Guide to Latvia
Must See Latvia
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Unwary travellers lured into Rīga's winding cobbled streets are transfixed by swirling Art Nouveau architecture and warm bars with candles flickering in the windows. Just as you can't take the Old Town's beauty any longer, you look up to a bewitching skyline of castle turrets and church steeples.
Rīga manages to couple its toy-town cuteness with a glitzy nightlife and thriving restaurant scene. Funky and vibrant, it's a major metropolis with a big-city atmosphere hard to find elsewhere in the region. The city is booming, with a queue of backers pouring money into its infrastructure.
The Old Town may be a Unesco World Heritage Site, but this fairytale city is building so fast that Unesco has warned Rīga it may withdraw its status.