Albert Street (Alberta Iela)

The basics

While Albert Street is separate from most of Riga’s popular attractions and landmarks, it’s an essential inclusion on architecture tours of Riga, whether they’re walking tours, bike tours, or Segway tours. Allow between 10 and 30 minutes to explore the street’s buildings. Then, head into the Riga Art Nouveau Museum on the street’s corner to see what one of the street’s buildings looks like from the inside and marvel at its spiral staircase.

Things to know before you go

• Despite being a tourist attraction, Albert Street is not a pedestrian street, meaning you need to be mindful of traffic, even though there won’t be much.

• This is a residential area, so don’t obstruct doorways or block the sidewalk.

• In Riga, the art nouveau style is known as jūgendstils based on the German name for the architecture, so look for that name when navigating.

How to get there

Albert Street is located on the western side of Riga’s city center, almost due north of the Old Town area. Walking to Albert Street from the old town will take you about 20 minutes while going by public transport isn’t much faster and requires a fair bit of walking anyway. Those determined to use public transport can ride the No. 11 tram to the Kronvalda bulvāris stop or travel by bus to the Medicīnas muzejs stop.

When to get there

Since visiting Albert Street is an outdoor activity, the weather is going to make or break the experience. Unless you like walking in rain or snow, aim to visit in the summer (July and August). Most tours don’t reach the street until the late morning or afternoon, so go by mid-morning to get photos without lots of people in the frame.

Art nouveau streets in Riga

Albert Street is the most popular place to go for art nouveau architecture in Riga, but it’s not the only one. Surrounding streets such as Elizabetes Street and Antonijas Street both have interesting buildings worth visiting. Elsewhere in the city center, seek out the orange façade of the ESPA Riga spa on Baznīcas Street and the buildings around the Riga Old Evangelical Lutheran Church of St. Gertrude.