Издания

This manual is aimed at helping you discover rural destinations in the South of Finland, Estonia and Latvia beyond traditional touristic routes. The programmes and sites in this manual are based around small-scale accommodation, open farms, local producers, living traditions and sincere people. The people here have a close relationship with their natural surroundings and annual cycle. Each season has its own specific activities like mushrooming, berry picking, collecting herbs, ice-fishing and different agricultural jobs as well as traditional and seasonal celebrations. The countries are a haven for the tourist who loves nature, respects traditions and would like to experience them and their cultures more deeply.

Behind this manual there is a team of professional countryside tourism organisations and tour operators. For many years we have carried regular inspections of our accommodation and sites, have closely cooperated with national parks and nature experts, researched and developed new routes.

In this brochure we present example products based on rural experiences such as visits to country farms, hands-on workshops, tours of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, stays at spa hotels, and opportunities to get closer to nature or to live like locals. Some model itineraries for touring the three countries are presented. All of these can be linked with the traditional touristic routes and city experiences to bring more variety and attraction.

Travelling options between the countries are shown by air, ferries and bus. A list of tour operators that can help to arrange tours and services group and individual customers is provided in this manual.

Finnish, Estonian and Latvian cuisine is based on natural products from clean en vironment. Spring and summer seasons are characterised by lighter dishes like greens, dairy products and seasonal fi sh, grilled meat, forest berries and mushrooms. Meat dishes with vegetable and grain side dishes, fermented and pickled vege- tables dominate cold seasons meals.

There are three meals during the day – break- fast, dinner and supper. There could be tea or coffee breaks between them with tiny snacks. The main meal is dinner, with choice of soups, main dishes and desserts. Bread of various types is always served on the table.

There are three meals during the day – break- fast, dinner and supper. There could be tea or coffee breaks between them with tiny snacks. The main meal is dinner, with choice of soups, main dishes and desserts. Bread of various types is always served on the table.

Rural pubs have simpler meals that are richer in calories and the servings are larger. The restau- rant servings are smaller, with more emphasis on quality. Chefs create refi ned taste combina- tions and surprise their customers with food as a special adventure by using fresh and seasonal local dishes.

Карта создана для туристических поездок по приграничным районам Латвии и Литвы, для ознакомления со сходствами и различиями в истории сельского хозяйства обеих стран. Эти путешествия помогут создать представление о старинных и разнообразных традициях растениеводства, животноводства, рыбной ловли и рыбоводства, а также - с сельскими ремеслами. Традиции берут свое начало с зачатков сельского хозяйства на обжитых прибалтийскими племенами территориях около 2500 лет до н.э. и продолжаются в наши дни. Как в Латвии, так и в Литве в течение многих тысяч лет сельское хозяйство было основной экономической отраслью, что оказало влияние на меню, фольклор и повседневные традиции.

Земледелие. Самым древним культивируемым растением был ячмень, первыми культивируемыми овощами - репа и капуста. В усадьбах – центрах хозяйственной жизни – в 19 веке начали селекционировать сорта. Самыми последними стали выращивать помидоры. В начале 20 века в Латвии и Литве была проведена Аграрная реформа – создание новых крестьянских хозяйств. После советской оккупации были созданы коллективные хозяйства – колхозы.

Животноводство. Его задачи: снабжать человека пищей (говядина, баранина, свинина, молоко, масло); обеспечивать тяговую силу (лошади и быки); шерсть для одежды и лошадей для военных нужд. Пчеловодство было важной дополняющей отраслью.

Рыболовство. Рядом с морем, озерами и большими реками традиции рыболовства и рыбацкие рассказы высоко ценятся и по сей день. Уже в 16 веке появилось законодательство, регулирующее рыболовство. В 19 веке рыбаки объединялись в кооперативы и использовали новые рыболовные орудия для более продуктивного труда. В 20 веке действовало много хозяйств по выращиванию пресноводной рыбы.

Наиболее стремительное развитие плодоводства началось в 19 веке. Усадьба была школой для латвийских и литовских садоводов. В садах росли яблони, вишни, сливы, груши, смородина, крыжовник, клубника и малина, в теплицах - виноград, персики и абрикосы.

Ремесла. До 19 века крестьяне предметы обихода и орудия труда, а также одежду изготавливали сами в своих домах. В 20 веке, с расцветом промышленности, ремесленничество угасает, однако в наши дни изделия ручной работы и старинные навыки опять в почете.

In cooperation with Dundaga and Ventspils municipalities we have developed route map - booklet "The Liv coastline is inviting you!" to enable travelers to explore the unique ethnic cultural region in Latvia - the Liv Coastline. The Liv Coastline involves a series of shoreline villages from Ovīši to Ģipka along the shores of the Baltic Sea and the Bay of Rīga. With this brochure it is possible to get acquainted with the traditional cuisine of the region, holiday traditions and other values that make this region so unique and whose traditions still permeate the everyday lives of local people.

This publication is financed within the Estonia - Latvia Programme project “Development and promotion of small ethno-cultural regions as tourism destinations”.

Coastal event calendar in Latvia and Estonia 2018 includes wide range of events along the Baltic Coastal Hiking route in order for every traveller to find something that would attract him or her the most. 

This Rural Tourism Product manual is aimed to help you discover rural destinations in South of Finland, Estonia and Latvia beyond traditional touristic routes. The tours and sites in this manual are based around small-scale accommodation, open farms, local producers, living traditions and sincere people. The people here have a close relationship with itsnature and annual cycle. Each season has its own specific activities like mushrooming, berry picking, collecting herbs, ice-fishing and different agricultural jobs as well as traditional and seasonal celebrations. The countries are a haven for the tourist who loves nature, respects traditions and would like to experience the countries and their cultures more deeply.

Behind this manual there is a team of professional countryside tourism organisations and tour operators. For many years we have carried regular inspections of our accommodations and sites, have closely cooperated with national parks and nature experts, researched and developed new routes.

In this manual we present examples of group and individual touring routes, full day packages based on accommodations in the countryside, nature experiences in national parks, visits to farms and craftsmen. All of these can be linked with the traditional touristic routes and city experiences to bring more variety and attraction.

Travelling options between the countries are shown by air, ferries and bus. The list of tour operators that can help to arrange tours and services group and individual customers is provided in this manual. Some of the tour examples include optional extensions to Lithuania and Sweden.

We have released a new collection of postcards with great images from rural life.

The postcards tell about real rural feeling and heritage traditions that have lived through times and make part of today's life. So it's about what people still do in the countryside - go mushrooming in autumn, bake our special pīrāgi for festive table, and gather wild herb teas in the summertime. You can experience it visiting our countryside!

If you want to say hello from Latvian countryside to your friends, send them a postcard!
POSTCARDS (gallery)

The postcards are available from the office of Baltic Country Holidays, 40, Kalnciema str., Riga.

The postcard collection is produced under the project Heritage based agritourism product development in Latvia-Lithuania, supported by the EU Interreg Latvia-Lithuania programme 2014-2020.

People alongside the shores of the Baltic Sea have kitchens with gifts from the forest, meadows, rivers, lakes and the sea.  During the brief Nordic summer, there are carefully grown goodies from small gardens and farms.  People think about future generations and use environmentally friendly farming methods so that the ingredients are fresh, clean, healthy and nutritious. Throughout the year, Baltic cuisine features rye bread, grains, fresh and fermented dairy products, and various cheeses.  During the spring and summer, there are lighter dishes of fresh vegetables, herbs, berries, mushrooms and fish.  During the winter and fall, the cuisine becomes substantial with meat, vegetables, legumes, pickled, marinated and spicy dishes that are supplemented with warming and aromatic spices. It is a matter of honour to prepare food from high-quality ingredients that are bought from trustworthy local manufacturers and suppliers.  For that reason, it is best to taste oysters and shrimp in Denmark, salmon in Norway, liquorice in Finland, kama flour in Estonia, baked lampreys in Latvia, zeppelins in Lithuania, asparagus in Germany and rose petal jam in Poland.  Bon appétit!