A Partner’s Guide To Riga

Chris' guide to Riga for partners (whilst their other half is having surgery)

After you’ve been met and greeted at the airport, you’ll be taken to the hotel, which is fairly central in Old Town. Directly opposite is a branch of Narvesen (Norwegian supermarket chain) and although quite small, is well stocked with snacks, drinks etc.

There are also usually quite a few electric scooters parked outside (but I’ll come on to transport them shortly).

We arrived quite late and we were quite hungry, so downloaded the Bolt Food app (think Uber Eats) ordered in to the hotel – if you add your room number in the comments, they’ll bring it up to you.

There is another Bolt app, which is for booking taxis, cars, and scooter hire.

Travelling around Riga

Riga is pretty flat so travelling around and sightseeing is pretty easy. You can use the aforementioned Bolt app to book taxis or to scan and hire an electric scooter (20 cents per minute) and even a car.

I wasn’t brave enough to hire the scooter (maybe next time!) so instead bought a Rigas Satiksme five-day travel card. It costs only 10 Euros and gives you unlimited travel on the buses, trains, and trams in and around Riga for five days – absolutely brilliant.

The clinic itself is only about 20 minutes away by tram, with a short walk first (turn right out of the hotel, go down the underpass and turn right, then right again and you’ll catch the number 7 tram – Kengarags). The stop you get off at is called Krasta Masivs and it’s literally just outside the clinic itself, very handy!

Your food options in Riga

There is quite a diverse choice of cuisine in Riga, although they do love their meat and fish.

If you’re on a budget then I’d recommend ‘Street Food Points’ which is just over the river. I had a chicken panini and chips with onions and bacon, along with a drink it came to about £8 and I was stuffed!

For an evening meal, I’d recommend ‘LIDO’ which is a chain of cafeteria-style restaurants, including one very close to the hospital so if you’re visiting it’s handy – I went with my wife for her ‘last meal’ before surgery.

After that, it’s a case of taste – there’s the usual McDonalds, Subway, Burger King etc plus Hesburger (a Finnish burger chain).

Riga’s nightlife options

There’s a vibrant nightlife in Riga, with plenty of bars – many have music and the beer and cocktails are very reasonable (about 4 Euros for a beer and 8 for a cocktail).

I spent last night in the Rock Café, which is about 8 minutes walk from the hotel – there’s also a really cool Australian bar just next to the hotel, the bar itself resembles a cutaway camper van and there’s outdoor seating.

Sightseeing in Riga

There’s so much to see in Riga and if you have a couple of days to kill then I recommend any of the following, all within walking distance:

• Museum of Modern Art
• The History of Medicine Museum
• The Freedom Monument and Riga sign
• St Peter’s Church
• The House of the Black Heads

And if you have the travel card / Bolt taxi:

• Mezaparks
• Riga Forest Cemetery
• Jurmala – a lovely beach