Riga is a true Art Nouveau metropolis with over 800 buildings in this unique architectural style. In fact, it has the world’s highest concentration of Art Nouveau architecture. On this tour, we’ll explore Art Nouveau’s history, visit the city’s most iconic examples of the style and hear about its architects – like Mikhail Eisenstein, whose son Sergei became a legendary Soviet filmmaker. .

I’ve always felt that when approaching a niche subject like this, it’s important to make it understandable and relatable, without watering it down. With so many great examples, Riga gives us a perfect opportunity to dive into the subject of Art Nouveau and find out more about its relevance not just as an architectural style, but also for what it reveals about Riga.

On this tour you’ll discover:

How to identify an Art Nouveau building
The incredibly decorative work of Michael Eisenstein
The courtyard of one of Riga's most impressive residential buildings
How Riga’s architects developed a unique Latvian style called National Romanticism

This 30 minute tour is a must for anybody interested in architecture and its links to society, as well as how ideas spread and evolve.
A walk through Old Riga from

Hi, I'm Edvards and I am a professional tour guide in Riga. I've lived in Riga for almost my entire life and for the past 6 years I've been doing anything and everything a guide can do - walking tours, kayak tours, segway tours, beer drinking tours - you name it , I've done. The cool thing is - it just doesn't get boring, I estimate I've done at least a 1000 tours and still, quite often, I find something new and interesting about the city. Apart from guiding, I perform regularly at the Riga Improv theatre, I have a background in academic debating and I'm working towards a masters degree in political science. Hope you like my tours and enjoy Riga!