Latvia

INTRODUCTION:

Latvia is situated on he Baltic Sea coast in northeast Europe. It borders on Estonia in the north, Lithuania in the south, the Russian Federation in the east and Byelorussia in the Southeast.

The costal plain is mostly flat, but the inland to the east is hilly with forests and lakes. Forests cover a total of 44 % of the country, 10 % consists of peat bogs, 23 % are fresh water reservoirs, 38 % of the land is used for agriculture and 4 % is take up by towns, villages and roads.

GENERAL INFORMATION:

The Republic of Latvia is founded on November 18, 1918

Location: Latvia is situated in Northern Europe, on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

The Territory of Latvia: 64,589 square kilometers (24,938 square miles).

Constitution: democratic parliamentary republic

Official language: Latvian

Total population: 2 294 200 (January 2006)

Capital city: Riga (with 764,328 inhabitants)

Administrative organisation: 7 cities, 65 towns, 26 regions, 11 districts, 467 parishes

Traditionally divided into 4 regions: Vidzeme, Latgale, Kurzeme and Zemgale

Largest cities apart from Riga: Daugavpils, Jelgava, Jurmala, Liepaja, Rezekne, Ventspils

Major ports: Ventspils, Riga, Liepaja

Ethnic composition: Latvians - 57.7%, Russians - 29.6%, Belorussians - 4.1%, Ukrainians - 2.7%, Poles- 2.5%, Lithuanians - 1.4%, Others - 2%

Religion: Non-religious - 35%, Lutheran - 24%, Catholic - 18%, Orthodox - 15%, Others - 8%

International telephone code: +371

Electricity supply: 220 volts, 50 Hz European-style 2-pin plugs

CLIMATE:

May to September (spring and summer) is the best time to visit, with daytime temperatures averaging 61°F (16°C), but July and August is the peak tourist season and accommodation can be fully booked during this time. The coldest months are January and February and winter can experience extreme temperatures, and averages 25°F (-4°C) during the day.

TIME

Time: GMT +2, from April to November GMT +3

LANGUAGE

Latvian is the official state language. However Russian, English and German are widely spoken. Latvian belongs to the Baltic language group, part of the Indo-European language family. The language has three main dialects with the Latgallian dialect, spoken in the eastern part of Latvia, especially distinctive.

NATIONAL CURRENCY IN LATVIA

Currency: Lats (LVL), 1 lats = 100 santimi

Credit Cards
Latvia is one of those countries in which cash is in wide circulation, that is approximately 30% of the active money.
The most commonly used credit cards for paying in Latvian hotels, restaurants, cafes and supermarkets are EUROCARD, MASTERCARD, VISA, JCB, DINER'S CLUB, AMERICAN EXPRESS, EUROCHEQUE, stored-value cards issued by Latvian banks, as well as you can use services of the national banks for withdrawing money from your account, or you can withdraw money from cash machines (ATMs).

DISTANCES FROM RIGA

THE DISTANCE BETWEEN VILNIUS AND OTHER LATVIAN CITIES

NATIONAL HOLIDAYS

MEASURING SYSTEM

ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES

Electricity supply: 220 volts, 50 Hz European-style 2-pin plugs

EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER