Latvia · Vidzeme · Premium route guide
Gauja Castles and River Roads
Red brick castles, the Gauja valley and a tiny river ferry at Ligatne.
A loop from Riga into Gauja National Park: Sigulda, Turaida castle, the Ligatne river ferry, Araisi, medieval Cesis, Valmiera and back through Straupe. Built from our own track.
- Distance
- 258.7 km
- Peak elevation
- 162 m
- Elevation gain
- 1,029 m
- Best months
- May–Sep
- Latvia · Vidzeme
- Loop
- Mostly paved
- Ferry required
The route
From Riga out to Sigulda and Turaida, across the Gauja at Ligatne, on to Araisi lake castle and Cesis, north to Valmiera, then back through Straupe to Riga.
Works with Garmin, TomTom, BMW Navigator, Calimoto, Kurviger, komoot, MyRouteApp. Import as a track to ride the exact line. Road data from OpenStreetMap (ODbL); elevation from SRTM.
Track vs. route, how to load this into your GPS
What you are downloading is a GPX track, a dense, road-snapped breadcrumb of the exact line, with elevation on every point. It is not a GPX route (a short list of turn waypoints your device re-plans between). Tracks preserve our road choice; routes let the device pick its own way and can send you down a boring motorway shortcut.
How to use it on your navigator:
- BMW Navigator / Garmin Zumo / zumo XT: import as a track, then Convert to Route (or Trip Planner, new trip from track) if you want turn by turn prompts. Keep Recalculation off so it stays on our line.
- TomTom Rider: import the GPX in MyDrive, it loads as a track / itinerary. Enable Follow the exact route so it does not re-plan.
- Calimoto: open the GPX and choose Import as tour, Calimoto follows the track line.
- Kurviger / komoot / MyRouteApp: open the GPX and pick Import as track to keep the road choice. Only choose Import as route if you want the app to re-plan for your bike profile.
- Google Maps / Apple Maps: these do not read GPX. Use the map on this page for turn cues, or import the file into a GPX capable app first.
Rule of thumb: if your device asks "track or route?", pick track to ride our exact line, pick route only if you want the device to re-plan.
Elevation profile
From ~0 m at the base to 162 m at the top, 1,029 m of total climbing across the route.
Our track is 259 km with about 1,029 m of climbing, about 6 hours of riding.
Why ride it
Three castles in one morning, the sandstone cliffs of the Gauja valley, a hand-pulled style river ferry and the old town of Cesis.
Hazards
Busy main roads in and out of Riga, gravel near the ferry, wildlife at dawn and dusk and speed cameras on the main roads.
Fuel
Fuel in Riga, Sigulda, Cesis and Valmiera.
Best months and difficulty
May to September. Difficulty: easy.
What to see along the way
- Riga - Start and finish.
- Sigulda - Gauja valley and castles.
- Turaida Castle - Red brick castle above the river.
- Ligatne ferry - Seasonal river ferry over the Gauja.
- Araisi - Lake castle and reconstructed lake dwelling.
- Cesis - Medieval castle and old town.
- Valmiera - Northernmost point of the loop.
- Straupe - Old Hanseatic town.
Rent a bike
Rent a motorcycle or scooter for Gauja Castles and River Roads
Flying in? Pick up a bike near the start of the route. We've pre-filled the pick-up city with Sigulda / Cesis - change it if you're basing elsewhere.
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