How cold, and how dark
Winter in Latvia runs from December to March. Riga in December hovers around freezing, a degree or so above zero by day and a few below at night. January and February are the coldest months, with highs around zero and lows near minus five, and a cold spell can take it well below minus ten.
Snow is likely but not guaranteed. Some Decembers are white from the first week, others are grey until January. If snow matters to you, late January and February are the safer bet.
The dark is the bigger adjustment. On the shortest day the sun rises a little after nine and sets around a quarter to four. Plan the outdoor part of each day for late morning and early afternoon, and let the evenings be long dinners.
December: Riga's Christmas market
The market on Dome Square runs from Friday 27 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027. It opens at 11:00 from Monday to Thursday and closes at 21:00, runs 10:00 to 22:00 on Friday and Saturday and 10:00 to 21:00 on Sunday. Entry is free.
Unlike most in Europe it stays open over Christmas: 10:00 to 20:00 on Christmas Eve, 10:00 to 21:00 on Christmas Day, and until 2:00 on New Year's Eve.
Eat grey peas with bacon, the Latvian Christmas dish, and drink Riga Black Balsam in hot blackcurrant juice. Five minutes away on Town Hall Square, a plaque in the cobbles marks where the Blackheads guild is said to have raised the first decorated Christmas tree in 1510.
January and February: the quiet months
Once the market closes, Riga empties. These are the cheapest weeks of the year and the Old Town lanes are close to deserted, which under fresh snow is exactly how you want them.
The city is built for this weather. The Art Nouveau streets around Alberta iela take an hour to walk and are best in low winter sun. The Central Market is indoors, in five former zeppelin hangars, and the Latvian National Museum of Art and the Museum of the Occupation are both open through the winter.
Restaurants and hotels stay open all season. What closes is on the coast: beach cafes and some seaside guesthouses shut from October to April.
Outside the city: Sigulda, Cēsis and the coast
Sigulda, about an hour from Riga, has a bobsled and luge track where visitors can ride in the cold months. Above the river, Turaida's red brick castle is at its best with snow on the trees below it.
Cēsis, a little further up the Gauja valley, has a medieval castle ruin and, in Advent, a small Christmas market that sees a fraction of Riga's visitors.
Jūrmala is half an hour from Riga by train. In winter the long beach is empty and the wooden villas are shuttered, and a walk along the frozen sand followed by an hour in a spa hotel is a good short day.
Pirts: the Latvian sauna
The pirts is the Latvian sauna, and winter is when it makes most sense. It is slower and more deliberate than a hotel sauna: wood heat, steam, and bundles of birch, oak or linden leaves used to move the hot air and to scrub the skin.
A proper session is led by a pirtnieks, a sauna master, and runs for two or three hours with rests and herbal tea between rounds. It ends outside, in a pond through a hole in the ice or simply in the snow.
Most are at country guesthouses rather than in Riga, so it is something to arrange in advance rather than find on the day. It fits well as an evening on the way back from Sigulda.
Northern lights: the honest odds
The aurora is visible from Latvia, but rarely, and usually as a pale green glow low on the northern horizon rather than curtains overhead. It takes a strong geomagnetic storm, a clear night and somewhere dark facing north.
The season is September to March. If a storm is forecast, with a Kp index of about six or higher, the place to stand is Cape Kolka, where the Gulf of Riga meets the open Baltic and there is almost no light behind you.
Do not plan a trip to Latvia around it. If the aurora is the point, go to Finnish Lapland, about two hours by air, where it is overhead on well over a hundred nights a year. Come to Latvia for the things that are certain.
What to wear and how to get around
Layers, a hat that covers your ears, gloves, and above all shoes with a real grip. Old Town cobbles under ice are the one genuine hazard of a Riga winter.
Trains to Jūrmala and Sigulda run all year, and Riga itself is a walking city with good trams. You do not need a car for a winter city break.
For the countryside, winter tyres are mandatory and fitted to every rental, but snow, ice and early darkness make rural driving slow. This is the season when most visitors are happier with a driver who does it every day.
Seeing it with us
Christmas in Riga is our five-day Advent trip: an Old Town hotel a short walk from Dome Square, a local guide for the daylight hours, the bobsled track at Sigulda and the quieter market in Cēsis.
If you want all three capitals in one December, A Baltic Christmas links Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn by private car while all three markets are open.
For January and February we build Latvia to order: Riga, the Gauja valley, a pirts evening, and as much or as little countryside as the weather invites.
| November | 5 / 1°C | Grey. Market opens on the 27th |
|---|---|---|
| December | 1 / −2°C | Christmas market, under 7 hours of light |
| January | 0 / −5°C | Coldest, quietest, cheapest |
| February | 0 / −5°C | Best odds of snow, days lengthening |
| March | 5 / −2°C | Thaw, 12 hours of light by the end |
- Is Latvia worth visiting in winter?
- Yes, for Riga above all. December has one of Europe's better Christmas markets, open even on Christmas Day, and January and February give you the Old Town and the Art Nouveau streets almost to yourself at the lowest prices of the year. It is not the season for the coast.
- How cold is Riga in December?
- Around freezing. The average high is about 1°C and the average low about minus 2°C, with colder spells below minus ten possible. The sun rises a little after nine and sets around a quarter to four.
- Does it snow in Latvia at Christmas?
- Often, but not every year. Snow is likely from December to February and most reliable in late January and February. A white Christmas in Riga is common rather than guaranteed.
- Can you see the northern lights in Latvia?
- Occasionally. It needs a strong geomagnetic storm, a clear night and a dark north-facing spot such as Cape Kolka, and it happens a handful of times in a good winter. For a reliable aurora, Finnish Lapland is the place.
- Is the Riga Christmas market open on Christmas Day?
- Yes. In 2026 it is open from 10:00 to 20:00 on 24 December, 10:00 to 21:00 on 25 December and 10:00 to 22:00 on 26 December, and it runs until 3 January 2027.
Make this part of your Latvia trip.
Tell us your dates, interests and the pace you have in mind. We will suggest how this could fit your route.