Kuldīga
Kurzeme, Latvia · 56°58′05″N 21°57′41″E
A wooden-and-brick 17th-century town in western Latvia with the widest waterfall in Europe running right through it, listed by UNESCO in 2023 and still overlooked.
Kuldīga was the capital of the Duchy of Courland, and its old town of low timber houses, cobbled lanes and a red-brick bridge across the Venta is remarkably intact. The Ventas Rumba, a 249 m wide ledge of dolomite, drops just 2 m but spans the entire river, and in spring salmon and vimba can be watched leaping it from the town bank.
The 2023 World Heritage listing has yet to change much; the town has a few cafés, one museum and a lot of quiet.
Why it stays quiet
Three hours from Riga in a direction most visitors never go. Latvians come for a weekend in July; the rest of the year the riverbank is empty.
Where it is
Before you go
Swim below the falls in summer. The old brick bridge is the best sunset spot. Accommodation is limited; book ahead for July.
Updated 2026-09-06 · Suggest a correction
