No 50211
Self drive tour Bus tour Public transport tour
Self drive tour Independent travel Latvia

Mara’s Road

Day 1 Berkenele - Daugavpils

Tourist attractions




  • Rainis’ home at Berkenele  - This is the homestead where the distinguished Latvian author and social activist Rainis (1865-1929) spent his childhood.

  • The Daugavpils Fortress  - Found in the western part of Daugavpils and on the banks of the Daugava River, this is almost the only fortress in Northern Europe that has been preserved since the first half of the 19th century.

  • Baznicu (Church) Hill  - This is the highest point in the southern part of Daugavpils where there are 4 churches within 300 m around 18. Novembra Street.

  • The Daugavpils Pellet Factory  - This is a unique example of industrial heritage – the only open munition factory in the Baltic States.














Accommodations Taverns




Distance driving 20 km

You can visit the Daugavpils pellet factory only in the company of a guide.  Register for the tour in advance.


Day 2 Aglona and surroundings

Apskates objekti




  • A commemorative stone at the home of Rainis’ parents  - The stone is in the small village of Vasiļova, which is along the Daugavpils-Rēzekne (A13) road.  The Vasiļova Semi-Estate used to be leased by the father of the great Latvian playwright Rainis, Krišjānis Pliekšāns.

  • The Roman Catholic Church of John the Baptist in Viski  - The church was built of fieldstones between 1908 and 1925 in the Tudor Neo-Gothic style (designed by the Liepāja-based architect Stadmann).

  • The Aglona Catholic Basilica  - This is the centre for Catholicism in Latvia and a destination for pilgrims from all around the world. On August 15 each year, hundreds and thousands of pilgrims arrive in Aglona to celebrate the assumption of the Virgin Mary.  

  • The Aglona Bread Museum  - At this museum, you will learn all about the baking of bread from grain to loaf, and you can make your own loaves, too. 

  • The ”Jasmuiza” Memorial Museum  - Between 1883 and 1891, the estate that was once owned by the Šadurskis family was rented by the father of the great poet Rainis, Krišjānis Pliekšāns.

  • The Juri farm  - You can taste the cheese, milk, clotted milk, buttermilk and other dairy products, watch how they are made, and take part in the process yourself.














Accommodation Taverns












Distance driving 80 km

Today you can visit five of the destinations. Register in advance for a tour of the Juri farm or the Aglona Bread Museum (choosing just one of these destinations). The tour will take at least an hour or two.


Day 3 Feimani - Upseli - Luznava

Tourist attractions
















Accommodations Taverns




Distance driving 25 km

Register in advance to visit Mr Ušpelis, the potter, and Mrs Ušpele, the painter. The visit will take an hour or two.


Day 4 Rezekne and surroundings

Apskates objekti




  • The Volkenberga castle ruins - The Volkenberga Castle was built in the 13th century by the Livonian Order, and it was practically impregnable, as it was on top of Mākoņkalns hill.  These were among the first fortifications in Latgale, and only fragments of the castle remain today. 

  • The potter Evalds Vasilevskis  - He and fellow participants in the school use ancient ceramics methods and techniques, firing dishware in a pit-type kiln and with the smoke technique.

  • Rezekne - "The heart of Latgale", where during the 9th – 12th century stood a fortified Latgalian castle. 

  • The Rezekne Old Believer Prayer House of St Nicholas - Its tower has three silver and brass bells (restored), and one of them is thought to be the largest bell in Latvia (4,832 kg with a tongue that weighs 200 kg in and of itself).

  • The Heart of Jesus Cathedral in Rezekne  - Attention should be paid to stained glass windows that feature images of St Meinhard and Albert.

  • The Rezekne castle hill  - The Rēzekne castle hill is an impressive hillock (15 m) on the right bank of the Rēzekne River. From the 9th to the 12th century, there was a Lettigalian castle here.

  • GORS, The Embassy of Latgale  -  A centre of culture, concert halls, film theatre, a place of residence for artists, an exhibition space for art, a restaurant for the enjoyment of life, a place for experiments with all the senses. 

  • The Roman Catholic Church of the Anguished Mother of God in Rezekne  -  The church honours the Anguished Mother of God, and the central altar is dedicated to her.  Icons in the building date back to the early 20th century.

  • The Rezekne Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity - Today it houses an exhibition, “From Foundations to the Steeple:  Photographs of Ancient Lettigalian Construction Jobs.”  This documents the construction of the church.  The 37 metre steeple offers a good look at Rēzekne.














Accommodations Taverns




Distance driving 40 km

Register in advance to visit Mr Vasilevskis, a potter. The visit will take an hour or two.


Day 5 Rezekne - Ludza

Apskates objekti




  • Mara of Latgale  - Located in the centre of Atbrīvošanas Alley, this statue is a monument to the liberation of Latgale and the unity of Latvia. 

  • The Latgale Museum of Culture and History  - The current exhibition is in a building that used to house the Latgale Central Museum, and it speaks to the 700 years of the history of Rēzekne.

  • The Untumi horse farm - You can learn to ride a horse in the company of an instructor and in a limited area.

  • Leather products and horse tackle at Apkalnmajas  - Here you will find everything needed for horseback riding, including reins, belts, leather sacks, etc.

  • The potter Juris Krompans - The workshop offers ceramics products. You can watch the potter at work and try your own hand at the craft.

  • The Sarkani Catholic Church - The church is famous for a painting of the Virgin Mary which is said to be miraculous. 

  • Ludza - Tourists can look at typical closed yards, verandas, wooden elements and decorations.  

  • The Ludza Regional Research Museum  - On the banks of Little Lake Ludza is a farm with a house, windmill, threshing barn and the workshop of the Lettigalian ceramicist Polikarps Vilcāns.

  • The Ludza Crafts Centre - Here you can examine and purchase crafts by more than 40 Lettigalian craftspeople.

  • The Ludza Catholic Church - A new wooden Baroque church was built in 1738, and because of its colourful interior it became known as the loveliest wooden house of worship in Latvia.

  • The Ludza Orthodox Church - In the centre of the Old City, on the corner of Latgales and Baznīcas streets, the church was built in the style of Russian Classicism between 1843 and 1845.














Accommodation Taverns




Distance driving 40 km

You can visit four or five of the destinations today. Register in advance to visit ''Untumi'', ''Apkalnmājas'' and the workshop of Mr Krompāns, and a visit to each one will take an hour or two. The recommendation is that you choose one or two of them.