Things to see and do Sigulda

From Sigulda, you can see the high red brick tower of the Livonian castle of Turaida, which dates from 1215 and from which there is a superb view. A museum in the 15th century attic explains the history of the Livonian state from the 14th to the 16th century. In the summer, festivals of folk songs are held here. In the park surrounding the fortress you can get acquainted with local traditions: pirts (sauna), blacksmith's workshop, very interesting fish cellars (the refrigerator of the medieval period), a house of barons and servants.

The Gutmanis cave, covered with rock drawings, takes its name from a healer who used the water in the cave to remove wrinkles. The Viktors cave was named after a castle gardener who dug it for his fiancée Maija, known as the Rose of Turaida. Legend has it that she was murdered by a Polish officer in the nearby cave. The hill is called Dainu kalns, or "Mount of the Dainas"; it is covered with sculptures in honour of the poet Barons who, in the 19th century, collected thousands of dainas.