Before You Visit Riga: A Traveler’s Guide to Latvia’s Occupation History and How to Travel There Thoughtfully Today

Photo by Troy David Johnston via Flickr

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Latvia doesn’t usually enter the travel conversation through its history.

More often, it appears through its architecture, its affordability, its “underrated” Baltic charm. The language we use when a place feels newly available to us. But Latvia is not newly anything. It is a country whose independence, culture, and language survived nearly fifty years of Russian and German and occupation within living memory. And to visit it without understanding that is to arrive without context.

This blog post is not a guide born from my own foot tracks on Latvian streets. I haven’t yet been (though I’d love to). It is born from reading, then research, and finally reflection on what it means to travel thoughtfully in places shaped by trauma, resilience, and long-silenced histories. As a traveler and travel content creator, I believe we don’t only influence where people go—we influence how they arrive. How you arrive.

And in Latvia, how you arrive matters.

I first encountered Latvia through Shelly Sanders’ Daughters of the Occupation—a novel inspired by true events and the author’s own family history that moved between Riga in the 1940s and Chicago decades later, tracing the lives shaped by war, exile, and survival. It didn’t teach me facts first. It taught me weight. And once you feel that weight, it becomes impossible to see Latvia as just another beautiful Baltic destination.

“The truth is so hard to bear. Not many people are willing to carry it.” — from Shelly Sanders’ Daughters of the Occupation

This “travel guide” to Latvia is a primer for travelers who want to understand Latvia before experiencing it—not just visually and practically, but historically and humanly.

The History You Can’t Skip: Latvia Between Two Occupations

Latvia’s 20th century was not defined by a single rupture, but by being crushed between two empires.

In 1940, Latvia was forcibly annexed by the Soviet Union. A year later, Nazi Germany invaded. By the end of World War II, Latvia would again fall under Soviet control—a grip that would last until the restoration of independence in 1991.

These weren’t abstract political shifts. They meant:

• Mass deportations to Siberia (by the Soviets)

• The near-total destruction of Latvia’s Jewish population (by the German Nazis and their Latvian allies alike)

• Forced Russification and suppression of Latvian language (post WWII)

• Censorship, surveillance, and cultural erasure (until independence in 1991)

• Generations growing up under occupation rather than sovereignty (anyone born and raised and living in Latvia from 1940 to 1991)

What makes this history especially haunting is not only what happened—but how little space there was to process it publicly for decades afterward. Trauma lived quietly. Stories were passed down in fragments. Memory became something carried privately rather than spoken freely.

Understanding Latvia means understanding that independence is not just a political condition here—it is a lived, fought-for identity.

And this matters for travelers because history is not something Latvia has neatly tucked away in museums. It lives in architecture, in language politics, in family narratives, and in what Latvians still fiercely protect today.

Understanding Latvia’s History Through Riga

Photo by Jorge Franganillo via Flickr

If travelers begin anywhere in Latvia, they almost always begin in Riga—and for good reason. Riga is not only the capital, but the most accessible lens through which Latvia’s layered history becomes visible.

Here, Latvia’s story is not hidden, but it also isn’t theatricalized. It exists quietly, insistently, for those willing to look. My hope with this post is that you’re one of the millions who visit Latvia each year that are willing to look.

Places that anchor Latvia’s past in Riga include:

• The Museum of the Occupation of Latvia, which traces the 51-year period (1940–1991) of consecutive Soviet, Nazi, and renewed Soviet occupations and holds over 75,000 items, including personal artifacts, photos, and documents, highlighting the repression and resistance during this period

• The KGB Corner House, the former headquarters of the Soviet KGB (secret police) from 1940-1941 and 1944-1991 and the site of interrogation and imprisonment that now serves as a museum and exhibition space highlighting the history of Soviet surveillance, repression, and torture during the occupation of Latvia

• The Freedom Monument, a 140-ft (42.7-meter) high landmark unveiled in 1935 to honor the soldiers killed during the Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920); it survived the Soviet occupation and became a central rallying point for the national independence movement in the 1980s

• The Jewish Ghetto and Holocaust Museum, bears witness to the near-erasure of the Jewish community in Latvia by way of their vibrant life before the war, the devastation of the Holocaust (approximately 70,000 Latvian Jews were murdered), and the resilience of those who survived.

• Soviet-era housing blocks and infrastructure that still shape daily life, best seen in the sprawling, 1960s-1980s residential areas outside the city center of Riga, specifically in neighborhoods like Imanta, Ķengarags, Ziepniekkalns, Pļavnieki, and Mežciems

These are not simply “things to see and do in Riga.” They are places that ask those who visit to slow down, to absorb, and to hold discomfort alongside the admiration.

Riga is beautiful. That’s a fact. But it is also honest. And that combination is what makes it such a powerful starting point for understanding Latvia as a whole.

Why This History Should Shape How You Visit Latvia

History doesn’t just belong to textbooks. It should inform behavior—especially when we travel.

How You Talk About Latvia

Latvia is not:

• “Cheap Europe”

• A “post-Soviet aesthetic”

• Or an “undiscovered” playground

It is a country that fought for cultural survival and political independence within living memory of human beings today. Language matters. Framing matters. When we speak about Latvia as newly available to us, we erase what Latvians have always known about themselves.

How You Spend Your Money

Where you choose to stay, eat, tour, and shop shapes whose Latvia is being supported.

Source: Latvia Travel

Prioritize:

• Locally owned guesthouses and hotels, like Boutique Hotel Kristofs or Hotel Gutenbergs in Riga

• Latvian-led tour companies like Private Baltics, Allure Tours, and GuruWalk’s tip-based, local-led free walking tours

• Craftspeople and makers preserving and innovating upon Latvian traditions, like Viola Anna Bīriņa’s black pottery, Rennan Villar’s handcrafted knives, pipes, and jewelry, and all of the makers and studios mentioned in this program

• Regional travel beyond Riga to places like Sigulda and Gauja National Park for medieval castles and hiking, the historic town of Cēsis, the coastal resort of Jūrmala, and Kuldīga, home to Europe's widest waterfall, the Ventas Rumba. Other top spots include Rundāle Palace and the pristine, rugged beaches of Cape Kolka

Be mindful of experiences that:

• Turn occupation into novelty

• Package trauma as entertainment

• Or sell “Soviet nostalgia” without honoring the very real lived suffering

How You Experience the Country

Traveling Latvia with context means:

• Learning a few Latvian phrases, even though many people speak English and Russian. Latvia.eu pulled together a great resource for learning some basic Latvian words and phrases.

• Understanding why language preservation matters deeply here

• Asking respectful questions rather than consuming curated stories that could largely leave you with the wrong impression about Latvia and the Latvian people

• Allowing emotional weight to be part of the experience, however uncomfortable, so that when you head back home Latvia isn’t just a pretty place, but a place that you feel connected to and with

This is not about traveling “perfectly,” but it is about traveling as consciously you can. The true power of travel is the way it takes a place and a people you once knew nothing about and makes them something real, tangible, and human.

A Thoughtful Starter Guide to Latvia Today

Latvia is not only a country shaped by history—it is one actively expressing cultural resilience. That’s truly special.

Where to Go Beyond Riga

• Cēsis and Sigulda: medieval towns and access points to Gauja National Park

• Kurzeme Coast: windswept beaches, fishing villages, and deep quiet

• Latgale: culturally rich, often overlooked, deeply tied to Latvian identity

• Gauja National Park: forests, rivers, and the landscapes that sheltered resistance and survival

When to Visit

• Summer, for festivals and the Song and Dance tradition (occurs every five years, next expected in 2028)

• Līgo (Midsummer), a deeply rooted celebration of Latvian culture

• November 18, Latvia’s Independence Day, marks the anniversary of the Proclamation of Independence of Latvia by the People's Council of Latvia in 1918

Cultural Experiences That Carry Meaning

Source: Latvia Travel

• Attending or learning about Latvia’s Song and Dance Celebration, recognized by UNESCO

• Exploring traditional sauna culture

• Visiting folk markets and artisan studios

• Understanding Latvia’s relationship with its forests—both spiritual and historical (Fun Fact: 50% of Latvia is covered by forest, making it one of Europe’s greenest nations)

Latvia’s culture is not something that survived despite history—it survived because of resistance to erasure. Let that sink in for a moment.

How Stories Make Us Better Travelers

Explore the novel that inspired this blog post.

Fiction rooted in real history doesn’t replace facts—but it gives them gravity. It gives faces to policies. Homes to headlines. Silence to statistics. And in the world we live in today, that’s extremely powerful medicine.

One novel in particular opened this door to Latvia for me. Shelly Sanders’ Daughters of the Occupation moves between occupied Riga in the 1940s and immigrant life in 1970s Chicago decades later, tracing how trauma travels across generations even when borders are crossed. It reminded me that travel is never just about movement through space—but through memory, too.

And that matters, because empathy is one of the most important travel tools we carry. Not because it makes us better tourists—but because it makes us more human in places that deserve that care.

Traveling Without Being There

I haven’t yet been to Latvia. But I believe contributing thoughtfully to tourism does not always require physical presence—it requires intellectual honesty and cultural respect.

As a travel writer and content creator, I’m acutely aware that travel content doesn’t only sell destinations. It shapes narratives. And Latvia deserves narratives that reflect its depth, not just its charm or affordability. I hope this post has begun to show you why.

If you travel there someday, my wish is that you arrive with curiosity, humility, and context. And if you don’t ever make it there, let Latvia stay with you as a country, a culture, and a people who endured the unimaginable—and persisted because they refused to be erased, becoming what makes visiting so meaningful today.

How This Kind of Content Is Made Possible

If you found this post valuable, one of the ways you can support my work is by using the affiliate links you find throughout the site and on my Travel Resources page. They allow me to continue researching, writing, and sharing thoughtful travel content like this—content that prioritizes context, care, and community over quick recommendations. Thank you for being part of that.

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