Latvia - Transport In and Around

City Transit

On a rainy day, you don’t nec­essarily want to find yourself on a Latvian bus, jam-packed with umbrella wielding passengers. But Riga’s transit system is functional, comprehensive and simple to use.

Riga traffic gets worse by the year. Traveling at rush hour—by bus, car or any mode—is a pain in the proverbial behind.

On the Road

It’s probably something of an understatement to say that Latvian roads are treacherous. The real culprits are the drivers. Many are rude, death-defying, and willing, it sometimes seems, to run down innocent pedestrians without blinking. After a few days in Latvia, it should come as no surprise to you that this country has one of the highest traffic death-tolls in the world. It’s also now illegal to use your mobile and drive at the same time.

Boats

Riga’s ferry terminal is located outside the city center on Eksporta 3a (A-3), tel. 6732-6200. Riga is sorely lacking a huge range of ferry services, inexplicably since Tallinn has 20 or 30 ferries running daily from its harbors. There is a ferry line from Riga to Stockholm with departures every other day; tel. 6720-5460; booking@rigasealine.lv; www.rigasealine.lv. There’s also a ferry line to Lübeck (four times a week); Latlines, at Zivju 1, tel. 751-9880; www.latlines.lv.

Planes

For airport information: tel. 6720-7009; www.riga-airport.com

Aerosweet: Airport, tel. 6720-7502. Flights to Kiev. www.aerosvit.com

Air Baltic: at the airport, tel. 6720-7777; and at Elizabetes 85a; www.airbaltic.lv

Aeroflot: Gertrudes 6, tel. 6727-8774; www.aeroflot.ru.

Austrian Airlines: tel. 6750-7700. www.austrianairlines.lv

British Airways: Torna 4, tel. 6732-6737; at the airport, tel. 6720-7097; www.britishairways.com.

CSA (Czech Airlines): Airport, tel. 6720-7636; www.czech-airlines.com

Easyjet: from Riga to Berlin. www.easyjet.com

Estonian Air: Aspazijas 22, at Riga Hotel; tel. 6721-4860; at the airport, tel. 6720-7458. www.estonian-air.ee

Finnair: at the airport tel. 6720-7010; Barona 36, tel. 6724-3008. www.finnair.com

KLM: Airport, 3rd floor, tel. 6766-8600.

Latcharter: Airport, tel. 6720-7398; www.latcharter.com

LOT: Maza Pils 5, tel. 6722-7234, and at the airport, tel. 6720-7113. www.lot.com

Lufthansa: Airport, tel. 6750-7711. www.lufthansa.com

Ryanair: flies from Riga airport; www.ryanair.com

SAS: Kalku 15, in the old city, tel. 6720-7777. Airport, tel. 6720-7055. www.scandinavian.net

Buses and Trains

Central Train Station: Stacijas laukums, tel. 6583-2134. www.ldz.lv. Riga has daily train service to Moscow and St. Petersburg. Every other day there is a train to Vilnius (uneven days) and to Gomel in Belarus (even days). Once or twice a week, there is a train to Lviv in Ukraine. Train service unfortunately still has a strong Soviet flavor. For an overnight train, you can book a bed in a compartment. There also is a local electrical commute train service.

Bus Terminal: Pragas 1, near the central market, tel. 9000-0009. With the deterioration of train service in Riga and the rest of the Baltic states, bus service has taken over. There are comfortable buses to major cities in the east and in the west.

Ecolines: Pragas 1, at the bus terminal, tel. 6721-4512; ecolines@ecolines.lv. Their buses service many destinations all over Germany, Moscow, Amsterdam, Brussels, Antwerp, London, Paris, Lille, also Kiev and Odessa in Ukraine. www.ecolines.lv.

Eurlines: Pragas 1, at the bus terminal, tel. 6721-4080 agency@eurolines.lv, www.eurolines.lv. Their buses have direct service to Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne and many other destinations all over Germany; to St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kaliningrad and other destinations in Russia; and to Lithuania and Estonia. Tickets sold at bus stations and travel agencies.

Nordeka: Dzirciema 121, tel. 6746-4620, nordeka@nordeka.lv. They have bus service to Tallinn, Klaipeda, Kaliningrad, Kaunas, Minsk, Warsaw, Belostok and St. Petersburg; local routes, too. www.nordeka.lv.

Car Rentals

Avis: At the airport, tel. 6720-7353; or Krasta 3, tel. 6722-5876; avis@avis.lv; www.avis.com

A.G.G.: Ieriku 86 tel. 6759-7298; agg@riga.mail.telia.com. Good rates. www.carrental-agg.lv

Budget: Airport, tel. 6720-7327. www.budget.lv

Car4rent: Caka 52-14, tel. 6731-6185, mob. 2966-6000. 24h service. www.car4rent.lv

Europcar: At the airport, tel. 6720-7825; or Basteja 10, tel. 6721-2652. www.europcar.com

Hertz: Aspazijas 24, tel. 6722-4223, hertz@hertz.lv. At the airport, tel. 6720-7980; airport@hertz.lv

National Car Rental: At the airport, tel. 6720-7710. 24h service tel. 2921-7535.

Sixt: Kalku 28, tel 6722-4022. At the airport, tel. 6720-7121, fax 6720-7131; www.sixt.lv

Tulika Rent: Ganibu dambis 24a-612, tel. 2642-6836; www.tulika.lv

Travel Agents

Atlas Tours: Brivibas 74, tel. 6731-3667, office@atlas.lv; www.atlas.lv

BTI TAS Travel Agency: Raina 21, tel. 6781-4040; also in Reval Hotel Latvija, Elizabetes 55; tas@tas.lv. www.tas.lv

Latvia Tours: Kaleju 8, tel. 6708-5001; hq@latviatours.lv. www.latviatours.lv

Rigas turisma agentura: Aspazijas 28, tel. 6722-0368; www.rta.lv

TP Travel: Alberta 8; tel. 6729-3361; tpriga@latnet.lv.

T.U.I: K. Barona 28, tel. 6724-2429; info@tui.lv; www.tui.lv

Student and Youth Travel Bureau: Lacplesa 29, tel. 728-46818; info@sycb.lv.

Via Hansa: Alumana 3, tel. 6733-8638; www.viahansa.com

Via Riga: Kr. Barona 7/9, tel. 6728-5901; vr@viariga.lv; www.viariga.lv.

How Far Is It?

Riga to Tallinn-305 km
Riga to Vilnius-300 km
Riga to Helsinki-392 km
Riga to Warsaw-654 km
Riga to St. Petersburg-570 km
Riga to Berlin-1226 km
Riga to Stockholm (by sea)-440 km

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