' is a UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE and around 800 buildings are of Art Nouveau style which is what people come to see!
But as nice as it is, being a tourist exhausts me. Best to be a traveller, wander without a plan and finding joy in what you come across!
But as nice as it is, being a tourist exhausts me. Best to be a traveller, wander without a plan and finding joy in what you come across!
Room with a view. 6th-floor hostel. Not the best but very conveniently located and cheap:
This is what 'lived in' Riga still looks like, not the tarted-up version:
New and old trams in Riga:
Quiet streets after the night before:
Transport:
Getting from Estonia to Latvia:
Lux Express, possibly the most well-known bus operator in the Baltics, run 13 services a day, from Tallinn to Riga in Latvia, the first at 6 am, the last at 22:30.
Lux Express also run 4 services a day between Tartu and Riga but the times are shit
Tallinn/Tartu to Riga by train
You can now travel from Tallinn to Riga by train. It's quite a long day and you have a 3 hr layover in Valga, the border town.
The ELR1 train leaves Tallinn at 08:13 and takes 2hr 5 to get to Tartu and costs 12€. The ELR1 gets to Tartu and continues as the ELR33 to Valga. Weird eh!
I took just the ELR33 train from Tartu to Valga for just 4.90€ and a Latvian train to Riga for just 5.60€. A 10€ saving on the Lux Express bus service though the whole ride is just 4 hours. Shame Latvia can't organise the connection better ( re 3-hour wait).
The Latvian train departs from the Estonian side of the border in Valga, not the Latvian side, the town there is referred to as Valka. Platform 2 at 14:38. Takes 3 hrs.
And in my 3-hour wait, I wandered into the Latvian side of town and found a bus station. The options here are not quicker or cheaper than the train.
A new, old sign at a small alleyway border crossing from Estonia to Latvia. Border towns do offer the traveller something different. Something that brings the tourist no joy:
Getting from Estonia to Latvia:
Lux Express, possibly the most well-known bus operator in the Baltics, run 13 services a day, from Tallinn to Riga in Latvia, the first at 6 am, the last at 22:30.
Lux Express also run 4 services a day between Tartu and Riga but the times are shit
Tallinn/Tartu to Riga by train
You can now travel from Tallinn to Riga by train. It's quite a long day and you have a 3 hr layover in Valga, the border town.
The ELR1 train leaves Tallinn at 08:13 and takes 2hr 5 to get to Tartu and costs 12€. The ELR1 gets to Tartu and continues as the ELR33 to Valga. Weird eh!
I took just the ELR33 train from Tartu to Valga for just 4.90€ and a Latvian train to Riga for just 5.60€. A 10€ saving on the Lux Express bus service though the whole ride is just 4 hours. Shame Latvia can't organise the connection better ( re 3-hour wait).
The Latvian train departs from the Estonian side of the border in Valga, not the Latvian side, the town there is referred to as Valka. Platform 2 at 14:38. Takes 3 hrs.
And in my 3-hour wait, I wandered into the Latvian side of town and found a bus station. The options here are not quicker or cheaper than the train.
A new, old sign at a small alleyway border crossing from Estonia to Latvia. Border towns do offer the traveller something different. Something that brings the tourist no joy:
The Valga to Riga train:
Eco Lines run night buses straight thru to Riga from Narva 23:55/07:00.
Getting from Latvia to Lithuania:
You can find more options for bus travel throughout the Baltics on Info Bus. This is a ticket agency, not the bus company so there is a mark up on all tickets but its listings are comprehensive.
So armed with the time table, go the day before to the bus station and buy your ticket. Or book online with the relevant bus company. Prices vary with departure time and the company running the service. I paid a steep 17€ booked the day before. Middle of the day for convenience.
Getting from Latvia to Lithuania:
You can find more options for bus travel throughout the Baltics on Info Bus. This is a ticket agency, not the bus company so there is a mark up on all tickets but its listings are comprehensive.
So armed with the time table, go the day before to the bus station and buy your ticket. Or book online with the relevant bus company. Prices vary with departure time and the company running the service. I paid a steep 17€ booked the day before. Middle of the day for convenience.
This post has been rewritten for Nomadic Backpacker and is based on my travels to the Baltics in 2018
