Highlight of Riga: View from St. Peter's Church

Before I headed to Riga, I saw many gorgeous pictures looking out over the city. I knew that one of the first stops I would make while exploring the city was to visit St. Peter's Church and check out the view of the city from the St. Peter's Church lookout. As soon as Nick and I departed the Isabelle, it was off to the lookout point!

House of Blackheads & St. Peter's Church

St. Peter's Church is located near the House of Blackheads, one of the most popular sights to see while in Riga. However, as St. Peter's Church offers gorgeous views of the city, I quickly hustled Nick to check out these views!

St. Peter's Church

St. Peter's church is really nestled in a small corner of the city. Upon first glance, the church is far from impressive. However, when you consider the fact that St. Peter's Church was first built from timber in 1209, and later rebuilt by brick and stone, the church becomes a lot more impressive. Unfortunately, through natural disasters such as lightning strikes and fires, combined with various wars, there are only a few of the original pillars remaining. Through many periods of history, St. Peter's Church has had additions, bell towers, and new facades of the church built on.

Notable setbacks for St. Peter's Church include the collapse of the tower in 1666, a citywide fire destroying the church interior in 1677, a lightning strike and subsequent fire in 1721, and artillery fire destroying the church in 1941. Thinking about all of these instances that have either severely or completely demolished the church, it is quite impressive that people persevered, never giving up and continuing to build and rebuild St. Peter's Church.

Now, let's get on to the views!

Northwest view of Riga

Northern view of Riga

To get to the viewpoint, you pay 8 euro per person to enter St. Peter's Church and are then shown to the elevator. After waiting a few moments, you will exit the elevator and (most likely!) instantly be slapped with the harsh bite of wind. After all, you are 72 meters (236 feet) off the ground. Between the cold and the wind, we did not spend too much time looking out over the city- just enough to snap some pictures, orient ourselves, and decide on the next location of our Riga tour. Recommendation to Riga tourists- definitely bring some warm clothing and gloves for picture taking!

commemorative plaque for Gustav Adolf

After departing the elevator, Nick and I wandered around St. Peter's Church for a little while. After all this time in Sweden, I am always on the hunt for Swedish elements around the world- surprisingly enough, right here in St. Peter's Church I found one! Riga was conquered by Gustav Adolf, the King of Sween, in 1621 during the Polish-Swedish war. On November 6, 1932, this plaque was placed in St. Peter's Church to commemorate 300 years since his death in battle. The plaque tells the story of King Gustav Adolf listening to the welcoming sermon delivered in St. Peter's Church in 1621. It was quite cool to see a little piece of 'home' while in Riga!

view of Riga & St. Peter's Church

Overall, our trip to St. Peter's Church and the lookout was quite a success! The views of the city were good, although quite cold. I would be quite intrigued on another trip to Riga to visit the lookout from the Radisson Blu sky bar, and see how those views (similar view seen in above picture) compare to those of St. Peter's Church. Of course, sunny weather and green trees always helps pictures look better, compared to the dreary gray tones of February!

When you travel places, do you enjoy checking out cities from above? What is the best view you have ever experienced while traveling?