Riga's main station: Location map
Riga has one main central railway station, Rīgas Centrālā stacijа, a heady combination of Soviet-era rail terminal built in 1960 and modern shopping centre.
Riga Central Station. White arrow = main entrance to the main hall. Blue arrow = entrance past retail units to the ticket hall.
The dual-carriageway road in front of the station is fenced-off. A network of pedestrian subways links each side, use these to cross to Riga's old town. Larger photo.
Main hall, taken from the steps up to platforms 1 & 2. Courtesy of J.Bond.
Main hall. Go up either of those steps to platforms 1 & 2. Platform 2, track 1 is the one usually used by trains to/from Vilnius & Tallinn. To the right (under the departures board) is the way through to the ticket hall. Courtesy of J.Bond.
Which platform?
Latvia uses the Polish-style system of numbering both platforms (perons) and tracks (ceļš) with different sets of numbers, where a platform can have a track each side of it. Departure screens in the main hall, on the platform and in the subway under the tracks will tell you the platform & track number for your train.
Platforms 1 & 2 are next to the station building, see the photo below. Platform 2 track 1 is the one normally used by the trains to Tallinn & Vilnius, but always check the departure screens. Walk into the main hall and go up either of the two sets of steps at the rear of the hall and up another set of steps onto platform 2. There is also a lift if you have heavy luggage or mobility issues.
Platforms 3-5: Three passageways labelled A, B & C run from the station building under the tracks with steps up to platforms 2, 3, 4 & 5. There are lifts if you have heavy luggage or mobility issues.
Above, platform 2, track 1. This is usually the one used by the trains to Vilnius & Tallinn. But always check the screens!
Platform 1 (tracks 10, 11 & 12) are the dead-end terminus tracks on the right of the photo. Platforms 3 & 4 are out of shot to the left, reached via pedestrian subway
This is the daily Lithuanian train to Vilnius. Note the 'Riga' signs on the side of the building and on the clock tower.
Above, platform 3, tracks 3 & 4. A Latvian local train run by Vivi is just running in. The Lithuanian train to Vilnius is visible on the left, over on platform 2.
Looking from platform 3 to platform 4. Beyond 4, the new Rail Baltica station is under construction, due to handle fast trains to Tallinn, Vilnius & Warsaw from 2030.
Left luggage
There's a room full of coin-operated luggage lockers downstairs below the main hall, just follow the luggage locker pictogram signs. See the luggage lockers page for prices.
Ticket hall & ticket office
The Vivi ticket office is at the back of the ticket hall, which is to the right of the main hall when viewed from outside the station. In the photo below you can just see the ticket windows in the background under the departures board. You can either walk through the main station entrance into the main hall and turn right into the ticket hall (in the photo below, the main hall is behind the camera) or you can walk into the secondary station entrance to the right of the clock tower straight into this ticket hall.
Passageway C leads off from this hall under all the tracks with steps up to each platform.
Food and drink
There are many food outlets and a Caffeine cafe at the station. There's a large McDonalds across the road from the station, but it's a wide and busy road that doesn't allow pedestrians to cross, so use the pedestrian underpass. There are of course lots of good restaurants in the old town, 15 minutes walk away.
Walking to Riga old town
The station is in the city centre, easy walking distance from all the sights in the old town.
Riga's Freedom Monument, a 800m 11-minute walk from Riga station (see walking map) or a 600m 8-minute walk from the Metropole Hotel (see walking map).
Above left, St Peter's church. I highly recommend ascending the tower to view the old town, St Peter's is a 1 km 14-minute walk from Riga station (see walking map) or a 7-minute 550m walk from the Metropole Hotel (see walking map).
Above right, Riga old town, seen from the tower of St Peter's church.
Riga's town hall square, a 1.1 km 15-minute walk from Riga station (see walking map) or a 600m 9-minute walk from the Metropole Hotel (see walking map).
Hotels in Riga
I recommend the venerable Metropole Hotel, Riga's oldest continuously-operating hotel opened in 1871, now branded Eurostars Metropole. Located on the edge of the old town, it's a mere 7-minute 450m walk from Riga Central Station, see walking map. Inexpensive by western standards, it has large and comfortable rooms.
Metropole hotel: The road between station and hotel/old town is busy and fenced off, but a network of Soviet-era pedestrian passageways links each side of the road.
Above left, a 6th floor room at the Metropole Hotel.
Riga bus station Location map
If you need to take a bus to Tallinn or Vilnius, the bus station is a 9-minute walk from Riga Central Station or a 5-minute 300m walk from the Metropole Hotel. Though one cup of Lux Express instant coffee had me pining for an LTG-Link bean-to-cup latte on the train!
Above, Riga bus station entrance. Below, a Lux Express bus from Riga to Tallinn.
Metropo