Ventspils combines an award-winning beach with maritime discoveries, cultural history and active leisure opportunities. The city’s places and activities reveal different sides of this destination, without requiring you to follow a fixed sightseeing itinerary.
Beach and Maritime Landmarks
The Blue Flag has flown at Ventspils Blue Flag Beach during the bathing season since 1999. Each beach access has a number, the water temperature and a sign indicating whether swimming is permitted or prohibited. If you are planning a beach visit, these signs provide clear guidance on each access point and bathing conditions.
Close to the sea, the spacious and well-equipped Jūrmalas Park offers opportunities to relax and enjoy walks outdoors, including for the whole family. The park also has a maritime connection: 35 different types of anchor from the 152 anchors in the Piejūras brīvdabas muzejs collection are displayed there. A visit to the green surroundings thus offers a glimpse of historic anchor designs.
Active Leisure and Trips on the Venta
Piedzīvojumu parks is a sports and active recreation complex offering leisure and sports activities for individual visitors, groups and families throughout the year. Attractions include a 580-metre summer toboggan run, which operates year-round; rides are subject to the stated wind restrictions. At the wakepark on the southern slope of the “Lemberga hūte” hill, visitors can rent wakeboarding equipment on site. As availability may change, it is advisable to enquire before your visit.
Facilities at Ūdens piedzīvojumu parks include a wave pool, a heated pool, a children’s pool, slides, a lazy river, SPA baths and a sauna. Some facilities may operate seasonally. Alongside outdoor activities, there are therefore various water and bathing options, and seasonal operations should be taken into account when planning.
The excursion boat Hercogs Jēkabs offers a different perspective on the city: the 45-minute trip passes the mouth of the Venta, the Old Town, the industrial area of Ventspils Freeport and the sea gates. Schedules change seasonally, so check the current departures before planning a trip. Along the Venta, the buoy exhibition on the Ostas Street promenade also displays 14 buoys and beacons. Each has an information board explaining its purpose.
Fortress, Museum and Culture
Livonijas ordeņa pils is one of Latvia’s oldest surviving medieval fortresses. Following restoration and renovation work, the chapel, chapter hall, dormitory of the order’s brothers and refectory opened to visitors in summer 2012. If you want to plan a visit to specific rooms, check the current visitor arrangements in advance.
Piejūras brīvdabas muzejs was founded in Ventspils in 1954 as an open-air museum of marine fishing. Its exhibition depicts the everyday lives of the inhabitants of the Courland coast and presents the lives of Latvian and Liv people who farmed and fished. The museum complements the maritime impressions at the beach and in the park with a perspective on life along the coast.
The “LATVIJA” concert hall is a centre for music, art and cultural education in Northern Courland. It offers guided tours for adult and children’s groups of up to ten people. Its facilities include a pipe organ built by the German organ-building company “Johannes Klais Orgelbau” and the world’s largest piano, made by Latvian-born piano maker Dāvids Kļaviņš.
At the Zinātnes centrs VIZIUM, the exhibition is divided into seven galleries. The educational interactive exhibition halls feature more than 80 interactive exhibits. For visitors with a particular interest in science and interactive exhibitions, this focus offers a contrast to the city’s historical and maritime themes.
Discover more destinations: Pope, Zūras, Vendzavas, Užava, Vārve, Dzirnavas, Ziras, Akmeņdziras.
Go to the main travel overview: Ventspils.
