5th July – Thursday
We arrived in Riga super early on Thursday morning, after a ridiculously early flight, equipped with only our adrenaline, a few airport pints and jam-packed itineraries to keep us going. Once we’d landed, we were met by our lovely guide, Diāna, who took our luggage to our hotel and showed us to our party bus transfer. The journey was only 20 minutes long, but with two strippers and 10 bottles of bubbly to get through, it’s safe to say that we’ll remember those 20 minutes for long time to come (our MD is still having flashbacks…).
"We've been in Riga 10 minutes and I'm already down to my boxers with a stripper."
Peter CuddLNOF Sales Executive
We arrived at >X-Dream Hotel, checked out its in-house strip club (obviously) then dumped our stuff in our rooms and headed off to a former warehouse with a shooting range in its cellar. We got our hands on four lethal weapons, including pistols, Glocks, shotguns and Kalashnikovs, and took part in a spot of target practice – with varying levels of success… To take the edge off our adrenaline rush, we were then whisked away and taken to Riga harbour, where we set sail on our very own private yacht trip. We sailed up and down the River Daugava and were treated like Kings and Queens with fresh fruit, delicious, massive pizzas and more bottles of fizz.
Once we were back on dry land, we were pumped for a massive night out. We lined our stomachs in true Latvian style – with gallons of alcohol, antipasto, caviar and the best steaks we’ve ever had – all to a backdrop of a VIP strip show. It wasn’t just the lads who were on the receiving end of a sexy striptease, either - our Sales Executive, Kat, got a little bit more than she bargained for when she got up close and personal with a male stripper dressed as a sailor. We’ll leave that one to your imaginations…
The steak and drinks really set the bar high for what was to come; we headed off into Riga and arrived at Radisson Blu Hotel, where we took the elevator to the top floor Skyline Bar for some classy drinks and panoramic views of the entire city at sunset. We then stopped off at a few shots bars and ended up in Cuba Cafe, where locals and tourists appeared to transcend language barriers by drinking and dancing the night away. Where we went after that is anyone’s guess.
6th July – Friday
Waking up feeling hungover to say the least, we headed to the Summer Bobsleigh track. Climbing into the bobsleigh and shutting the cage roof, we set off down the track, reaching stomach-dropping speeds of up to 45 mph – it’s safe to say we felt less than 100%, but it was totally worth it. Once the adrenaline had kicked in and we had a bite to eat, we were all set go again. After a few pictures with the Olympic-standard bobsleigh outside, we headed to the military simulation arena for some target practice with laser guns. We even had a full outdoor laser tag battle, ducking and diving between obstacles and playing a few team shooting games including capture the flag.
After a quick shower and freshen up, we were straight on it again (no rest for the wicked, ay?) with a beer bike trek through the Old Town centre. After the first five minutes, it was clear to see that some people pulled their weight and some absolutely did not, but after a few beers no one could feel their legs anymore anyway. Until the morning after – ouch. Our beer bike pulled up outside the restaurant where we had a reservation for the evening and left us to it. It was here that we watched the Brazil v Belgium World Cup match, tried the traditionally Latvian cranberry beer and where it subsequently all went downhill…
After a few drinks in the restaurant, we set off for Rock Cafe, the quirky, four-storey, former museum with entertainment filled nooks and crannies everywhere you turn. This place had it all – with live bands performing, a karaoke room, pool tables, mint music and loads of random bars dotted around, making sure that we were never without a drink in hand.
After this, we ended up in the ‘Big Daddy’ of Latvian nightclubs, Studio 69. Rocking up here was like we’d inadvertently crash-landed in Vegas, not that we were complaining. Palatious indoor fountains, an in-house casino, relaxing spa and a massive nightclub with sparkly confetti falling from the ceiling and stunning, bikini-clad girls dancing on podiums – Studio 69 is everything you could possibly want from a club. Needless to say, we didn’t want to leave.
7th July – Saturday
After two solid days on the drink, you can imagine how we felt waking up on Saturday morning… So, to take our mind off our bad heads, we took to the battlefields of Riga for a laser quest mission to remember. Some of us aced it and were crowned Kings and Queens of the arena, where others went AWOL (yep, we mean Matt, our MD) who had to sit out because last night’s tequilas were about to make a reappearance.
As if that wasn’t enough, next up was outdoor karting. The 1,200 metre track was awesome, filled with tight bends and speedy straights where 270 horsepower karts could reach speeds of up to 45mph – unless you’re Sales Executive, Marija, who got behind the wheel and became a Sunday driver in slow-mo. We only had a few hours left ‘til our flight after all of that excitement, so we headed back to Riga Old Town for a few drinks and to watch England beat Sweden in the World Cup quarter final. Yet again, the drinks just kept coming and coming (are you starting to notice a trend here?) and the journey home literally flew by. Until the next time, Riga.
If you like the look of Riga for your own stag do, check out what we have to offer in the Latvian capital on our Riga stag weekends page.
Why not take a look at what else we got up to in Riga, here: