Riga’s City Canal follows part of the former defensive moat around the Old Town, linking the Daugava to a chain of bridges, planted banks and public spaces.
Guide preview
Riga’s City Canal curves around the Old Town where defensive earthworks once separated the city from its suburbs. Its water, bridges and planted banks now connect spaces that the fortifications divided. Follow a short stretch and the changing view across the water makes that transformation visible: the canal is one continuous feature, while the parks and streets beside it each have their own character.
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Quick facts
- The canal is approximately 3.2 kilometres long and connects with the Daugava at both ends.
- It took its present form after Riga’s defensive ramparts began to be removed in 1857.
- The waterway passes through several public green spaces, including Kronvalda Park and Bastejkalns.
More places in Riga
10b Elizabetes Street
Elizabetes iela 10b is a 1903 Riga apartment building designed by Mikhail Eisenstein. Its blue upper façade, enormous sculpted faces and ornamental patterns show how published European design ideas were adapted into a distinctive Art Nouveau street front.
11 November Embankment
Riga’s 11 November Embankment follows the right bank of the Daugava beside Old Riga, combining a busy riverside route with a long history of trade and public gatherings.
1991 Barricades Museum
The 1991 Barricades Museum preserves objects, photographs and testimony from Latvia’s independence struggle. In Old Riga, its collection traces the volunteers who defended important sites and remembers those killed or injured during the January and August events.
4a Strēlnieku Street
The richly ornamented 1905 design at Strēlnieku iela 4a is associated with architect Mikhail Eisenstein. Originally combining a school and residences, it later housed a dormitory and now serves the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga.
AB Jetty
AB Jetty extends from the left bank of the Daugava in Riga, offering a walking route and views across the river towards the towers of the Old Town.
Āgenskalns Market
Āgenskalns Market is a neighbourhood food market on Riga’s left bank, centred on a red-brick hall designed by Reinhold Georg Schmaeling. Established at this site in 1898, it reopened its restored pavilion in 2022 with food sellers, cafés and community activities.