The name of the famous Baltic resort on the Riga seaside is well known to all residents of the post-Soviet space. Several decades ago, not everyone managed to get on vacation in Jurmala, because only privileged comrades got the tickets to the Baltic resorts. But today the Riga seaside is available to everyone who loves the dull beauty of sand dunes overgrown with pine trees, the cool waters of the Baltic even at the height of summer, and the special charm of stylish resort villages, where it is customary to drink coffee in the mornings, and to stroll along a deserted beach in the evenings. listen to the quiet rustle of the surf. Museums and national parks, old mansions with wooden carvings and entertainment venues, where you can spend time with benefit and soul, will answer the question of what to see in Jurmala.
TOP-10 attractions of Jurmala
Dzintari Concert Hall
The modern concert complex "Dzintari" in Jurmala is well known to everyone who watches TV. The performances of the participants of the "New Wave" competition, KVN and humorous festivals took place here.
The history of the appearance of a concert hall in a popular Latvian resort began in the century before last, when the first theater stage was erected here in 1897. This happened after the wedding of the daughter of Alexander II and the Duke of Edinburgh Alfred. The village of Dzintari was then renamed Edinburgh, and the stage was named "Concert Hall of the Kurhaus Edinburgh". At first, only vaudeville and operettas were staged on the stage, but in 1910 a symphony orchestra was invited for the first time, and the role of the concert hall changed. Orchestras of the Mariinsky Theater, the Warsaw Philharmonic Society and the stars of opera houses of the Russian Empire are frequent guests at Dzintari.
The Dzintari complex has two stages:
- The Great Hall was built in 1962 by the architect M. Gelzis. It seats over 2000 spectators and has five levels, where symphony, jazz and choral concerts are successfully held.
- The closed small hall was built in 1936 and today it is an architectural monument of republican significance. Concerts in it can be watched simultaneously by 500 spectators. The wooden building consists of three parts and is decorated with a stylized portico with columns. Round windows illuminate the middle nave, and the interiors are decorated with works by A. Tsirulis.
The main season in the Dzintari Concert Hall is summer, and the main events are the Jurmala Ballet Stars and Summertime festivals every year.
Kemeri National Park
On an area of almost 400 sq. km in the Kemeri National Park near Jurmala you can look at the Big Kemeri bog, take a walk by Lake Kanieris, on the banks of which a birdwatching tower is built and a boat rental station is equipped, admire the ancient continental dunes and take a sulfur bath in the Green Marsh.
A forester named Kremer is considered the ancestor of the park. He built a guest house on these lands and gladly told his guests local legends, completely refuting the usual standards of behavior of non-human foresters.
The range of excursions in Kemeri Park is quite impressive. Visitors can enjoy several hiking trails along the shores of lakes, the opportunity to observe bats and waterfowl, swimming in sulfur springs and acquaintance with plants typical of meadow bogs. Some of the representatives of the local flora are classified as rare and are protected by the Red Book.
Līvu Akvaparks
Jurmala water park was commissioned in 2003. On its three floors there are more than two dozen slides and slopes of varying difficulty and height, a dozen deep and not so pools, a spa with four different types of saunas, a salt room, a jacuzzi and several cafes, restaurants and a bar on the water.
Līvu Akvaparks is the largest indoor water park in Northern Europe, open all year round. By the way, in the summer, its area is significantly increased due to an extension in the open air, The most popular attractions in the water park are Water Loop, Tricky Dome, Magic Three, Kamikaze and Silver Mine. You can see what is hidden behind these names by visiting the popular landmark of Jurmala. A good mood and a variety of entertainments for the whole day are guaranteed here for both adults and children!
To get there: from the Riga railway station by minibus N7023 and 7021 or by train to the stop. Bulduri.
Ticket prices: 25 and 19 euros for adults and children for a full day, respectively.
Jurmala City Museum
Do you want to know everything about the history of the city where you came on vacation? Then you should look at the exposition of the Jurmala Museum, which ideally corresponds to the spirit of the resort. Among the exhibits are swimming suits of men and women of past years, old lithographs and postcards depicting the city, calendars collected over the past few decades, and posters announcing new tours and concerts in the Dzintari Hall. The exhibition “Ships in the Abyss”, which tells about the findings of divers and the history of Latvian shipping, is of considerable interest.
Dacha Morbergs
In Jurmala, many mansions have survived, built at the beginning of the 19th century and decorated with wooden carvings. Their architects used neo-Gothic, Romantic and even Art Nouveau techniques in the development of projects, but there is only one real castle with a beautiful garden, a watchtower and magnificent stained-glass windows.
The building, which stands out especially among its peers, belonged to the Latvian philanthropist and entrepreneur Kristaps Morberg. In the second half of the 19th century, he was a well-known architect in Latvia and took part in the redevelopment of Riga. His designs are in the Renaissance style.
A small castle in Jurmala on Dzintaru Avenue served as a dacha for Morberg and his wife Augusta, and they came here every summer. After his death, Kristaps bequeathed the building to the University of Latvia, which still owns the castle.
In addition to stained glass windows, skillful carvings and openwork arbors, a small botanical garden, adjacent to the building, undoubtedly serves as an adornment of the dacha.
The Morbergs dacha often becomes a venue for weddings and romantic photo shoots.
House of Aspazia
Another magnificent mansion, built at the very beginning of the twentieth century, adorns the village of Dubulti, a part of Jurmala, where the Lielupe River is separated from the sea only by a narrow piece of land. The building stands on the banks of the river and is famous for the fact that Aspazia spent the last years of her life in it.
The Latvian poet and playwright Elza Pliekshane fought all her life for women's rights and supported the social democratic ideas of her husband, poet Rainis. Aspasia is her creative pseudonym, taken in honor of the ancient Greek hetaira, wife of Pericles, who was distinguished by her intelligence and education.
The two-storey cottage where Elza Pliekshane lived is decorated with rich decor and wood carvings. Two turrets and glazed verandas give the building a special style, and the combination of white and blue colors allows the mansion to blend harmoniously with the surrounding landscape.
Amusement Park "Tarzan"
Obstacle Park "Tarzan" is equipped with a new generation of Swiss insurance system, and therefore is absolutely safe for visitors. So only at first glance it seems that overcoming the local obstacles and extreme attractions is a risky undertaking. However, to those inexperienced in the stunt craft, the local "black track" may seem completely insurmountable: there are 14 obstacles on it, each of which requires considerable dexterity and courage.
The lightest obstacle course is marked in green. Even seven-year-olds can overcome it. The "blue track" is an order of magnitude more difficult, and at the end the daredevils will descend from a six-meter height along a special cable.
Ticket price: from 7 euros, depending on the age of the visitors and the complexity of the chosen obstacle course.
Lutheran Church in Dubulti
In the resort village of Dubulti in Jurmala, among other buildings, the Lutheran church, designed at the beginning of the twentieth century by the architect Wilhelm Bokslaf, stands out. The Art Nouveau building has clear features of national romanticism. This is especially evident in the wooden structures of the singing choirs and the balcony where the organ is located.
When designing the temple, the architect clearly tried to reproduce some elements typical of medieval buildings. For example, the high tower clearly resembles a donjon of European feudal castles, and a large cross is lined with limestone blocks on the altar.
In the second half of the twentieth century, the temple was closed and it housed the exposition of the Jurmala Museum of History and Art. In the 90s, the Lutheran church in Dubulti was again handed over to the city community, and today the building is used for its intended purpose.
Open-air museum
The traditions of the former fishing village of Jurmala are successfully preserved in the local open-air museum. Its visitors are taught to knit sea knots, mend nets, smoke fish and drink beer with it. Performers of folk songs entertain the guests, and authentic objects of fishermen's everyday life, exhibited in real houses, give a special flavor to the museum.
Daugavgrivsky lighthouse
Near the confluence of the Latvian river Daugava into the sea, you will see a 35-meter lighthouse in a pretty strip, which often flashes on postcards from the Riga seaside.
For the first time, a landmark for ships was established here at the beginning of the 16th century, but since then, of course, it has been rebuilt more than once. Under Peter I, it was only a stone masonry with a fire on top. At the end of the 18th century, they began to light a fire on the upper platform of the wooden tower. In 1819, the open fire was replaced with an oil lantern, and from 1863 a flashing lamp at the top of a cast-iron tower pointed the way to sailors.
The modern structure was built in 1957 on the site of the old tower blown up by the Germans.
