Sigulda · Latvia

Turaida Museum Reserve

castlenaturehistorylegendgoogle verified

moderate

9/10

best: morning

romantic, historic, serene

A local would say...

A castle named 'garden of god' in an ancient language — and the grave of a woman who became a legend rather than betray her lover.

A magnificent red-brick medieval castle rebuilt in 1214 and standing on an enviable knoll overlooking the Gauja River gorge within the Turaida Museum Reserve, whose name means 'garden of god' in ancient Livonian. The sprawling grounds include sculpture-festooned Dainu Hill Song Garden, a historic wooden-spired Turaida Church, and the grave of the legendary Turaida Rose — a tragic 17th-century figure whose story is told in the museum. The Gauja National Park surrounding it offers dramatic gorge scenery.