Krustpils was first recorded in documents in 1237 in relation to the construction of the Kreutzburg castle on the right bank of the Daugava River.  A 1511 document lists it as a village.  In 1585, Polish King Stefan Báthory gifted the town to Nicholas Korff, whose family continued to own it until 1920.  Battles between Swedish and Polish forces occurred outside of Krustpils in 1626, and the sacked village was in poor shape until the mid-19th century.  Jēkabpils, in turn, was constructed as a settlement for Old Believers who were persecuted in Russia.  The Daugava has rapids opposite Krustpils and Jēkabpils, which means that boats had to dock there and reload their goods into wagons.  The settlement flourished, and in 1670 it was given the rights of a city.  It is named after Duke Jacob.  When the Rīga-Daugavpils rail line opened in 1861, Krustpils flourished, and Jēkabpils did not flourish.  The two cities were administratively merged in 1962, keeping the name of Jēkabpils.  There are typical one-story wooden buildings from the 19th century, red brick buildings built at the turn of the 20th century, as well as seven churches used by different denominations.  The dam along the left bank of the Daugava was built in 1861, and it was aimed at protecting the city against flooding.  Today it is a promenade that is popular among local residents for strolling and leisure.

The Velēna Lutheran Church is at the crossing of the Smiltene-Gulbene-Lizums roads. It is said that the roof of the first wooden church at this location had a peat moss roof. The organ from the Sauer company still works, and it is one of the best organs in Latvia. The organist offers guided tours of the church.

The historical centre of the Tāšu Estate is in the Ālande (Telse) River Valley near Lake Tāši.  The current estate was built by the von Korff dynasty, and the mansion dates back to 1734.  Inside there are valuable Baroque fireplaces, the main entrance portal made of sandstone from Gotland, the original stone floor in the hall, parquet and wall panels.  The front door, windows, stairs and other details were installed in the early 19th century

The MIKO bakery bakes more than 100 types of products according to its special recipes, including cakes, pies, eclairs, and biscuits.

The Tado Ivanausko farm and apple orchard have a memorial museum that is in Ringaudosa in the Kaunas District.  The memorial farm has a house in which the museum is located, a gardener's house, a poultry coop and a garden and park that cover approximately 4 ha.  The name of the location is based on very floral and fertile apple trees.

This is Latvia’s largest lake island and is found in the middle of Lake Usma. The island is restricted to protect old stands of pine, as well as various plants and birds.

The trail (the length 1.2 km) introduces with the habitats of dunes and century-old pines, partly covered with sand. Biologists estimate that the oldest tree, the “mother of pines”, could be around 200 years old. Coastal pine forests serve as a barrier between the sea and land protecting inland areas from impact of the sea and winds. Felling coastal forests was forbidden by law already back in 1643, during the Duchy of Courland. Still due to economic activities, the seashore forests were often fell and fires occurred there occasionally. As a result, the sand which had for centuries been hold by trees, started drifting at Cape Kolka. In the 1930ies, there were about 142 hectares of sandy areas in the Slītere National Park, and 11.5 hectares of those were drifting sand. To stop drifting, the sand areas were carefully afforested. Afforestation was started before WW I and it was completed in the 1970ies. To plant new trees, first the sand had to be stopped. Just 26km to the south from Kolka there was one of the largest sand dunes in Latvia, 25km in length. Every year it devoured 0.3 hectares of land. The sand was stopped covering it with heather, twigs and branches of pines and junipers. Pine trees were planted between them.

Today in Kolka, the old, low pine trees tell about the once drifting sand. After storms, when the water washes the bluff and tree roots are exposed, one can see that the tree trunks once have been covered with sand more than 1 meter high. The trees on the seacoast usually have crooked trunks and flag-shaped crowns formed under influence of persisting sea winds. Now these forests are designated biotope “Wooded dunes of the coast”.

Stable white dunes (biotope 2120) do not form in Cape Kolka as they are washed by sea waters during spring and autumn storms. Embryonic dunes develop here (code 2120) with plants that usually grow in dunes. These plants have adapted well to poor soils, heat, drought, and the saline sea water.

The Kolkasrags Pine Trail is in Slītere National Park.