Liepāja Sights

  1. Holy Trinity Church

    Built between 1742 and 1758, the baroque-style Holy Trinity Church has a dazzling gilded rococo interior. Its centrepiece is its fabulous organ, at one time the world's largest, boasting more than 7000 pipes, 131 registers and four manuals. For a small fee, the church caretaker will escort you up the myriad of creaky wooden steps to the clock tower, where fabulous city views await.

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  2. Karosta Prison

    A detention facility until 1997, today ghostly Karosta Prison offers a variety of tours. Originally built as an infirmary in 1900, the Soviets, Nazis and most recently the Latvians used the place as a military prison. Graffiti left behind by former inmates reveals the horrors incurred doing hard time here.

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  3. Karostas cietums (Karosta Prison)

    A detention facility until 1997, ghostly Karosta Prison was used by the Soviets, Nazis and Latvians as a military prison. Graffiti left behind by former inmates reveals the horrors of doing time here. If you're craving punishment, you can be a prisoner for the night. You'll be subjected to bed checks and verbal abuse by guards - a very different experience.

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  4. Liepāja History & Art Museum

    A collection of carved amber ornaments dating back 1500 years is just one of the highlights of a visit to the Liepāja History & Art Museum. Other exhibits include impressive Stone and Bronze Age artefacts unearthed on local archaeological digs, an interesting collection of old jewellery and weapons and vintage memorabilia from both world wars. At the seaside end of the same street is a monument to sailors and fishermen who died at sea.

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  5. Occupation Museum

    The sobering Occupation Museum traces the bloody history of the Soviet and Nazi occupation in Latvia, with an emphasis on Liepāja. A visit here is a moving, albeit disturbing, experience and should be on any Liepāja agenda. Captions are in Latvian, but no words are needed to explain the powerful photographs and images of the 1939-40 deportations to Siberia (an estimated 2000 people from Liepāja were deported), the genocide committed against Latvian Jews and the fight for independence in 1991.

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  6. Okupāciju režīmos (Occupation Museum)

    This museum traces the history of Soviet and Nazi occupations in Latvia, with an emphasis on Liepāja. A visit here is a moving, albeit disturbing experience: captions are in Latvian, but words aren't needed to explain the powerful images of the 1939-40 deportations to Siberia, the genocide committed against Latvian Jews and the independence struggle in 1991.

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  7. Peter's Market

    Vendors have touted their wares at the outdoor market on Kuršu laukums since the mid-17th century. Peter's Market expanded in 1910, when a pavilion was constructed adjacent to the square. Today you'll find stalls inside and out at this bustling complex, selling everything from second-hand tables, pirated CDs, DVDs and local crafts to fruits, vegetables and fresh slabs of meat.

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  8. Pētertirgus (Peter's Market)

    Vendors have touted their wares at the outdoor market on Kuršu laukums since the mid-17th century. The market expanded in 1910, when a pavilion was constructed adjacent to the square. Today you'll find stalls inside and out this bustling complex, selling everything from furniture, pirated CDs, DVDs and local crafts to fruit, vegetables and slabs of meat.

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  9. St Anne's Basilica

    St Anne's Basilica is a red-brick, neo-Gothic edifice constructed in 1587. Its highlights include a sky-high steeple and an impressive baroque altar painting that is 5.8m high and 9.7m wide.

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  10. St Jospeh's Cathedral

    The Roman Catholic St Joseph's Cathedral is a towering yellow-brick church with a notable interior - it's ornately decorated with Bible scenes.

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