Kuldiga, Latvia offers travelers on the Jewish Culture and Diaspora: Rome to Riga tour a chance to truly step off the beaten path. While this charming town is left off of the majority of travel itineraries to the Baltics, it has much to offer in terms of architecture, nature and culture. Of course, it also has a unique Jewish history that travelers will learn about in-depth from tour leader Eric Benjaminson. This Jewish Genealogy page on Kuldiga, authored by Benjaminson, contains an overview of the town’s Jewish history. The Visit Kuldiga website contains further information, articles and videos, including a page on the Kuldiga synagogue (built 1875).
More about Kuldiga from Latvia Tourism (Magnetic Latvia):
“The historical centre of Kuldīga started developing as far back as the 13th century and has preserved urban planning elements dating back to periods from the 13th to the 19th century. At present, the old town of Kuldīga and the red-brick bridge across the river Venta are candidates for inclusion in the UNESCO List of World Cultural Heritage. The town is also famous for the widest waterfall in Europe.
Narrow streets, peculiar one-storey houses with a chimney in the middle, and red roof tiles are still preserved in the historical centre. The historical buildings of the town and its nature create a unique, harmonious ensemble, incomparable to anything found in Latvia or elsewhere in Europe.
The Alekšupīte River flows directly along the walls of many buildings which is why Kuldīga has been called the Venice of Latvia. Initially the buildings of the town centre were constructed as the suburb of Kuldīga.”
