Things to do
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Alekšupīte Waterfall
A tributary drops over a stone wall in the middle of town, a few metres of falling water tucked behind the houses on Baznicas street. The stream runs along the foundations of the old buildings, which is where the local comparison with Venice comes from. It takes a moment to see and pairs with the old town walk.
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Kuldīga Brick Bridge
One of the longer brick road bridges left in Europe spans the Venta just below the rapid, built in the 1870s to a width set by two passing carriages. Cars still cross it. From the far bank the arches and the waterfall line up, which is the view the town is photographed from.
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Kuldīga Old Town
Low timber houses along Baznicas and Liepajas streets came through both world wars, which is why film crews use them for nineteenth-century Europe and why UNESCO listed the place. Wooden joinery, tile stoves and painted doors carry the detail. Little of it is museum: the houses are lived in, so privacy applies as it would at home.
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Riežupe Sand Caves
Kilometres of tunnel were dug into soft sandstone upstream for glassmaking sand, leaving a cool maze that holds near eight degrees year round. Guided visits with lanterns cover a marked stretch; the rest is closed and unstable. Booking ahead matters outside summer, and the floor is damp, so footwear has to cope with mud.
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Venta Rapid
Water spills across the full width of the Venta here, some two hundred and forty metres of it, which makes the waterfall the widest in Europe though it stands barely two metres high. Fish leap the ledge in spring and autumn, a run once harvested with baskets set on the lip. Spring melt raises the flow.