Good news for those heading over to Riga for a stag weekend this summer: there will be a packed schedule of festivals and events to get involved with whilst you are out there. The summer season kicked off last weekend with the popular Yaga Festival, essentially a gathering of 112 DJs and several thousand fun-loving locals in an isolated ‘dream island’ setting. Sounds pretty sweet to us! The biggest festival in the Baltics that has been quickly gaining a foreign following is Positivus and this took place last weekend too, headliners including Keane, SBTRKT and Friendly Fires.
But enough about the past, if you are about to embark on that all-important Riga stag do then you’ll want to know about what’s coming up! Greenfest City Edition 2012 will be taking place a short hop away in Tallinn and apparently is an up and coming festival aimed at young dance and pop enthusiasts. A two-day shindig, headliners this year include Tinie Tempah and I Blame Coco.
Away from the festival side of things all of Riga’s best pubs, bars and clubs continue to do a roaring trade and there’s plenty of areas to relax in the sun with a few beers. Chief amongst them is the I Love You Bar in the Old Town. With its large outdoor seating area and cheap local beer it is extremely popular with stag parties and locals alike. In addition to the top booze, their pizzas aren’t too shabby either. According to one local who I spoke to, there is ‘no better place for a Margherita (or any other pizza) in the Old Town’. Sounds like a bold claim to us, but who are we to argue with a born and bred local lad?!
Do send us your photos if you are heading out to Riga this summer as we’d love to see what you got up to! Pictures of semi-naked women are actively encouraged, of course.
I think the ferry trip can be quite nice. There should be ice cevoring the sea during February/March so I guess ice breakers open the way daily for the ferry. That means you don’t need to go far away to North to see some icy things.It’s a bit on and off with the snow in the city. Yesterday we didn’t have any snow, today it’s very snowy again and so on.If you like skating or cross-country skiing, you can try that. There are skating ring and skiing place very near the city centre (in different places). You can rent the stuff there. Skating ring is open every day, no matter if thereis snow or not. Skiing demands some snow.I really like walking around the city and sightseeing. Best areas are (in my opinion) in the Southern Center (Eira, Punavuori, Katajanokka) because those places have really nice architecture. There are also bars and cafes in Punavuori.One good sight is possible the fortress of Suomenlinna. it’s not a real castle but there are old ruins and walls and good atmosphere. The fortress is on an island in the front of the city centre and you can take the boat from market square.Remember to take lots of winter clothes (I hope you have them cause they are expensive). It’s really windy near the sea and that means the weather can be freezing.