Riga! The Europe’s Wifi capital! But of course there is plenty more to see: amazing historic facades, cobblestone roads, a river half a kilometer in width with astonishing views. Fish. Anything to please a traveller, and we haven’t even started on an iconic venue the conference will be in. Do come here. You’ve got plenty of options.
State-owned AirBaltic is your airline of choice: Riga (RIX) is the hub for this relatively low-cost airline. It offers direct flights from most European and Middle-East capitals, including Berlin, London, Brussels, Budapest, Tallinn, and Kyiv. Of course you should consult your flight booking website of choice for a possibility of a cheaper flight!
Others options of getting to Riga include Lux Express buses from nearby countries, driving, or hiring a private yacht. See details on the official tourist website.
If you live nearby, there is a chance somebody from the OSM community will be travelling the same direction, and you could share the costs. Ask around on the forum or on other channels.
It’s the University of Latvia! Just like the last time, we will occupy the most modern university building, pleasant all around and just across the street from a river (well, a canal, not very picturesque, but still).
The building is hard to miss, though it mandates a few minutes of walking from the public library. Here’s a GeoURI and an Organic Maps marker for you. When near, find the Baltic GIT conference banners and follow them.
To get to the university building, take:
For some reason, it is often cheaper to rent an apartment than a hotel room. On the booking.com website, you’ll see plenty of options starting from 30 € a night (though 50 is a more common price). The best area to rent is of course around the National Library.
Due to Riga being a popular destination for students and backpackers, there are many cheap hostels, with prices around 10 € a night. Most of these are located in the city centre: the best location criteria for you should be a distance to the nearest tram stop, or to the railway station.
Alas we cannot recommend any specific accomodations, since we haven’t used them much. Please rely on website ratings. If possible, google the name of the chosen hotel or hostel and book directly: that helps them save on huge booking.com fees.
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