Liepāja

Liepāja (pronounced lee-ah-pa-yah) is a city on Latvia's Baltic coast.

Understand
With 70,000 residents, Liepāja is the third largest city in Latvia. During the Latvian War of Independence (1918-20) it was briefly the capital of Latvia.

Liepāja city consists of two main areas of interest: the city center, and Karosta, the northern part of the city, which used to be a secret Soviet military town. The city center and Karosta have great beaches, and you will be surprised how unspoiled and beautiful the central beach is, and how white and soft the sand is. Karosta is essentially another city, because it really has a different history and look from the rest of Liepāja; Karosta is worth a separate visit. In Liepāja there is no "old town", but the center and surroundings are full of beautiful old wooden buildings, small irregular streets, etc. The center also includes the Seaside Park (Jūrmala Park) area, which has a fantastic white, soft sand beach; the park itself is great, too, with many nice buildings. Liepāja is known in Latvia as "the city where the wind is born", because of the continual sea breeze.



By bus
Liepāja is connected by bus service with Riga (many times every day, €8.55, 3-3.75 hr), Ventspils, Kuldīga and other towns and villages in Liepāja region, as well as Klaipėda (2 hours) and Palanga in Lithuania. To get from the bus station to the centre, take the tram at a tram stop which is on your right side when you exit the bus station building. Do not cross the railway tracks – this is the wrong direction.

By train
The Liepāja railway station is located in the same building as the bus terminal. The now-daily train to Liepāja leaves Riga at 18:34, arriving in Liepāja at 21:47. However, the return trip leaves Liepāja at an unpalatable 05:02 (too early to catch the first tram to the station), arriving in Riga at 08:13. On Sundays only there is a supplementary service in each direction, allowing for a more civilised eastbound departure time of 18:38. Tickets cost €7.20, or €6.66 if bought online. The train also stops in Skrunda, Saldus, Biksti, Dobele, Jelgava and Olaine.

By car
There are two main roads to Liepāja. From Riga, the A9 runs westward for 220 km. From Klaipėda in Lithuania, the A11 runs north for 100 km. From Ventspils, on the coast further north, take the P111.

By boat
A ferry service connects Liepāja with Travemünde (near Lübeck) in Germany once a day. The is in Ziemelu priekspilseta, northwest of the main bus station, and 15 minutes from the centre by bus 10, 11, or 15, or minibus 3. If you have a yacht, you are welcome to Liepāja yacht harbour, located in the centre, in Tirdzniecibas channel.

By thumb
Hitch-hiking is fairly common in Liepāja, and for Latvia as a whole. To get out of the city to go somewhere else, go to the north tram terminus, cross the railway crossing, and you are in the best spot to hitch-hike to Riga or Ventspils, or go to the south terminus, walk 400 m until the city ends completely, and you are in a good spot to hitch-hike to Klaipėda.

By plane
AirBaltic is the only airline serving  with once daily flight to and from Riga International Airport (from Riga at 23:40 and from Liepāja at 05:40). From Riga International Airport, which is the largest airport in the Baltic states 220 km east of Liepāja, many direct flights to Europe and Asia, including cheap Ryanair, airBaltic and Wizz Air routes, are available. Palanga airport in Lithuania is another option 65 km to the south with scheduled services year round.

City bus 2 connects Liepāja Airport with the city centre and is well connected with arriving/departing flights (see timetables here).

Get around
Liepāja public transport is offered by Liepāja Sabiedriskais transports. There are four types of public transport in Liepāja - tram, bus, minibus and taxi. See routes, timetables and live traffic here, or a more mobile friendly version. Trams, buses and minibuses have the same tickets, which you can purchase from the driver (€1.50) or in many shops and small newsagents' boutiques such as Narvesen which can be found throughout the city (€0.90 or €8.50 for 10 rides). Ticket must be validated in one of the yellow validators, which will print date and time on the ticket. There are also passes for one day, week, month etc. A one-day pass costs €3.00 and gives an unlimited number of rides, but you must validate it when you first use it. The ticket is then valid until midnight – the date is printed on your ticket when you validate it.

By tram
There is only one tram line running from Ezerkrasts (lakeside) residential district in the southeast to the west, then north through the center to Jaunliepaja, and ends near the metallurgic factory. It operates from 05:00 till 00:00. Tram is the best transport to get to/from the railway/bus station to/from the city center. A ride from the center to the station takes approximately 8 minutes. An electronic tram ticket is also available by sending SMS, but this might be complicated for those who don't have local mobile phones.

By bus
There are many bus routes, the most important for tourists being 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8 – with these you can get from the city center to Karosta and back. You can get to the southeastern part (Ezerkrasts) to see Meynard's church and Liepāja Lake by 3, 4, 10, 15, 912. Costs €1.50 from the driver or €0.90 in shops and newsagents' boutiques. There are bus stops throughout the city. Tickets can be bought in kiosks or from the driver. Ticket must be validated in the bus by inserting it in an electronic validator as in the trams. Some buses have an audio announcement system for the next stop and a LED screen in front of the bus displaying next stop name. When going to Karosta you will most likely want to go right to the last stop, so don't worry. An exception might be bus number 8, which terminates far north in summer house and garden district Skede near the sea, which is kind of too far for Karosta, however is the best bus to get as far as the Jewish Holocaust memorial or the Northern fortress. Liepāja city is rather spread-out compared to other Latvian cities. For example, the journey from the center to Karosta with bus 3 is about 10 km which takes around 35 minutes.

By minibus
Number 22 and 23 minibuses serve Karosta, however 23 only goes to Karosta swing bridge and you might have to wait over an hour if the bridge is closed. It is therefore recommended to take route 22, which will take you further into Karosta and, if the bridge is closed, will take an alternative route. They cost €1.50 from a shop or €0.90 from the driver. Tickets must be validated just like in trams or buses. To flag down a minibus, you have to wave your hand. They will only stop at designated bus stops. To exit the bus, ask the driver.

By taxi
Taxis are relatively expensive compared to other types of transport, but still cheaper than in Western Europe. This is the only public transport available at night (approximately 00:30-05:00). There are some places in the city center and near the Bus/Railway station where taxis assemble, or you can call +371 63422222, +371 63466666 or +371 63488888. Bolt works in the city.

By thumb
Especially getting to or from the Northern Forts can be achieved by hitch-hiking, which is about 5 km. It is probably best to walk from south (Karosta) to north (Northern Forts), to also cover the fortress north of the breakwater, and to try hitch-hiking back into the centre of Liepāja with one of the many cars that go south. There are many cars and during the day one local might just be curious enough to take you in for the ride.

Talk
Some Latvian phrases will be admired by locals, such as paldies (Thank you) or labdien (Hello). Latvian is spoken natively by more than half of Liepāja's population and is the only official language. Written signs and labels are mostly in Latvian. However, you will also hear Russian in the streets of Liepāja, which is by far the most widespread minority language since the Soviet time, when lots of Russians immigrated to Latvia's main cities, including Liepāja, for work. In summer there are many German tourists and German can be heard in tourist areas. Latvians, especially younger generations, generally speak some English.

See
The former Secret soviet military town of Karosta (northern Liepāja), the Fortress of Liepāja (its parts are located all around the city, the most spectacular ones are on the Baltic shore in Karosta), Liepāja city center with many old art-nouveau and wooden building and cobblestone streets, and the seaside park with its white sandy beach, as well as Liepāja's lake – the fifth largest in Latvia – are nice with lots to see.



Churches
The churches are a pleasant surprise with their variety of architectural styles. This reflects religion in Latvia, which is very mixed. It is mostly Christian of various branches, and this can be seen in Liepāja, where there are Lutheran, Protestant, Catholic, Russian Orthodox, Russian Old Believers and other religious groups' churches. These vary from tiny wooden churches to huge towers and cathedrals. There are about 20 churches in Liepāja.



Many other churches are scattered throughout the city, the most important being St. Nicholas maritime cathedral in Karosta (see Karosta).

Liepāja Lake
Liepāja is surrounded by water. There are the Baltic Sea, two big lakes and some smaller ones, and four channels in the city. The city, is almost an island, especially the southern part (Vecliepāja). Liepāja Lake is the fifth largest lake in Latvia. It is lagoon type, which was part of the sea in ancient days. It is not deep, relatively narrow - up to 3.5 km (2.2 mi) - and long - about 15 km (9.3 mi). Liepāja city is on the north-western coast of the lake. If you go to Ezerkrasts (Lakeside), you can see the best lake views from Tise iela (Tise street). On one side are apartment buildings, and on the other, a meadow; behind the meadow is the lake. The lake, together with surrounding meadows (Vitinu meadows), is a nature protection area, mostly because of some rare plants growing there and many species of birds that live or come across this place regularly. This visit must be guided and pre-booked in the Tourism Information Centre, because it is a nature protection area. Swimming in the lake is not as nice as in the sea (but warmer), because the bottom is sometimes swampy. There is, however, a special place for swimming at the end of Vainodes street.

There is an interesting, yet very dirty and untouristic, place called. It is the biggest island in the lake and is very close to city center, where it is connected by bridge. From the island, an approximately 1 km (0.6 mi) long jetty, accessible even by car (a very bad road though), built of metallurgical factory oven-burned metallic stones, goes into the lake, providing nice views. It is sometimes called Golodova dambis or Zirgu salas dambis, and does not appear in any travel guides except this one.

Karosta
A former secret Soviet military town. If you are in Liepāja, you must go to Karosta. It is the northern part of the city, about 10 km (6 mi) from the center. Karosta translates as War Port (or Navy Harbor) from Latvian. It used to be a secret military town for the Russian Empire, and later also for the Soviets. Latvia became independent, and some years after that, in 1994, the Russian troops had to leave Karosta. The population dropped dramatically from 25,000 to 6,000, leaving many houses empty. Then Karosta experienced something like a war without guns. Many houses were turned into ruins. Everything was taken away. Brick by brick, many historic, beautiful buildings disappeared forever. Now, Karosta has a population of 7,000 and a dream of rebirth, which has already started. It is now a popular tourist destination and also home for an international artists' center called K2. Many places in Karosta still look like war rubble. Some places are reminiscent of the abandoned towns of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster area.




 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.
 * Other things: Karosta cemetery with Soviet style monuments, Karosta park, many forests and Beberlini Lake (a nice place to have a barbecue party in summer). There is camping, too.

Do
There is much to do and see in the city – nature is everywhere, even within the city: those are not just artificially planted city parks. There are also absolutely unspoiled and natural beaches, forests and meadows near the Liepāja lake. There are some swamps, but they are not that accessible. You can visit special swamp trails in Liepāja region, as well as even bigger and denser forests.


 * Football: FK Liepāja play soccer in Virslīga, the top tier. Their home ground Daugava Stadium (capacity 5100) is on the coast 3 km south of town centre. The playing season is April-Nov.
 * Football: FK Liepāja play soccer in Virslīga, the top tier. Their home ground Daugava Stadium (capacity 5100) is on the coast 3 km south of town centre. The playing season is April-Nov.
 * Football: FK Liepāja play soccer in Virslīga, the top tier. Their home ground Daugava Stadium (capacity 5100) is on the coast 3 km south of town centre. The playing season is April-Nov.
 * Football: FK Liepāja play soccer in Virslīga, the top tier. Their home ground Daugava Stadium (capacity 5100) is on the coast 3 km south of town centre. The playing season is April-Nov.
 * Football: FK Liepāja play soccer in Virslīga, the top tier. Their home ground Daugava Stadium (capacity 5100) is on the coast 3 km south of town centre. The playing season is April-Nov.
 * Football: FK Liepāja play soccer in Virslīga, the top tier. Their home ground Daugava Stadium (capacity 5100) is on the coast 3 km south of town centre. The playing season is April-Nov.

Work
Knowledge of Latvian language is essential in most jobs. Some permits are required, depending on your home country. It is easier for EU citizens. The average salary is about €400-500 per month, but it varies greatly depending on the area of activity.

Buy
Open air markets are always something special for western tourists, but part of daily life for local people. There are many markets throughout the city, but the two most important and largest are the following:
 * Furthermore, there are two smaller ones, one in Silku/Kalpaka street corner and another one in Karosta for cool soviet-style souvenirs and other interesting stuff.
 * Furthermore, there are two smaller ones, one in Silku/Kalpaka street corner and another one in Karosta for cool soviet-style souvenirs and other interesting stuff.
 * Furthermore, there are two smaller ones, one in Silku/Kalpaka street corner and another one in Karosta for cool soviet-style souvenirs and other interesting stuff.

In Liepāja you will find all shops you might want to find, except for expensive brand shops. The main shopping centres are located in the centre and in the south of the city: Kurzeme, Ostmala, Rietumu centres, XL Sala, Baata, Ezerkrasts, and Depo.


 * Kurzeme is one of the largest shopping centres located in the heart of Liepāja, next to the Rose Square. The four-storey building offers a variety of shops, cafes, restaurants and various other service providers, books, jewellery, sports clothing and equipment, kids clothing and toys, women's and men's clothing, footwear, cosmetics, flowers, and sweets. Kurzeme shopping mall features more than 50 stores including global and Latvian favourite brand like Ecco, Sportland, Kidz One, Toy’s Planet, Stenders, Lauma Lingerie, NS King, VOVA, Jahonts, X Jeans, Zvaigzne ABC, Dzintars, and Laima.
 * Depo is the largest DIY store in Latvia. Rietumu centres has Jysk. Ostmala has a Rimi hypermarket and many clothes shops. XL Sala has Maxima XX and many other shops. Baata is probably the trendiest shopping centre - it is not large, but has a nice selection of shops and a very good restaurant Olive. Go there by tram till the last stop in the South. And 5 minutes from there is a wonderful white sand beach of the Baltic sea.
 * Visit the tourism information center; they have nice souvenirs, too. A good souvenir from little bays near fortresses in Karosta is little pebbles from the Baltic Sea. It's free and natural. Some tourists take a little jar of Liepāja central beach unbelievably white and soft sand as a souvenir.
 * Stendera ziepju fabrika produces interesting soaps and soap-related products for bathing, such as Burbuļbumbas - the bubble balls.

Eat
For more information on typical Latvian food, see Latvia.

Budget
For a western traveller, Liepāja's food prices might seem quite cheap, even for top-class restaurants. This is because the local average salary is about €400 per month.


 * Peter’s market (Pētertirgus, see above) – Has fresh, clean local food which is natural and healthy. Especially strawberries in July...
 * Try Latvian food in a cafeteria, restaurant or just buy a Sklandrausis (carrot pie, typical for Kurzeme, Western Latvia) in Šaras (a local word used for inner pavilion of a market, in this case Petertirgus market, and the official word in Latvian would be skārņi).

Drink
Nightlife places, all in the centre, include:



Sleep
In Liepāja you have all you need - choose a cheap and cosy hostel or a five star hotel - Liepāja has it all. The city has an official website, otherwise, here are some examples:

Stay safe
Liepāja is a safe place. Take general precautions. Avoid walking alone in darkness. Do not leave your belongings unattended in clubs and pubs, or on the streets. Be careful in Karosta - during the 1990s it was rife with crime; however, it is much safer now.

Cope
Latvia is Nordic in its weather. The temperatures in July can reach 30ºC (86ºF). And they can also fall as low as -30ºC (-22ºF) in January. But both winter and summer have their beauty. Make two visits - one in the summer and one in the winter - and you will have two totally different experiences! And make yet another visit in mid October, when all the trees are colorful.

Go next

 * In Liepāja region there are some nice towns, 100 km of beautiful Baltic coast, and lots of forests.
 * Kalvenes Zoo "Cīruļi" – It is worth visiting this park, which is very big and where animals have bigger space to live than usually in city zoos.
 * Pape Nature Reserve – Another option, if you want to see wild horses and wild boar and wild coast.
 * Aizpute – A town of medieval atmosphere with little irregular streets, old wooden buildings, small lakes and castle ruins, on the way to Kuldiga (about 100 km away).
 * Kuldiga – The capital of Duchy of Courland, Venice of Latvia, with unique and wooden architecture, red-tile roofs, bridges, cobbled streets, the widest widest waterfall ledge in Europe, and nearby the longest underground (sand) cave labyrinth in the Baltics.
 * Pāvilosta and Daugavpils – According to locals in Liepāja, these have forts similar to Liepāja but which are much better preserved.
 * Ventspils – A modern and artistic sea resort city 110 km to the north, has many things to see, and is one of the tidiest places in the Kurzeme region. A long-stretching beach and recreational park provide everything for a relaxing holiday week or weekend. It gets its prosperity from the huge ice-free port, which is the busiest port in the Baltic states, and the oil transit business.


 * Klaipėda – This city in Lithuania is the gateway to the Curonian Spit, a stretch of sand dunes 99 km in length. Buses for Klaipėda with a stop at Palanga go from the on Kuršu iela in Liepāja – Minibus 08:00 €5, Ecolines Bus 11:30 €4.50 (book online). The minibus does not go to the Klaipėda bus station but to the Akropolis Shopping Centre, from where you have to take a regular bus into the centre or to the bus station.