The Liv Coastline is inviting you!

The farm is located in the north-west of Latvia, which was historically inhabited by Livonians and, nowadays, is often called the Livonian coast.  Farm is one of the first homes in Kolka, 1.2 km from Kolkasrags, the furthest northern point of Courland separating the Baltic Sea from the Gulf of Riga.

The owner of the farm demonstrates the way in which the traditional Northern Kurzeme dessert that is a carrot bun and is known as a "sklandrausis" is prepared. Sklandrausis is registered in the EU food quality scheme as a product with traditional speciality guaranteed. Hikers can take a tour to see the industrial history of Kolka, complete with theatrical elements and tasting of Latvia’s best sprats.

Latvian cuisine: Porridge with fried onions and meat, kefir, herbal teas.

Special foods: Carrot buns.

This is one of the oldest Livonian villages, recorded in documents for the first time in 1387.  The old road from the Dundaga Estate to Sīkrags existed in the Middle Ages.  During the 17th century, Sīkrags was one of the most important small ports in Northern Kurzeme, receiving ships from England, Holland and Lubeck that carried coal, grain and other products.  Before World War I, there were five sprat smokehouses in the village, and some 55 fishermen lived there during the 1920s and 1930s.  Among those to have been born in Sīkrags was the Livonian cultural activist Hilda Grīva (Cerbaha, 1910-1984), seafaring captain Kārlis Anbanks (1884-1937), Baptist preacher Kārlis Lāceklis (1904-1970), linguist and tradition specialist Pēteris Dambergs (1909-1987), and graphic artist Baiba Damberga (b 1957).  Today the village is a cultural monument of national importance.  It is crossed by a bike route, with a commemorative stone where the narrow-gauge railroad station once stood.  Sīkrags, like neighbouring villages, is in the Slītere National Park.

The Miķeļbāka lighthouse was built in 1957 and is the highest one in Latvia.  Standing 58 m tall, it can only be viewed from the outside.

Summer cafe "Divjurinas" is located at Kolkasrags, open from May to October.

This is about 30 km long territory between the Baltic Sea and the Kolka-Ventspils road. It begins at the mouth of the Irbe River and ends at Ovišrags. The territory was mostly established so as to protect dry coniferous forests, grey dunes, damp areas among the dunes, other landscape features and plants and animals in the area. Distinctive landform - kangari and vigas - and grey dunes are Europe-wide significant habitat. Tourists love the sandy and quiet beaches of the area, as well as the Miķeļbāka and Ovīši lighthouses (it is possible to visit Oviši lighthouse and museum in it) and the Lutheran Church at Miķeltornis. There are also certain leftover elements of the Soviet military system, former narrow gauge railway (railway embankment, former train stations marked by memorial stones etc.) which unfortunately are not used as tourism resources.

 A long village stretching along both banks of the Lūžņa River.  In 1937, there were 36 houses and two boat piers here.  During the 1860s, ships were built here, but during the Soviet occupation, there were military bases there.  During the 1930s, the village was visited several times by the Finnish linguist Lauri Ketunen and Estonian student Oskar Lorits.  They were working on a Livonian dictionary.  Another resident of Lūžņa was the first Livonian artist, Jānis Belte (1893-1946).  The "Dēliņi" fisherman's homestead has been transferred to the Latvian Ethnographic Open-Air Museum and can be seen there.

Visitors can help to smoke fish, including plaice, bream and garfish, taste the resulting food and listen to stories about seashore fishing traditions. The homestead also features some 20 type of shoreline fencing that are typical of the so-called Liv Shore.

The trail reveals one of the rare bluffs of the Gulf of Riga – the Ēvaži Bluff (up to 15m high, a beautiful scenery opens from its watching platform) and the seashore forests. The trail starts from the main road and crosses a biotope “Wooded dunes of the coast” (according to Habitats Directive, Annex II), which is frequently observed by the sea. One can climb down the stairs to an extraordinary beach with narrow seashore and Black Alders growing almost in the sea. There are occasional puddles which make shelter for Natterjack Toad (Bufo calamita), a protected amphibian. Deeper pools are inhabited by three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), they are food for fish-eating birds. In the second half of the summer, Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna) can be observed in the sea.

About two kilometres to the South, there is Melnsils, one of the Liv fishing villages, famous for the stories about a channel which was once dug to drain coastal lakes into the sea, as well as about Trommel, the chief of robbers. The trail is in the Slītere National Park.

Guest House & Campsite "Pizā" is located in Kurzeme region, close to Miķeļbāka lighthouse. Guest house can accommodate 20 people, there are 7 rooms. Available place for tents in camping area, picnic tables and bonfire places.

This village appears in historical documents from 1310.  A census in 1582 and 1583 recorded eight farms in the village, while a 1731 census conducted by the Dundaga Estate found only three.  In 1826, each farm had 16 or 17 people, with some 60 in total.  A census in 1935 showed that all 49 Livonians in Saunags spoke the Lithuanian language, but only 11 of them spoke the language at home.  There was a store that was owned by Kārlis Tilmanis, who also owned a factory where sprats were salted.  Also born in Saunags was the seafaring captain Arvīds Ludeviks (1912-1996).  In May 1945, he captained a tugboat, the Rota, in an attempt to bring Latvian refugees to Sweden.  The ship was detained, and the captain was sent to Siberia.  Another seafaring captain from Saunags was Visvaldis Feldmanis (1938-2017).

By the sea, between Kolka and Ventspils. Cottages, 50 places for trailers, 1000 places for tents. WC, bonfire places with firewood, barbecue, tables, sports grounds, childrens' playgroung, car parking. In the season, a cafe is open offering beer and snacks. Meal services upon prior request.   

Atrodas Dundagas centrā, Talsu un Pils ielas krustojumā. Bistro tipa ēdināšanas uzņēmums, ko iecienījuši vietējie iedzīvotāji un pilsētas viesi.

"Valgums" is a word referring to the sandy coastline zone between dunes and water, and once there were boats and nets that were being dried at this location.  Each village had several areas of this type, and in the 1920s and 1930s, these were of great importance in the preservation of the Liv language.

Guest house in Dundaga town. A cafe-restaurant on the 1st floor, TWIN and 4-bed rooms on the 2nd floor. A room for partying. During the summer, the cafe is also open at the car park at Cape Kolka, offering fish soup and carrot buns.

One of the largest castles in Kurzeme, this building has been preserved in fairly good shape.  Work on its began in the mid-13th century, and it was commissioned by the heads of the Dome Cathedral in Rīga.  In 1434, the estate was bought by the bishop of Kurzeme.  The Maidel and Osten-Sacken dynasties owned it from the 16th to the 20th century.  The Dundaga Castle burned down twice and has been rebuilt many times.  The last reconstruction was in 1905, after the castle was burned down during the revolution.  Of interest on both sides of the castle’s door are stone carvings of a knight and a bishop.  In recent years, the hotel in the castle has been renovated, as has the second floor hallway and a terrace that is popular for weddings.  There are many legends about the castle, including one about a wedding of elves and another about the Green Lady.  Today the building houses the Dundaga School of Music and Art, a hotel, party rooms, the Dundaga Tourism Information Centre and various exhibitions.  It is worth finding a guide to tour the castle.  Groups of tourists can also order tastings of local foods.

was first mentioned in written form in 1582.  A census in 1736 found two farms, Lekši and Žonaki.  A census in 1935 found that there were 106 people in Vaide, including 40 Livonians, 60 Latvians and a few Estonians and Germans.  In 1939, there were 21 homesteads in the village.  Nika Polmanis (1823-1903) was born at the Lāži homestead.  He was the first educated Livonian and lived in the region for all his life.  Livonian poet Alfons Bertholds (1910-1993) wrote a poem about a noble oak tree that grows alongside the homestead.  The vast Berthold family is linked to Žonaki -- Livonian storyteller Marija Šaltjāre, yacht captain Andrejs Bertholds (USA), his son, library scholar Artūrs Benedikts Bertholds (USA), Livonian poet Alfons Bertholds, Livonian language specialists Paulīne Kļaviņa and Viktors Bertholds, Swiss doctor Marsels Bertholds, globally renowned pianist Arturs Ozoliņš (Canada), and Livonian language storyteller and poet Grizelda Kristiņa (1910-2013), who was the last native speaker of Livonian.  The Ozolnieki homestead is also linked to the Bertholds family.  Paulīne Kļaviņa (1918-2001), a specialist in the fields of Livonian traditions and language, and her mother, Livonian storyteller Katrīna Zēberga, both lived there.  Paulīne collected ethnographic objects that can be seen at the Latvian Ethnographic Open Air Museum in the granary of the Livonian Dēliņi farm.  The Purvziedi homestead in Vaide is owned by forest ranger Edgars Hausmanis, who has a collection of forest animal horns and antlers.

is the second oldest navigation structure in Latvia and the only one that is five kilometres from the shore, at the upper edge of the ancient Lake Baltic Ice.  Since 2000 the lighthouse has not served its initial purpose, and now it is the home to the Nature Education Centre "Slītere" of the Slītere National Park.  The centre offers exhibitions about lighthouses in Latvia and the history of the Baltic Sea.  From the upper floor (102 m above sea level) one can see the coast of Saaremaa (approximately 33 km away).  Alongside the lighthouse is the 1.2 km Šlītere nature trail. 

This is the most distinct cape in Latvia, with the waves of the Baltic Sea and the Bay of Rīga coming together.  During storms, the waves can be as much as 7 metres high.  The cape is an underwater shoal that stretches to the Kolka lighthouse, which is 5 km away.  It is on an artificial island that was created between 1872 and 1875.  When the island became stable, the 21 m lighthouse was installed in 1883.  Manufactured in St Petersburg, the lighthouse became operational on July 1, 1884.  Today the island contains the building for the supervisor of the lighthouse, several ancillary buildings and an impressive fog bell.  A monument to men lost at sea that was sculpted by Ģirts Burvis is on Cape Kolka, as is a wrecked wooden ship, presumably from the 19th century.  There is also a rock that is known as the “heart of Europe,” because the Latvian folklorist Krišjānis Valdemārs believed that the cape was the centre of Europe.  There are stands with information about Valdemārs, and the Latvian Border Guard uses facilities that were once in the hands of the Soviet Coast Guard.  Cape Kolka is an important place for migrating birds during the season, and it has a visitor centre and a summer café.  There are unusual pines on the beach that were washed onto it during storms.  Under the water around the cape is the largest ship graveyard in the Baltic Sea.  It is a dangerous place for swimmers because of changes in the flow of water and shifting sands.  At the end of the cape are the ruins of an old lighthouse that was built in the 18th century and lost during the latter half of the 19th century.

Kolka Evangelical Lutheran Church. A story has survived of one Danish trader saved in a shipwreck at Kolkasrags who in gratitude built a church in Kolka. The church had changed its location for three times in Kolka. The foundation of the church visible nowadays and built of boulders was laid by Karl Ludwig Ferdinand von der Osten-Zaken, the former owner of the Dundaga estate. It was built instead of the wooden church (or close to it) which was heavily damaged during the Crimean War. The first construction works were started in 1885 by the construction foreman Otto Sievert (Architect: T. Zeiler). In the Soviet time, the church was vandalized and it was used as a warehouse. It is worth to see the modern- style altarpiece
(a donation of the artist Helen Heinrihson) which does not have a counterpart in any other church. Before in its place there was placed a cross.
Kolka Orthodox Church. Data on the Liv turning to orthodoxy are provided by a document found in the tower of the Kolka Orthodox Church (see also below) during restoration works (the nineties of the last century) that was placed there during building of the church in 1885. It says that the Liv turning to orthodoxy or the so-called emperor's faith "has nothing to do with the religious belief but it is a means to get the earthly benefits or pleasures." In 1885, the orthodox congregation purchased land from baron Osten-Zaken. In 1890, a church, priest's house and school building were built on it. All the buildings have survived until now. The church has its own congregation and worships are held once a month. Information is found that Kolka is the only Liv coastal village where in the nineties of the 19th century there was built an orthodox church. The church bell is place "occupied" in 1936. In the Soviet time, the Church was used as a chapel but nowadays it performs its original role.

Atrodas iepretim bākai. Saukta arī par Pizes (Miķeļtorņa lībiskais nosaukums) baznīcu. To uzcēla 1893. g. Padomju laikā ēkā bija izvietots pionieru nometnes klubs. Tagad tā atkal kalpo savam pamatmērķim.

The Ance Estate was built for Ulrich Johann von Behr by his father as a gift.  The estate was once surrounded by an ornate French garden.  Beginning in 1766, the building was rebuilt and ornately decorated.  Around 1810, French soldiers occupied the mansion and caused much damage to it.  For that reason, the second floor was torn down a bit later, and extensive renovations were conducted to adapt the estate into apartments for the manager and his civil servants.  In 1920, the estate was taken over by the state.  

The lady of the house will teach visitors to bake carrot buns and talk about the history of the pastry. The workshop of a craftsmanship group offers a look at the work of craftsmen and a chance to try the crafts yourself.

A country house near Dundaga. A room for celebrations with a firelplace (for 30 people), a sauna with a swimming pool and a tub. Bedrooms with WC and shower. On the lawn there are places for  tents and a campfire. A small island for the moorage of boats in the Dundaga pond. Driving trips by an army car GAZ – 66. 

This is an ancient populated area.  There were 50 homesteads here during the 1930s, with only ten remaining in 1990.  The Livonian scholar and entomologist Kārlis Princis (1893-1978) was born in Oviši.  In 1944, he emigrated to Sweden.  The Oviši lighthouse (1814) is 38 metres high and is the oldest functioning lighthouse in Latvia.  There are lovely views from the top of the lighthouse.  The building in which employees of the lighthouse used to live was erected in 1905 and has been preserved.  A narrow-gauge train station was in the building at one time.  The Oviši Lighthouse Museum is nearby, as is the metal Tree of Austra.  Opposite Cape Oviši is a great place for bird watching. 

Was mentioned in 1387, where it was called Domesnes.  That was the name until the early 20th century.  A ledger at the Irbe-Ģipka church states that there were four farms in Kolka in 1770 -- Krogi, Ūši, Vecvagari and Kabriki.  In 1844, a school for vergers was established, and Nika Polmanis worked there as a teacher.  Kolka's first school was built in 1881, and Livonian Kārlis Bernšteins (1881-1951) worked there for nearly half a century as a teacher.  The Dundaga riots that began in 1859 were led by Livonian Nika Šūbergs (1833-1884), the son of the owner of the Sārnasti farm.  At the end of the 19th century, there were 392 residents in Kolka, and in 1935, 145 of the 343 residents were Livonians.  During the mid-1980s, 13 Livonians spoke their language freely.  Kolka is the only coastal Livonian village that continued to develop during the frontier regime of the Soviet Union, because it was the centre of a fishing kolkhoz.  The number of residents increased rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s because new homes, a school, a people's centre, a kindergarten and several fish processing factories were built there.  Today Kolka has 700 residents and is the largest village along the Livonian coastline.  The "Līcis-93" fish processing factory is there, and local fishermen and smokers of fish work in the village.  The Kūolka Livonian Centre and the Livonian ensemble Laula operate there, as well.  The Ūši farm offers tastings of Livonian foods.

Jaunciems has always been a small village, and only a few homes are populated today. Nearby there are leisure locations on the right bank of the Irbe River. Jaunciems is linked to Sīkrags by the former tracks of the narrow-gauge train. There is also a bridge for hikers and bicyclists.

The Slītere National Park (established in 2000) is known, with good reason, as an open-air museum which shows the historical development of the Baltic Sea. Nowadays evidence of geological events is seen in the Blue Hills of Slītere, which stand 20 to 30 metres high above what was the shore of the Baltic lake of ice 10,000 years ago. The Stiebri hills were former 8,000 or 9,000 years ago, while the Littorina Sea formed Europe’s largest set of dune ramparts and damp hollows between those ramparts. This occurred between 4,000 and 7,000 years ago. The gentle climate of Northern Kurzeme is the reason why so many rare plants are found in the park – some 860 in all including Common Yew (Taxus baccata) and Baltic Ivy (Hedera helix var. baltica). Of certain value in the preservation of these treasures was the Soviet military machine, which has left behind army bases and other military objects in the area. The presence of the military meant that the area of what is now the Slītere National Park remained largely undisturbed for 50 years. The park includes one of the most popular tourist destinations in Latvia – the Cape of Kolka, which is visited by more than 50,000 travellers each year. During the spring migration of birds, more than 60,000 birds cross the cape each hour. Along the shore of the Baltic Sea is the so-called Livonian coast, which stretches from Kolka to Sīkrags and Ovīši. Fishing villages and other cultural objects established by the world’s smallest ethnic minority, the Livonians, can be found here. Tourists will enjoy interesting four nature trails, bicycling routes, viewing tower, etc. The visitors centre is located at the Slītere lighthouse. Administration of National park is organising environmental education events on regular basis open to everyone.

Хозяин создал специальный комплекс курсов и процедур, которые посвящены здоровому образу жизни. Обучение для групп, массажи, лекции, практические занятия и т.п.

Ģipka is a village that once was the site of the first maritime school in Kurzeme.  It was opened in 1869, just a few years after a similar school in Ainaži.  This was a Category 2 maritime school, which trained helmsmen for long-distance trips and captains for short-distance trips.  The school was moved to Mazirbe in 1894.  Before the maritime school, the building housed a different kind of school, and a second floor was added in 1867 specifically for the maritime school.  Today this is a residential building.  During 28 years, the school trained more than 200 professional sailors, and it was of great importance in facilitating ship building in shoreline Liv villages. (Source: Roja TIC)

Stūrīši is a homestead owned by the Taisel family, offering a collection and a chance to taste Liv foods: fish soup, porridge, sprat sandwiches, pastries, etc.

To the East of the Ezermuiža-Dūmele road you will find the bed of the ancient Lake Dieviņezers.  It was one of the largest lakes in Kurzeme in the past, being 7.5 km long and 1.6 km wide.  A canal was dug in 1838 (Melnsilupe River today), and the water from the lake was siphoned to the sea so as to create fertile farmland. Residents of Ezermuiža have been involved in forestry work since the age when barons ruled the land.  Dūmele is connected to Košrags by a lonely forest road that is known as the Bottom Road.  A bike route runs down it.  The Ziedkalni weekend house is in Dūmele. The "Ziedkalni" homestead in Dūmele offers spa services, cod fishing and accommodations.

The museum was established in 1954 and features the traditions of Latvian and Livonian fishermen, sailors and farmers and their lives and residences.  There are fishermen’s homesteads with net huts, smokehouses, granaries, etc.  There is a collection of fishing boats and the largest assemblage of anchors in the Baltic States (more than 100 anchors, the heaviest one weighing 22 tonnes).  The windmill was transported from the Užava Parish.  The 19th century Smiltnieki home features authentic household objects.  The newest thing at the museum is the Lielirbe Baptist Prayer House, which is nearly 100 years old.  A narrow-gauge railroad runs down the 1.3 km Mountain line from May 1 to October 31 every year, and at its end is its turntable.  The building of the museum was designed on the basis of the Mazirbe train station.  The museum is in the Jūrmala park, with playgrounds for children and the Anchor trail.

This is one of the most important destinations in Northern Kurzeme, offering a wealth of information about the history of the region and the shoreline, its cultural and historical values, the building of sailing ships, fishing traditions, local residents and their work and achievements.  The museum was opened in 1968, and right now it has permanent exhibitions about Krišjānis Valdemārs, the Roja maritime school and the building of sailing ships in the 19th century.  There is also information about the history of fish processing from the 19th century to the present day, the Liv Shore, and the Soviet contributions toward the development of the coastline.  The museum features three women from Kurzeme from different historical periods – Mildiņa, who is a simple fisherman’s wife, Mrs Pauliņš from the era of sailing ship building, and Anna Petrovna from the Soviet era.  The three women offer attractive information about objects that are not exhibited at the museum, also displaying the naughty sense of humour that people in Kurzeme have. (Source: Roja TIC)

This small log cabin is in a quiet place by the forest at Dūmele in the Dundaga Administrative District.  It is on the edge of the Slītere National Park and 7 km from the sea.  The cabin offers four rooms, a living room, a kitchen and a sauna.  Sauna services, SPA procedures, classical massage, a special Dūmele plant massage, and other services are available.  You can go fishing and then smoke your catch.  We lease out boats and bikes.  You will be able to pick berries and mushrooms in peace and quiet, thus relaxing both in mental and in physical terms.

This is an artificial body of water that was dug in the 1960s to obtain ice for fish processing plants in Kolka.

The Hostel „Vītoli” is situated 3 km from the Cape Kolka, where the Riga Bay meets the open sea – the Irbe Strait, within the territory of the Slītere National Park. Offer light and cosy double rooms to guests, also a two bedroom option for a family. There is a fire place to spend a chilly evening  at with a cup of hot tea or coffee. In case you would wish to prepare a light meal – there is a kitchen with a gas stove, a fridge and some essential dishes. There is a common shower and WC. A home terrace with tables, a grill and a campfire in the yard, tables for lunch, and room for five or six tents.

This village is at the place where the Irbe (Dižirve, Īra) River flows into the sea, and it is on both shores of the river (sea side and land side).  The name of Irbe was recorded for the first time in a 1310 border agreement between the bishop of Kurzeme and the Rīga Dome Capitol.  The name of Lielirbe (Irvemūnde) was recorded for the first time in a document from an arbitration court in 1387.  At the end of the 19th century, the small port at Lielirbe was an active centre for the sale and transport of timber materials.  In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the largest number of sailing ships among villages on the western shore of Kurzeme was built there.  In 1939, the village had some 300 residents, more than 70 houses and a Baptist church which is now at the Ventspils Open Air Museum.  A narrow-gauge railroad passed through the village, which had a post and telegraph office, two grocery stores, an elementary school, a choir and a brass band.  Lielirbe was one of the largest villages to disappear after World War II.  Cultural historian Valda Marija Šuvcāne (1923-2007) was born in Lielirbe, and her daughter, Baiba Šuvcāne, is continuing her mother's work by writing important papers about life along the Livonian coastline.  By 2019, a bridge is to be reinstalled across the Irbe River.