SIA „MANRO” Reg.No.: 40003729771 Salaspils iela 18/6-52, Rīga, LV-1057 Phone / Fax: +371 7 13 21 98 E-mail: [email protected] www.manrotravel.lv Guided tours / Excursions in and around Riga Time is scarce and valuable, in particular when it comes to filling short trips and city tours with a suitable agenda: One desires to see and experience as much as possible, within the given time frame. With regard to this fundamental expectation, we have prepared for you a number of guided tour and excursion modules concerning the city of Riga herself, and of places of major interest in her closer vicinity. These are listed below. With a view towards standardization, we chose Riga's Town Hall square as the general starting- and end point for all tours / excursions, because of its ideal location at the edge of the old town facing the river Daugava and its easy accessibility, even by coach. All time indications below represent the approximate average time span! Transfer Duration of from/to guided tour/ Town Hall sq. excursion Old Town - Guided Tour (Walking) ----- 2 hours Town Hall square, Blackheads' building, Convent square, St. Peter's church, Guild buildings, Dome Cathedral, Swedish gate, Parliament building, the Three Brothers Old Town - Short excursion (Walking) ----- 1 hour Town Hall square, Blackheads' building, Guild buildings, Dome square, Parliament building Old Town - Roundtrip by bus, with picture breaks ----- 1 hour Town Hall square, Blackheads' building, Guild buildings, Dome square, Riga Castle Central Riga - Roundtrip by coach, with picture breaks (New Town and Old Town) ----- 2 hours Art Nouveau architecture in Central Riga, Latvian Museum of Arts, Latvian National Theatre, Liberty Monument, Latvian National Opera, Riga Castle, Town Hall square Art Nouveau district of Central Riga - Guided Tour (Walking) 15 min / 15 min 1 hour Development of Riga's Art Nouveau architecture by example of the buildings alongside the Elisabeta, Strelnieku, Alberta and Antonijas streets Riga Central Market - Short excursion (Walking) The five large market halls, leftovers of WW I in Courland and originally 15 min / 15 min 1 hour built by the Imperial German army as airship hangars, later refurbished and re-activated to meet their nowadays purpose. Since refurbishment in 1930, they belong to the well recognized landmarks of Riga. Kaiserwald residential area, Brothers' Cemetery - Guided Tour One of Europe's first "Garden towns": apartment buildings, villas and 30 min / 30 min 2 hours residences built in Art Nouveau and Bauhaus styles; the Brothers' Cemetery, an important arts and architecture ensemble, built in memory of the Latvian soldiers fallen during WW I and the Latvian War of Independence, afterwards Bank: A/S Hansabanka, Rīga BIC: HABA LV 22 IBAN: LV16 HABA 0551009334718 City of Riga - Roundtrip by coach, with picture breaks (incl. 30 min / 30 min 2 hours Kaiserwald and Brothers' Cemetery) An all-in-one roundtrip, featuring all the important sights of Riga and including Kaiserwald and Brothers' Cemetery Ethnographic Open Air Museum - Guided tour (Walking) 30 min / 30 min 1 1/2 hours Rural timber architecture, craftsmanship, culture, lifestyle and traditions; mostly featuring rural Latvia in the 18th and 19th Centuries Jurmala - Excursion Villas and summer residences in Jurmala, from Art Nouveau to 30 min / 30 min 2 hours contemporary, modern architecture; walk on the beach and through the pedestrian area of Jurmala's Majori district with its cafés and souvenir shops Rundale Palace - Guided tour Frequently named the "Versailles of the Baltics", Rundale Palace forms the 90 min / 90 min 2 hours largest and most complete ensemble of Baroque architecture in Latvia. The palace was built by Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli (1735-1769), architect at the Russian Imperial Court, as a summer residence for the Dukes of Courland. Mežotne and Rundale Palaces - Excursion Combines in one excursion Mežotne park and palace, located on the left bank of the Lielupe river in Latvia's Zemgale region, and Rundale Palace 90 min / 90 min 3 hours (see above). Mežotne Palace was built by Giacomo Quarengi, architect at the Russian Imperial Court, between 1797 and 1802 as a residence for Charlotte von Lieven, governess of the grandchildren of the Russian Empress Catharina the Great. Sigulda and Turaida (Gauja national park) - Excursion Ruins of the old castle and the new castle in Sigulda, the Dainu Hill 90 min / 90 min 2 hours sculpture and folksong park, a place full of tales, legends and folksongs; and Turaida Castle, built by the bishops of Riga over the ruins of an ancient Livonian castle Ungurmuiža Estate and Cesis - Excursion Ungurmuiža Estate is the oldest still preserved, timber-built Baroque manor 90 min / 90 min 3 hours house in Latvia and features, in addition to magnificent wall and ceiling paintings, a beautiful park with tea pavilion; Cesis - the former Hanseatic town of Wenden, with the Livonian Order's castle ruins, St. John's church, and the Cesis Castle page 2 .