Voyage to Riga: A Romantic Journey for Two

Join us on our journey as we explore the charm of Riga. We weave through its cobblestone streets and embrace its romantic ambiance. From quaint cafés to historic landmarks, our adventure unfolds in the heart of Latvia’s capital city, promising unforgettable moments and cherished memories

The 14th of February 💕 – Valentine’s Day, a romantic holiday. The question arose: where is the best place to conduct it? Without hesitation we decided – Riga. By the way, exactly a year ago we were in Tallinn on the same day. We can consider that such a romantic trip is becoming a good tradition.

It’s better to plan in advance, so already in mid-January I started planning the trip and looking at accommodation and deciding on transport, as well as planning a cultural program. But first things first.

Trip plan

The trip lasted days:

• February 14 – we left Vilnius in the morning, spent half the day in Riga
• February 15 – Riga
• February 16 – we return back to Vilnius

Accommodation

The first thing I always start planning trips with is accommodation. Why? Firstly, it depends on where exactly we will be and what there is to see nearby, and secondly, if we do not find suitable accommodation, then the trip itself will not make sense, that is, there will be a question of rescheduling the dates.

To search for accommodation, I use two services – Booking.com and AirBnb.

Briefly, what are the differences:

• There are only apartments on Airbnb; if you need to look for housing for a family (4-5 people), then it’s better to start here
• there are quite a lot of options for both apartments and hotels on Booking, and for Genius travelers (I already have level 3) there are many discount programs and bonuses.

But I usually look both ways, for me the main factor is the cost of housing that meets my criteria (more on them below). If you book a lot and often, then each time the services will offer you more interesting options, including prices.

So about the criteria, what are they for me?

• Budget -the very first criterion, because Each trip is determined by its budget and I know exactly how much I am willing to pay for one night. I immediately set a filter by price and then select based on other criteria. Here, of course, I note that I am roughly focusing on the average price range, where there are always many options.
• Rating – on booking I look for options with a rating of at least 8.5, on airbnb – at least 4.8
• Reviews – in any case, even if the rating is the highest, I look at reviews and especially with low ratings, very often you will immediately understand what exactly is wrong with the housing option and what to expect (I had a situation when the rating was 10, but in fact it’s good if it’s 3-4, but the owner just begged everyone for ratings, that’s why it’s 10, because many people apparently just couldn’t refuse)
• Location – if by car, then in principle you can even outside the city, but most importantly in a good area (on the Internet you can find a lot of information about each of the districts of any city), if by bus / plane – somewhere closer to the center.
• Kitchen – we almost always travel as a family, so it is important for us to have a full kitchen so that we can prepare food. Therefore, I immediately look (photo, description) at what is in the kitchen – from my criteria it is a (must have) microwave, stove, refrigerator and electric kettle.

In principle, I already look at everything else individually for each option, I just open one by one and evaluate the description, photo and the like.

But let’s get back to the topic of travel! ☺️

So, what did I choose in Riga this time:

•  Because we’re goin by bus, we chose one closer to the center so that we could go to the center on foot and walk to the nearest attractions
• I found the right option on Booking
• We were traveling without children, so we found the option of a small and cozy apartment, with kitchenware, all amenities and at a price of 30-35 euros per night

The reality coincided with the expectation, which we were very, very happy about!

I highly recommend this option, the support was also at the level and we received answers to all our questions.

Transportation

This time I decided to try the option of taking a bus to get to Riga and back (from Vilnius). Why? I’ll write in a little more detail.

1. The cost of renting a car in Vilnius (Sixt) for 4 days is 125 euros + fuel (70-80 euros based on 800-900 km, that is, to Riga and back, plus trips in Riga). Total – 200-210 euros.
   • It is also important to take into account that a deposit will be taken from you for the duration of the trip, for example 200 euros, which will be returned (if there is no damage to the car) 1-2 days after the trip
2. The cost of round trip bus tickets is 51 euros
   • At the same time, I choose from three companies – Flixbus, Ecolines and LuxExpress. For me, the most convenient and affordable option was LuxExpress, but it very much depends on the dates and time of the trip. I chose a trip to Riga in the morning and back in the afternoon.
3. In Riga, if necessary, you can use car sharing (CityBee, CarGuru), as a result, I ended up with 45 euros for two days.
4. What’s the result?
   • Car rental – 200-210 euros
   • Bus + car sharing – 90-100 euros.

You see the difference 😀

A little more about car sharing in Riga:

1. Citybee – many cars, you can always find an option, prices from 0.12 euros per minute and 19.99 per day + 0.26-0.32 euros per km.
   • I immediately took a package for 1 day + 50 km, but taking into account visits to selected locations, I ended up with 90 km, the total was 45 euros
2. CarGuru – there are a lot of cars, but they appear and disappear very quickly, so I never managed to use this service, although the prices are cheaper
   • from 0.09 per minute and 0.20 per km + different packages for long time rent

My option in this case is CityBee; by the way, I use this service all the time in Vilnius, so everything was familiar and went well. I found a Renault Kaptur to move around – comfortable, warm, drives, and what else do you need? )

Trip schedule and interesting places

And of course, now about how exactly we spent a wonderful three days in Riga.

Day 1 (February, 14)

We leave Vilnius at 9 am and are already in Riga at 1 pm. We got there quickly and comfortably, and watched a movie on the way.

Upon arrival, we walked from the bus station to the apartment (10-15 minutes), which was very convenient. We settled down, rested, and it was time for the festive dinner.

I chose in advance a restaurant with a themed interior, where it would be cozy and comfortable for the two of us to sit and have a delicious meal. This restaurant turned out to be Mio:

• A very cozy and interesting interior, which seems to be created for romantics
• Delicious cuisine, good selection of dishes and wine list
• Not far from home, we just walked literally 5 minutes

We were not mistaken with our choice, but… This was the first item on the program for the holiday, then the holiday was a success!

After such a delicious and romantic lunch, it’s time to take a romantic walk.

The weather, of course, is not the best (February after all!), but we had a great walk to the center of the old city, walked along the streets of old Riga, went to St. Peter’s Cathedral and unexpectedly listened to beautiful music on the violin.