The history of modern Sigulda as a city began between the 16th and 18th centuries. Then on the route of the future railway connecting Pskov with Riga, Sigulda gradually turned into a staging post and a resort at the same time. At the end of the 19th century, the Russian owner of local lands, Prince Kropotkin, transferred Sigulda to rich Riga rulers who built their country estates here.

Today Sigulda is a small town located on the border of the picturesque green valley of Gauja and surrounded by medieval castles and legendary caves. It is also the gateway to the Gauja National Park in the north-east of the city. It is called the "Switzerland of Latvia" for green "alpine" hills, old wooden farmhouses and endless fields with a thousand yellow flowers. Nearby landscapes have made Sigulda a resort town with a winter sports center, where the Olympic bobsledder glides across the snow-covered hills of the valley.

Contents 1 How to get 1.1 Search for air tickets to Riga (nearest s / n to Sigulda) 2 Entertainment, excursions and sightseeing Sigulda 2.1 Riga and surroundings

How to get

You can get to Sigulda by bus from Riga (2 hours, 6 buses per day) or by train from Riga (1 h 15 min, 10 trains daily), Valmiera (1h15 min), Ligatne (10 min) and Cesis (50 min ).

Entertainment, excursions and sightseeing Sigulda

The main historical and architectural landmark of Sigulda is Turaida Castle (4 km from Sigulda). Originally it was created in the 13th century by the order of the Bishop of Riga, Albert, but surviving more than 5 centuries, was completely destroyed in the fire. Since the middle of the 20th century, restoration work was actively carried out, and to date, part of the walls and three towers have already been restored: the northern, southern, and observation towers. On the territory of Turaida Castle there is an open-air museum and a sculpture park.

The new Sigulda Castle and the palace originally belonged to the family of Count Borham, but later inherited the princely family Kropotkin. After the end of the First World War, the Society of Latvian Journalists was located in the palace building. Today there is a city administration here.

On the way between Sigulda and Turaida Castle is the largest cave of Latvia - Gutmanis, from which flows a small stream with curative spring water. According to the legend, the water in the stream is tears of Gutmani, which have healing and animating properties.

The Krimulda Palace and the ruins are located 800 meters from the Gutman cave along and up the serpentine. The cable car brings tourists here every half hour. In Sigulda is the only cable car in Latvia connecting the hills of Sigulda and Krimulda in the Gauja valley. It was opened in January 1969 at an altitude of 1060 meters above the valley. One-way fare will cost 2 LVL (for July 2011)

On the Dine Hill, created in 1985 in honor of the 150th anniversary of Krishtianis Baron, you can visit the sculpture park, which features works depicting the heroes of Latvian folk tales. In the middle of the 16th century, the master of the Livonian Order, Ketler, presented Nurmuiju's estate. Today, this estate is not less than any castle in size and deserves a tourist inspection.

The area of ​​the canes is the visiting card of Sigulda. It was built in 2007 as a symbol of the hospitality of local residents who, from the 19th century, made canes to help tourists climb the hills of the river valley of Gauja.

The classical tourist route in Sigulda would look like this: walk along the forest footpaths to Turaida. From there, take a cable car ride through the whole valley, and then walk around each path of the Turaida village and castle before returning to the river valley and visiting the Gutman cave.

Photo of Sigulda (4)