LIAA: Currently, the tourist season already looks relatively good

In addition, the sanctions imposed by the European Union and Russia this year could result in the largest number of cruise ship passengers ever served in Latvia.

“Baltic Sea cruise ships no longer call at the port of St. Petersburg, which in turn benefits the port of Riga. Some cruise ships also enter Liepaja. It is planned that 109 cruise ships will arrive in Riga this year, which will bring more than 100,000 tourists to Riga in total. Considering that no passenger ships entered the port in 2021, this is a good start to return to circulation after the Covid-19 pandemic, ”said Rožkalns.

Negotiations are also underway to resume traffic on the Tallink Riga-Stockholm line next year, which Tallink has decided not to renew this year.

This year, LIAA continues the Latvian tourism advertising campaigns already started during the pandemic in Estonia and Lithuania. There is also a lot of focus on Germany and Finland. The priority markets are also Sweden, Norway and Great Britain, where campaigns will be held to invite you to travel to Latvia.

“On the other hand, if we look at further markets – the USA, Japan, South Korea – then, of course, the picture is different. After two years of restrictions, travel is resuming gradually, and some restrictions remain in the Asian region. As for the war in Ukraine, the first shock is over, and we see that people from further afield have returned to our region. For example, groups of tourists from the USA are already entering Latvia, ”said Rožkalns.

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