Historians say that the Livs or Livonians lived in the territory of Latvia long ago, starting in the 10th century.  They populated Northern Kurzeme and the river banks of the Daugava and Gauja rivers.  They asked the first German tradesmen who appeared in the area about the price of textiles at the market in Visby.  This means that they were familiar with the island of Gotland.  The Livonians were courageous and spiritually strong seafarers, because only strong men can live with the sea, go fishing and seal trapping, and take root in the by no means fertile sands of the seashore.

The territory between Ģipka and Ovīši is known as the Livonian coastline.  There are still romantic seashore fishing villages of Livonian origin, as well as Cape Kolka, where the great Latvian activist Krišjānis Valdemārs insisted that it was the centre of Europe.  Livonians all along the seashore responded to his call by taking part in building sailing ships all the way up to Ainaži, where there was a maritime school.  That allowed the ships to sail to the far corners of the world, thus creating a century of sailing ships.  This wasn’t possible without the Livonians.  Also on the coastline are the oldest lighthouses in Latvia, with the one at Ovīši still serving as a star that shows the route for seaborne ships that are heading for Rīga.

The Livonian heritage is also seen in the tradition of fishing for lamprey eels – something that is still very much in place in Carnikava, Svētciems and Salacgrīva.  Old-time fishing equipment that cannot be seen anywhere else is on display in the latter town.

The Latvian nation emerged when the Livonians flowed together with the Lettigalians, the Livonians joke.  It may be that there is some truth in the anecdote.  Liv or Livonian culture, lifestyles and history are closely linked to Latvia and cannot be separated from it.

Одна из самых красивых деревянных церквей Южной Латгалии. Построенный из бревен и обшитый досками храм строился в период с 1750 по 1751 гг. Сохранился алтарь работы XVIII века (резьба по дереву, барокко) и проспект органа, а также более 30 предметов, имеющих художественную ценность. Во дворе церкви в XIX веке построена колокольня. В направлении озера Рушонс построен деревянный пасторат.

This is one of two sanatoriums in Jūrmala where mud from the surrounding area is used for medical procedures.  The Jūrmala Spa Museum of History was opened here in 2009, and it offers interesting information about the history of the spa and the sanatorium.  You will see historical photographs and medical equipment from the 1970s and 1980s.  Guides will tell you all kinds of interesting information.

A small producer that grows strawberries on the farm, smokes and marinates fish Estonian style. Here, mead and house wine is also made, as well as various meat products.

This grand hiking tour includes some of the best and most beautiful parts of the Forest Trail in Latvia and Estonia. Hikes in the forest trails and villages are combined with trips and excursions in cities, as well as other popular tourist sights in both countries. You will get a detailed impression about the forest diversity and most popular national parks in Latvia and Estonia. You will start the tour in Riga, where you will enjoy the beautiful Old Town included in the UNESCO and Art Nouveau District. Then you will drive to Sigulda and see the most scenic ancient valley of the River Gauja, visit Turaida Museum Reserve, hike in Gauja National Park till the historic Ligatne papermill village. Further on you will visit the famous Lake Āraiši Castle, hike on the Cirulisi nature trails and see the beautiful medieval town of Cesis. On the way to Estonia you will stop at the Sietiņiezis big sandstone cliff to have picturesque views of the River Gauja. Then you will stay in Estonia’s second biggest city – Tartu, and visit the recently opened Estonian National Museum. Further on you will drive to Alutaguse National Park and hike along the picturesque Kurtna landscape reserve among the bright coniferous forests ornamented by the mirror surfaces of its many lakes. At the end of the tour you will hike in Estonia’s oldest national park – Lahemaa, which means the “land of bays” in Estonian. The Forest Trail goes along the bays and peninsulas of Lahemaa National Park, introducing the hikers to its most significant natural and cultural heritage. The forests are rich with blueberries and mushrooms in autumn and the air is very clean. This tour will end with sightseeing in Tallinn, Estonia’s capital city, with the Old Town also included in UNESCO.

The Jēkabpils Museum of History offers an educational programme, “The Story of Cheese,” which provides information about the ancient history of cheese, interesting aspects of cheese making and the cheese-related traditions of the former owners of the Krustpils castle, the von Korf dynasty of noblemen.  Tours are available for groups of 10 or more people.

A friendly place for families, children and all interested parties. You can go on a tour or individually look at and learn about marmosets.

The Grey Dune of Pāvilosta nature reserve covers 42 hectares of land and has been designated to protect Latvia’s widest dune (1.5 km parallel the seacoast, and 812m in the direction from the sea to inland) and the biotopes and species found there. A two-storied watching platform is built to savour the scenery.

 In Soviet time, local fishermen used to dry seaweed in dunes for production of agar, and thus rich vegetation developed in the dune. The Gray Dune is part of a unique landscape with the sea view, the traditional architecture of Pāvilosta fishing town, and biotopes, including protected, which border the nature reserve: pine forest, embryonic dunes, white dunes, and wet beech where once can find springs. Biotope 2130, “Fixed dunes with herbaceous vegetation (grey dunes)” is found here. At present, pines are taking over the biotope, therefore some maintenance activities are required. The Grey Dune is most beautiful in the second half of July and in August when the blossoming Breckland Thyme (Thymus serpyllum) and Narrowleaf Hawkweed (Hieracium umbellatum) colour the dune in shades of yellow and violet. The most typical species here are Pasqueflower (Pulsatilla pretense), Grey Hair-grass(Corynephorus canescens), Blue Hair Grass (Koeleria glauca), Sand Pink (Dianthus arenarius).

The Gray Dune earned wide recognition when a group of enthusiasts actively campaigned for six years to achieve the status of the nature reserve. Guna Grimsta, a group representative remembers that they organised events and activities throughout Latvia involving large part of the society, prominent personalities, church parishes, NGOs, school youth and university students. The activists were writing letters, making videos, doing research articles, composing music, collecting signatures and submitting proposals to achieve official status of the Grey Dune as an especially protected nature site. They organised seminars, concerts, art plenaires and exhibitions, educational excursions, joint-work, musical church services, meetings with high officials and their on-site visits to the Gray Dune.

In 2006 the group received the title „Proudness of Latvia” awarded by the national TV3 broadcasting company and daily paper „Diena”.
The nature reserve „Gray Dune of Pāvilosta” was established in October 30, 2007. It is the most recent Natura2000 site in Latvia.

A cosy café in the centre of Liepāja. Offers coffee, delicious cakes and great food. Every morning at around 5 a.m., the croissant master starts to work in order to have fresh croissants ready to serve for 9 a.m.

This is the longest of the Forest Trail tours, where you will hike on many beautiful forest nature trails in Latvia and Estonia. These nature trails are part of the Forest Trail and this tour is suitable for self-drive tourists, who wish to hike different sizes of trails and get an impression of the forest diversity in both countries. You have the possibility to see the northern coniferous forests with spruces and pines, broadleaf forests, wet floodplain forests and picturesque forests growing on slopes and ravines. You will also see the most interesting tourist sights in Latvia and Estonia, which are close to the Forest Trail. In Latvia you will visit Sigulda, the historic Ligatne papermill village, medieval Cesis, the River Amata valley, which is located in Gauja National Park. Then you will drive to the less populated eastern part of Latvia – the Northern Gauja protected landscape area, Aluksne Town and hike in the Korneti-Peļļi subglacial depression, one of the most impressive ravines in Latvia. You can climb to Drusku castle mound – the highest and steepest of all the castle mounds in Latvia, When entering Estonia, you will see the highest point of the Baltics – Suur Munamagi Hill, where the observation tower is built. Further on the tour will lead you to the River Piusa valley, Obinitsa, with the culture of Seto people. You will hike in the historic Varska resort town, which is very close to the Russian border. Then you will reach Tartu and Lake Peipsi, which is the 5th biggest lake in Europe. You will hike in the Kurtna landscape reserve, see the Ontika limestone cliff, Valaste waterfall – the highest in Estonia. Finally you will hike in one of the beautiful wooded areas in Estonia – Lahemaa National Park. The tour ends in Tallinn, where you can enjoy the medieval Old Town and many other attractions.