Jurmala is without a doubt the most publicized and famous resort in Latvia. Like all coastal towns, which are popular with tourists, it has grown along the coast of the Gulf of Riga by as much as thirty-two kilometers. So now it’s quite possible to talk about “Big Jurmala”, which includes once separate villages: Kemeri, Dzintari, Bulduri, Lielupe, Majori, Jaundubulti and others. Life in the main Latvian resort is completely subject to the seasons. In the summer there is crowded and noisy. And at other times, the town freezes and finally begins to live "for itself", and not for the spa guests. But this does not mean at all that the rest in Jurmala is exclusively summer. In this article we will tell you all about the most famous Latvian resort. What is the climate there, how to get there, where to stay, where to eat and what to do - read below. We will also give prices in Jurmala. You can come to the resort in an organized manner, having bought a tour package.
Where is Jurmala located and how to get there?
This town is located only twenty kilometers from the capital of Latvia, Riga. Therefore, rest in Jurmala is also attractive because it can be reached quickly and without problems. Air Baltic and Aeroflot planes make regular flights to Riga. From Moscow, St. Petersburg and other major cities of western Russia to the capital of Latvia, shuttle buses and tourist buses make trips. But it’s impossible to get directly from Riga Airport to Jurmala. We'll have to go to the railway station, from where quite often trains leave in the direction of Tukums or Sloka. Travel time is less than half an hour. The train makes stops in all satellite villages of Jurmala.
Minibus in the same direction leaves from the main railway station. In summer, a direct express bus runs from Riga Airport. A ticket costs three euros. An unforgettable trip on the boat "New Wave". He leaves from Riga Castle and arrives in the resort village of Majori. This path is the longest (two and a half hours), but it is very interesting.
An excellent road leads to Jurmala from Riga, and the journey by your own car takes about twenty minutes. Before entering the city you will have to pay a resort fee of two euros. But if you have booked a hotel or a sanatorium, you do not need to purchase a pass.
Weather in Jurmala
The climate of the Baltic coast is not warm. But the Gulf of Riga is quite small and warms up well. The holiday season in Jurmala is short. It opens solemnly at the end of May. And it ends already in mid-August, but if the weather in Jurmala allows, then at the end of the month.
It should be said that precipitation most of all falls at the beginning of autumn, which is not long in coming to Riga seaside. But the summer is really warm. The climate in Jurmala is suitable for those who can not stand the heat. The column of the thermometer, even in July, rarely rises to +28. Spring in Jurmala comes in mid-March. Winters here are very cold and windy.
When to go to Jurmala?
In the high season (in July) the resort is very crowded. Prices are rising, and crowds of people are walking through the streets. Travel agencies from all over Latvia send their tours to Jurmala: weekend, wellness, sightseeing (along with a tour of Riga) and so on. If you like a more or less secluded, relaxing holiday, avoid coming here in July. A noticeable decline in the number of holidaymakers is already observed in the first decade of August. The last month of summer can bring unpleasant surprises with the weather, but it's worth the risk. Jurmala in August pleases with a warm sea. And the average air temperature this month is twenty-one degrees.
August at the resort is eventful. Instead of Russian shows - KVN, "Jurmalins" and "New Wave", other concerts and festivals are held in "Dzintari". In particular, the comedy show “Evening Kiev” is touring. In mid-August, Jurmala hosts the Summertime festival. Since September, resort life in Jurmala has been quietly quiet. A short revival occurs only on Christmas and New Year holidays.
Garden City
This colorful epithet is often given to Jurmala. If some ancient cities are called "open-air museums", then the main Latvian resort is called a park. Rest in Jurmala has a contemplative pastime, leisurely walks along the dunes or the edge of the water. In addition to carefully planted flower beds, there are many pine trees that, like sentries, guard the coast.
The beaches in Jurmala are sandy. Basically, they gave glory to the resort. Because this sand is quartz, white. The beaches of Jurmala every year are awarded the highest award for amenities and cleanliness - the Blue Flag. Sunset in the Gulf of Finland is very smooth, so that parents can be calm for their bathing child. Jurmala itself was conceived as a fashionable resort. The main type of local development is two-story mansions, small masterpieces of wooden architecture of the nineteenth century. Fifteen villages are included in the Big Jurmala. The most glamorous is the stretch of Jomas pedestrian street, as well as the coast from Maiori to Bulduri.
Wellness rest
Jurmala has not only the sea and plenty of entertainment to boot. Mineral springs also exist here. Their water is used inside, and in sanatoria (there are plenty of them at the resort), baths, showers and other spa treatments are practiced. The Slokskoy swamp, which is located near the village of Kemeri, supplies healing mud to the sanatoriums. Wellness tours to Jurmala year-round. Of course, sanatoriums are most crowded in the summer, as vacationers want to combine treatment with swimming in the sea. The most famous health resorts of the resort are Belarus, Amber Coast, Jurmala Spa and Baltic Beach Hotel. Mud and water treatments are combined there with physiotherapeutic procedures, massages (Ayurvedic, Thai, aromatic, volcanic stones), cryo-, halo- and speleotherapy. In health resorts they successfully fight against neurological, gynecological diseases, problems of the musculoskeletal system and cardiovascular system.
Beaches in Jurmala
Sand treatment (psammotherapy) is practiced everywhere in the resort, and not only in sanatoriums. In any case, a vacation in Jurmala at sea will be wellness. After all, the sand here is not simple, but quartz. And no matter what village you stay in, everywhere: in Asari, Dzintari, Bulduri, Dubulti, Vaivari, Lielupe, Pumpuri, Melluji - you will find velvet dunes surrounded by green pine trees. Do you want maximum comfort on the beach? Then visit one of the beach clubs. Jurmala Spa is not only four hundred meters of pure sand, but also a lot of entertainment for children and adults. First-class service, restaurants and cafes await you at the beach complexes “Chaika Family” and “Havana Club Lounge”.
Things to do in Jurmala
At this Latvian resort you will not be bored. There is no need to present the Dzintari Concert Hall - every resident of the CIS knows it. But there are other entertainments. In the sanatorium "Amber Coast" guided tours to the former cottage Brezhnev. The reviews claim that both children and adults are delighted with Livu, the largest indoor water park in Northern Europe. The weather in the Baltic is moody. "Livu" with its forty attractions, heated pools and a complex of various baths will be an alternative to the cold sea and drizzling rain. Winter vacation in Jurmala is impossible without visiting the active recreation complex “Baili”. It has ski lifts, pistes of various levels, ski, snowboard and camera rental. Reviews recommend visiting a fishing manor, caves with underground lakes Vejini. Nature lovers are waiting for the national parks "Gauja" and "Kemeri".
Rest in Jurmala: prices
The cost of rest at this resort is largely dependent on the season. Only the price for a visa does not change - 35 euros. You can get from Moscow to Riga for 50 Є, and from St. Petersburg for 30 Є. Staying at five star hotels in July can cost you several hundred dollars a night. But in August and June you can find accommodation from seventeen euros for a double room. A hot dish in a restaurant costs ten lats, and in a cafe - about five. Jurmala also has fast foods and inexpensive self-service canteens. To make a budget holiday in Jurmala in the summer, reviews are advised to rent apartments with a kitchen. Food prices in Latvia are in a favorable direction from Russian.