RIGA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

'Rīga International Airport' was built in 1973 as an alternative to Spilve, which had become outdated. It is 13km southwest of Rīga, the capital of Latvia. It is the largest airport in the Baltic states and is directly connected to 28 countries. Renovation and modernization of the airport was completed in 2001, coinciding with the 800th anniversary of the founding of the city. The airport is a state-owned joint-stock company, with the owner of all shares being the Latvian government. The holder of the state capital share is Latvia's Ministry of Transport.
In 2006, the new north terminal extension was opened. This will permit the separation of passengers arriving at the airport from non-Schengen countries after Latvia joins the Schengen Agreement (before which Latvia must strengthen its border controls since it adjoins non-EU countries). The Latvian Government also plans to build another terminal capable of handling about 10 million passengers a year. A maintenance, repair and overhaul facility was opened in the autumn of 2006, to be run as a joint venture between two local companies - Concors and SR-Technik. The airport also plans to build new hotels, a business park, a second pier, new parking, a second runway, a new control tower, a new high-speed tramlink to the city center, and a new check-in hall by 2013.
Rīga International Airport is one of three notable airports in Latvia. The other two are the Liepāja International Airport and the Ventspils Airport. Rīga International Airport's biggest air carrier is airBaltic.
In 2006, the airport served 2.5 million passengers.

Contents

Airport Magazine

Airlines and destinations

Scheduled airlines

Charter airlines

Accessibility

See also

External links

Airport Magazine

The magazine 'GatewayRiga' is available for visitors and passengers travelling through Rīga airport. It has information on new airlines serving Rīga, new destinations and routes, and other information about the airport itself and surrounding facilities. It is published three times per year by SIA Check-In Media.

Airlines and destinations

Scheduled airlines

The following airlines have scheduled services to Riga International Airport as of August 2007:

★ Aer Lingus (Dublin)

★ Aero Airlines (Helsinki)

★ Aeroflot (Moscow-Sheremetyevo)

★ airBaltic (Athens, Baku, Barcelona, Berlin-Tegel, Brussels, Bergen, Copenhagen, Dalaman (seasonal), Dublin, Düsseldorf, Gomel, Gothenburg-Landvetter, Hamburg, Helsinki, Heraklion (seasonal), Hurghada (seasonal), Istanbul-Atatürk, Kaliningrad, Kiev-Boryspil, Kuressaare, Larnaca (seasonal), Liepaja, London-Gatwick, Milan-Malpensa, Minsk, Monastir (seasonal), Moscow-Sheremetyevo, Munich, Odesa, Oslo, Palma-Mallorca (seasonal), Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Rome-Fiumicino, Sharm el-Sheikh (seasonal), Simferopol (seasonal), Stavanger, Stockholm-Arlanda, St.Petersburg, Tallinn, Tbilisi, Tel Aviv, Vilnius, Vienna, Zürich)

★ Austrian Airlines (Vienna)

★ Czech Airlines (Prague)

★ easyJet (Berlin-Schönefeld)

★ Finnair (Helsinki)

★ KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Amsterdam)

★ LOT Polish Airlines (Warsaw)

★ Lufthansa (Frankfurt)

★ Norwegian Air Shuttle (Oslo, Trondheim)

★ Ryanair (Bremen, Bristol [starts 7th November, 2007], Dublin, Glasgow-Prestwick, Hahn, Liverpool, London-Stansted, Milan-Bergamo [starts 17th January, 2008], Nottingham-EastMidlands [Starts 30th October 2007] Shannon [starts 8th November, 2007], Stockholm-Skavsta, Tampere)

★ Scandinavian Airlines System (Stockholm-Arlanda)

★ Turkish Airlines (Istanbul-Atatürk)

★ Uzbekistan Airways (New York-JFK, Tashkent)

Charter airlines

In addition, the following airlines also have charter operations (August 2007):

★ airBaltic (Antalya, Rhodes, Rijeka)

★ Aurela (Bourgas)

★ Hemus Air (Varna)

★ Karthago Airlines (Monastir)

★ LatCharter (Monastir, Antalya, Dalaman, Bodrum, Dubai, Las Palmas, Sharm-el-Sheikh, Hurgada, Varna, Gran Canaria, Malaga, Heraklion, Tenerife, Palermo)

★ RAF-Avia

Accessibility

'Bus'

Bus routes #22 and #22A (express) run between Rīga city centre and the airport. Departing every 10 - 30 minutes, the journey time is about half an hour. The fare is 0.30 LVL (0.43€) plus 0.90 LVL (1.29€) for large luggage. The airport unloading point is at the second terminal. To get on the bus at the airport, look for the bus stop located opposite the terminal, behind the car park.
'Taxi'

The airport has signed a contract with Riga Taxi Park. The company office is located on the 1st level of the arrival area. Journey time by taxi is about 15 minutes with a fare of 0.40 LVL (base charge) plus 0.35 LVL/km. Getting to the city centre will cost you about 5 LVL (7€).

See also

★ List of airports in Latvia

★ Transportation in Latvia

External links

★ Riga International Airport

★

★ Magazine GatewayRiga