The historical center of Riga, or "old town" - is a place that is usually visited by all tourists when visiting Latvia. Here you can feel the spirit of the city, feel how epochs have mixed. However, just walking around the historic center is not enough. To really understand the history of the Baltics and get to know its culture, it is worth visiting the numerous museums in Riga. All of them, from the small amber museum to the National Art Museum, offer many interesting exhibitions.
Museums are represented in a variety of ways. These are permanent exhibitions of large museum centers and cozy exhibition halls of small museums. Here, history opens from various angles - from the founding of Riga to the tragic 20th century with its wars and conflicts. To see with your own eyes the life and art of Latvia from the time of ancient Riga to the present is invaluable.
The most interesting museums in Riga
List, photos with names and descriptions of museums worth visiting.
Latvian National Museum of Art
This is the oldest museum in Riga. Its collection includes over 52 thousand exhibits. It includes paintings not only by Latvian, but also by foreign artists. Permanent exhibitions showcase the art of the Baltics from the end of the 18th century to 1945. Even a non-art critic will be interested in tracing how ideas about painting have changed - from romanticism to socialist realism.
Address: Riga, st. Krisjanya Valdemara, 10 A
Website: lnmm.lv
Museum of the History of Riga and Navigation
To fully get acquainted with the history of the Baltic States, you need to visit this museum. The exhibitions are divided into periods - from ancient Riga to the 1940s. You should definitely visit the "Silver Cabinet" - an exhibition of items made of precious metals by Riga craftsmen. The famous "Riga Ship" is also kept in the museum. This is a unique find of archaeologists - an almost completely preserved single-masted vessel, which is dated to the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th centuries.
Address: Palasta, 4
Website: rigamuz.lv
Latvian Ethnographic Museum
This museum is located on the outskirts of Riga, on the shores of Lake Jugla. In the open air there is a reconstruction of more than 100 buildings of the 16th - 20th centuries. They were transported for the exhibition from various regions of Latvia. Inside the buildings there are exhibitions where you can get acquainted with the arrangement of housing and household items. The museum's collection includes musical instruments, ceramics, textiles, tools, as well as documents and photographs.
Address: Brivdabas, 21
Website: brivdabasmuzejs.lv
Riga Motor Museum
The collection of the museum includes more than 230 cars, motorcycles and other types of transport. The period of coverage is from the end of the 19th century to the middle of the 20th century. One of the most famous exhibitions is the Kremlin Collection, where you can see Brezhnev's limousine or Molotov's car. The very first cars are also presented in the restored form. A separate exhibition contains iconic cars of the last century. And the design of the exhibitions imitates the setting of the era to which the exhibits belong.
Address: Sergei Eisenstein, 6
Website: motormuzejs.lv
Museum of the Occupation of Latvia
This is a private museum, which contains evidence of the Soviet era in Latvia - the period 1940-1991. Despite the ambiguous attitude towards him, exhibitions can be of interest primarily as a collection of artifacts from Soviet times. The model of a barrack in special settlements gives an idea of the living conditions of Latvian (and not only) migrants in the 30s. Part of the exposition is unique posters, copies of documents and newspaper clippings dedicated to key moments in the history of Latvia.
Address: Riga, Raina Boulevard, 7
Website: okupacijasmuzejs.lv
Museum of Foreign Art
The museum displays the largest art collection in the Baltics, dating back to 5000 BC. It includes artifacts of Ancient Egypt, including the pharaoh's sarcophagus, collections of art objects of the peoples of the East, and works of Western European art. Separate exhibitions are devoted to contemporary types of painting, graphics and sculpture. Tours are conducted by professional guides in different languages, including Russian.
Address: Riga, Dome Square, 6
Website: lnmm.lv
Riga Art Nouveau Museum
It is dedicated to the Art Nouveau style and its manifestations in arts and crafts and architecture. Of interest is the building itself, where the museum is located. It was built in 1903 in the Riga Art Nouveau or National Romanticism style. The restorers have recreated the original furnishings and decoration of the apartments in the house. Inside you can see household items, decorations, furniture in the style of the era. And the museum staff are dressed in costumes of the early 20th century. All this allows you to fully immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the Art Nouveau era.
Address: Riga, st. Albert, 12
Website: jugendstils.riga.lv
Riga Ghetto Museum
This is an open-air museum dedicated to the Holocaust and the fate of the Jewish people in Latvia. The exhibition is divided into several parts. One is dedicated to peaceful life and everyday life - photos of synagogues, information about Jewish education, and the like. Another concerns directly the Holocaust, life in the ghetto and anti-Semitic propaganda. Particular attention is paid to the resistance movement in the ghetto.
Address: Maskavas, 14 A
Website: rgm.lv
Zanis Lipke Memorial Museum
This is a memorial dedicated to Zhanis Lipka, a person who is one of the Righteous Among the World. These are the people who saved the Jewish population during the Holocaust. Janis and his wife Johanna, risking their lives, hid the prisoners of the Riga ghetto at home. The memorial was opened in memory of Lipke's feat in 2007. It is made in the form of a falling column - a symbol of the threat that hung over the Jews during the Second World War. The museum has photos and information about other people who helped the prisoners of the ghetto.
Address: Mazays Balasta dambis, 8
Website: lipke.lv
War Museum of Latvia
The museum's permanent exhibitions cover various stages of military history - from the 9th century to the present. Here you can get acquainted with samples of military uniforms, military awards and collections of weapons from different periods. The museum contains a huge number of unique historical documents. The most significant of them are presented at permanent exhibitions.
Address: Smilshu, 20
Website: karamuzejs.lv
Pauls Stradins Museum of the History of Medicine
It is one of the largest medical museums in the world. Visitors can get acquainted with the development of medicine at different periods. The first exhibition is the birth of medical knowledge. It includes items found by archaeologists, as well as various amulets, talismans, and so on. Next comes the exposition dedicated to the Middle Ages. Modernity and modernity are also represented by separate exhibitions.
Address: Antonijas, 1
Website: mvm.lv
Latvian Railway History Museum
In Riga, a branch of the museum is located in the buildings of former locomotive repair shops. Here you can see not only the exhibits in the exhibition halls: samples of uniforms, tickets, track equipment, but also the rolling stock of the Latvian railways. There is also a working model of a railway station inside the building.
Address: Riga, Boulevard Uzvaras, 2 A
Website: railwaymuseum.lv
Fashion Museum
It hosts exhibitions dedicated to fashion in various historical eras. The main part of the exhibits is from the collection of the fashion historian Alexander Vasiliev. For example, the exhibition "The Lady in the Crinoline" tells about the fashion of the mid-19th century. It features men's and women's costumes of that time. You can visit exhibitions that relate to more closely related periods - for example, "Shine of the 80s". Both designer works and “street fashion” outfits are presented there. You can follow the schedule of exhibitions on the museum's website.
Address: Grecinieku, 24
Website: fashionmuseumriga.lv
Chocolate Museum
This is a museum from the Laima chocolate factory.Here you can not only learn how chocolate is made or look at the packaging of sweets from the last century, but also make chocolates yourself. For this, the museum has a creative workshop. Visitors can also look into the production of the factory and learn how such sweets are prepared at home.
Address: Miera, 22
Website: laima.lv
Living Silver Museum
The works of the artist and jeweler Oleg Auzers are exhibited here. The collection has been created over the course of forty years. Silver sculptures are striking in their detail and level of jewelry craftsmanship. In addition to visiting the exhibition, you can buy jewelry here, as well as look into the workshop and learn how they are made.
Address: Tornya, 4
Website: auzersilverart.com
Museum of Decorative Arts and Design
The exhibitions of the museum showcase works of Latvian decorative and applied art. These are ceramics, textiles, metal, glass and wood products. The collection covers the period from the end of the 19th century to the present. The exhibition "The Canon of Latvian Culture" presents the most significant works of national art. In this museum you can also admire contemporary works of Latvian and foreign design masters.
Address: Skarnu, 10
Website: lnmm.lv
Museum of Nature
The expositions of the museum are divided into 6 sections. Paleontological includes finds of fossils - prints, which are more than 2 million years old, fully preserved skeletons of ancient fish, mammoth bones. Anthropological is dedicated to human development. The entomology department is the richest - 63 thousand exhibits. These are different types of insects. The collection of zoological and botanical departments is dedicated to the flora and fauna of Latvia. A collection of African birds is also on display. All kinds of minerals and a collection of Baltic amber are presented at geological exhibitions.
Address: Riga, st. Cr. Barona, 4
Website: dabasmuzejs.gov.lv
National History Museum of Latvia
The main exhibition here is divided into several sections. Each of them is dedicated to a certain period in the history of Latvia - from antiquity to 1991. Museum guests can visit other exhibitions - for example, "Sacred Art". There are wooden sculptures and paintings from churches in Latvia dating back to the 14th century. And the exposition "Money in Latvia" includes a collection of banknotes from Roman coins of the 1st century to the present. There are also temporary and traveling exhibitions. For example, "The Age of Latvia" has collected the brightest exhibits from all museums in the country.
Address: Riga, st. Brivibas, 32
Website: lnvm.lv
Riga Aviation Museum
This is one of the largest aviation museums in Europe. Here the Soviet, the largest collection outside the CIS, and foreign aircraft from different times are collected. You can take a closer look at military aircraft - fighters and bombers. Civil aviation is represented by passenger and agricultural aircraft. Airfield equipment is also on display.
Address: The territory of the Riga airport
Website: airmuseum.lv
"World of the Hat"
There are more than three hundred headdresses from different countries here. This is a private collection, where you can find knight's helmet, oriental skullcaps, and African headdresses. Shoes are also presented in the museum. There are rooms with mirrors where you can try on a hat or cap. And if visitors want to learn more about the exhibits, the guide will help with this and lead a detailed excursion.
Address: Vilandes, 7
Website: worldhat.net
"Jews in Latvia"
The main goal of the museum is to study the history of Jewish communities on the territory of Latvia, and preserve the memory of them. The exhibitions include exhibits that relate to the history of the Jewish people from the time of their appearance in the Latvian lands until the middle of the 20th century. A separate exposition is dedicated to the Holocaust. The funds contain unique photographs, memoirs and other documents.
Address: Skolas, 6
Website: jewishmuseum.lv
Museum of Pharmacology
The museum is dedicated to the development of pharmaceutical knowledge. Here you can visit the alchemist's office and a medieval pharmacy. Museum guests can see a healer's house where medicinal herbs are dried, or a pharmacy from the 1920s. All interiors are reproduced with historical accuracy. A part of the exhibition is dedicated to modern pharmacology and drug production.
Address: R. Wagner, 13
Website: fm.mvm.lv
Latvian Popular Front Museum
The main idea of the expositions is the memory of the formation of the national independence of Latvia in the 80s-90s of the XX century. The premises in which the Popular Front worked are decorated in the style of that time. The exhibitions are equipped with touch screens so that guests can get acquainted with the museum's funds in detail. All required information is displayed on them, including photocopies of documents.
Address: Vecpilesetas, 13/15
Website: lnvm.lv
Riga Film Museum
This is the only museum in Latvia dedicated to cinematography. Here are collected documents related to the work of the Riga Film Studio, rare photos. A separate exhibition is associated with the name of Sergei Eisenstein - "the father of Soviet cinema" who was born in Riga. Since the exhibition space is small, temporary exhibitions are often held here. Their schedule can be seen on the museum's website.
Address: Peitavas, 10
Website: kinomuzejs.lv
Senā klēts folk costume center
The main goal of the center is to create Latvian national costumes and jewelry based on historical and ethnographic materials. Finds of archaeologists, old photos and sketches are used. All costumes are made by hand and with full respect for the details. In the center, you can also buy a unique folk dress, jewelry or interior item.
Address: Jauniela, 20
Website: senaklets.lv
Amber Museum
All exhibits of this museum are placed in one exhibition hall. There are works of jewelry art, most of which are by Natalia Valnere. Here you can see unique panels with amber flowers and a copy of the card table from the missing Amber Room. There is also amber in the decoration of the room. The exhibits are not for sale, you can only admire them.
Address: Kaleyu, 9/11
Aldaris Beer Museum
The museum is located in the historic building of the Aldaris brewery. His special pride is the brewing hall, which has completely survived since 1938. Here you can see such rarities as ancient copper kettles for brewing beer. On excursions in the museum, guests are introduced to the intricacies of brewing, taught to distinguish between types of beer, and even tasting the Aldaris brand beer.
Address: Tvaika, 44
Website: alusdarbnica.lv
Latvian Sports Museum
Exhibition halls are located in the historical center of the city, at Alksnaya Street, 9. The museum collection includes samples of sports uniforms, awards, inventory and paraphernalia. You can see copies of photos and publications dedicated to the development of sports in the Baltics. Exhibitions are held that touch on the most important events and memorable dates for Latvian sports.
Address: Alksnaya, 9
Website: sportamuzejs.lv
House of Mentzendorff
This is one of the oldest houses in Riga, built in 1695. Now an exposition has been created here that acquaints visitors with the life and life of ordinary townspeople at different periods of time. The house has preserved unique ceiling and wall paintings. Authentic interiors have been recreated using authentic furniture and household items from different eras.
Address: Grēcinieku, 18
Website: mencendorfanams.com
Porcelain Museum
The porcelain collection was created on the basis of the funds of the Riga Porcelain Factory Museum. Now it includes 8 thousand exhibits. The most famous among them are portraits on porcelain, including the portrait of the founder of the Riga porcelain factory, the collection of the German Jesen factory. The most famous exhibit of the Soviet period is the "vase for Stalin". It was made in 1952 in duplicate. One of them is now on display in the museum. Also presented is modern design - the work of Inesse Brants and other masters.
Address: Riga st. Kaleyou, 9/11
Website: porcelanamuzejs.riga.lv
