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Ventspils, located in the north-west of Latvia some 189 kilometres from Riga, is an up-to-date, modern European city with a wide range of available entertainment and tourist sights.
This city of 44,000 inhabitants is at mouth of the Venta River that flows into the Baltic Sea.
Its ice-free, world-class port is one of the major transit hubs between East and West.

 

Some ten years ago, when Ventspils celebrated its 700th anniversary, its streets and buildings still showed widespread signs of neglect caused by decades of Soviet misrule. The contrast with the city's days of glory in the 17th century under Duke Jacob, and with the rapid period of expansion in the beginning of the 20th century, could not have been greater. The anniversary celebrations were also a time for reassessment and serious, long-term planning. Those efforts all those years ago have paid off, and helped bring about positive turn in city's development.

 

Ventspils also is proud of the cleanest streets and smoothest driving surfaces in the country. It is known as the brightest city in Latvia, with not a single unlit street or square after dark. During the summer months, attractive water fountains and flower arrangements abound in the city to please the eye and uplift the soul.

 

Ventspils' sweeping environmental cleanup program has been one of the city's most notable success stories. In close co-operation with local enterprises and environmental experts from the Netherlands, Ventspils has managed to transform itself from an ecological disaster area to well-kept and environmentally conscious city. In 1999, Ventspils' beach became the first in the country to receive the Blue Flag, signifying its environmental soundness, and the refurbished Venta River Promenade is now a popular spot for quiet strolls and city festivals.

 

The world's largest cargo and tanker ships can now dock year-round at Ventspils' ice free port, whose shipping canal was deepened in 1998. Commuters and tourists will also appreciate the city's freshly renovated bus station. In summer, tourists now have the option of spending the night at the fully equipped Seaside camping ground. Ventspils has regular ferry traffic with Sweden. Ventspils – Nyneshamn ferry line, opened on August 30 year 2002. The passenger and cargo ferry line operates six times a week.

 

Ventspils is especially proud of its award-winning success in renovating existing buildings and constructing new ones. The once –decrepit castle of the German Knights of the Livonian Order now houses one of Latvia's most modern digital museums. Several new cultural monuments have also become popular city landmarks, including the Sea Stone sculpture, the Sun Boats water fountain, and statue of Kri?jānis Valdemārs.

 

The present-day Ventspils has acquired a particularly attractive new face with the Ventspils Olympic center, which comes complete with a heated stadium, an athletics arena, a basketball hall, ice rink, tennis courts, a swimming pool and a skate park. The recently unveiled Children City is the largest park of its kind in the Baltic countries, and a vast, new aquatic amusement center is open.

 

When organizing excursions and choosing accommodations, we invite you to use the services of Ventspils Tourism Information Centre. From May it is open every day! It can provide detailed, relevant information about the whole range of tourism opportunities in Ventspils!

 

 

 

Distance from Ventspils

 

Amsterdam	1880 km	Madrid	3600 km
Athena	2800 km	Moscow	1200 km
Barcelona	3000 km	Milano	2200 km
Beograd	1700 km	Minsk	600 km
Berlin	1250 km	München	1700 km
Bern	2100 km	Oslo*	600 km
Bruxelles	2000 km	Paris	2400 km
Bucuresti	1850 km	St. Petersburg	700 km
Budapest	1350 km	Praha	1300 km
Dublin	2700 km	Roma	2500 km
Helsinki*	500 km	Sofija	2100 km
Istanbul	2700 km	Stockholm*	60 km
Kobenhavn*	700 km	Vilnius	400 km
Köln	1800 km	Tallinn	500 km
Kyjiv	1100 km	Warszawa	750 km
Lisboa	4200 km	Wien	1400 km
London	2300 km	Zagreb	1750 km

 

Oslo 600 km + ferry Ventspils – Nineshamna

Helsinki 500 km + ferry from Tallinn

Kobenhavn 700 km + ferry Ventspils – Nineshamna

(or 1600 km through Warszawa)

Stockholm 60 km + ferry Ventspils – Nineshamna