Топик: Kurzeme Leasure Hotels

Theatre
The city theatre company is 20 actors and actresses. The most outstanding productions have been Alice in Wonderland by L. Carroll, Chairs by Eigen Junesco, Macbeth , etc.

Museums
A popular museum in the city is the Open-air museum with its most remarkable exhibit - the functioning Little Train, especially beloved by Ventspils’ guests. In summers this is the place for various cultural events. School children and local writers often visit the Memorial Museum of the writer Herberts Dorbe. Ventspils Museum of History and Arts holds exhibitions of local and visiting Latvian and foreign artists.

Cinema
The cinema Rio in Old Ventspils holds different events for young people: teen discotheques and parties for students.

Clubs
The most popular dance clubs are Livonija and Kurzeme , that are located in the city centre where it is easy to park the car or use services of the adjacent taxi parking lots. The clubs offer delicious and substantial meals. Prices are very low and many young peoples visit thiese clubs.

Game and Gambling clubs
The most popular gambling clubs are Melnais kaķis (Black cat) , Bumerangs , Klondaika and Jūrnieku klubs (Seamen club) . Visitors may listen to music, have some drink and play billiards or darts. For those who prefer bowling Ventspils offers the bowling club and the restaurant Ūpis . Different competitions and events are organised at game and gambling clubs.

Refreshment

Restaurants
Just at the very bank of the River Venta the nice restaurant Ūpis is located, where visitors may play some bowling on the ground floor, and dance at week-ends. A classic restaurant Vilnis is located in the hotel’s premises on the right bank of the Venta. Kurzeme is a restaurant that won the first award of the previous-year competition on the best restaurant. It offers disco dancing. The restaurant Krēta, MG in the Seamen’s Entertainment Centre, after a substantial meal offers a play of billiard or dancing in its lovely atmosphere. The special interior design of the restaurant Dzintarjūra reveals the closeness of the sea. Good meals are offered also at the restaurant Olivers.

Bars and Pubs A popular student spot is the bar Cits Ostgals, where the jovial waiter offers also the special brand of Užava beer and garlic toasts. An intimate atmosphere is in the small bar Landora in the city centre. Recently a new bar was opened in the culture centre Jūras vārti (Sea gate) with live music performances.

Cafes and bistros
The cafe Kika, located in the city centre, lures in all coffee and cake lovers. It is also a calm place for a private chat or just for spoiling your kids with some sweets. The café Kāpa, which is located in Pārventa, is an appropriate place for a refreshment together with friends

Shopping

Shops
Many local residents of Ventspils prefer shopping in the big shopping centres which are located in the most intense housing. One of the most popular shopping centres Diāna, is located at Ventspils College near the 9-storey block houses; the shopping centre Kāpa is on the right bank of the Venta. Before travelling round Ventspils district, it is advisable to do shopping in these shopping centres, as the range of goods supplied in the shops outside Ventspils is not so wide. The rest part of the city, especially its central part, is spotted by various small shops.

Market
Ventspils has several under-roof markets with a wide range of goods sold at comparatively low prices. The market in the Old Town is especially busy and offers the widest range of goods on Saturday mornings while on the week days it is open only till the noon. The market offers fresh food, meat and fish products, vegetables, fruit, honey, etc. During fairs traders from all the regions of Latvia and also Lithuania gather in the market of the Old Town.

Information

Tourism Agencies
Along with Ventspils Tourism Information Centre also several tourism agencies offer their services which include guiding round Ventspils, sightseeing tours, excursions, visas and insurance, air and ferry tickets. The tourism agency Ventspils Excursion Bureau is located on the Town Square in the very centre of Old Ventspils, but the tourism agency Tobago is located in the city centre.

Contacts
Ventspils Tourism Information Centre provides all the information on tourism. Other information about the municipality may be obtained at different municipal institutions.

Co-operation
Ventspils sister-city in Sweden is Vesterviik. Both cities have established close contacts and co-operate in different spheres.

For visitors

For Latvia visitors now I think is very good time. Our inhabitants are very frendly and most part of them knows English. If tourists needs to find some place or to know about something, latvian will help them.

Also Tourism Information Centre are highly developed last few years. In airports, stations, and in every hotel or guest house tourists will recieve necessary information about a city and Latvia.

No problems in association between foreign and local peoples.

Welcome in LATVIA!

Source of information

1. : Internet: [email protected] ; www.Ventspils .tourism.lv.

2. Ventspils city guide booklet

3. Information in Hotels and camping

4. Torism information centre ( Tirgus iela 7, Ventspils. tel./fakss 36 222 63 )