Bauska Voyage Tips and guide

Bauska is a town in Zemgale, 66 km from Riga and 20 km from the Lithuanian border, at the confluence of the Mūsa and Mēmele rivers where they form the Lielupe river.

Buses from and to Riga leave every hour between 06:00 and 23:00. Travel time is about 1 hour 30 minutes. Price €3.

Map of Bauska

• 56.40321124.1781111 Bauska castle parking, Elejas iela. free.  (updated Sep 2025)

• 56.4032524.1746431 Bauska Castle, Pilskalna iela 40. nov-apr daily 10:00-16:00, May-sep 9:00-19:00, oct 9:00-18:00. The castle stands on the narrow peninsula at the confluence of the rivers Mūša and Mēmele where they form the Lielupe river. In ancient times, the hill was the site of a Semigallian fortress. The first stone buildings were established between 1443 and 1450 by the Livonian branch of the Teutonic Knights and construction continued till the end of the 16th century. The old section of the castle featured a great watch tower, 3.5 meter thick walls, a prison under the tower, a garrison and a drawbridge at the gates. The castle was intended to protect the border with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and to control the trade route from Lithuania to Riga. In a treaty of alliance in 1559, the Livonian Order passed sovereignty of the town and the castle to Poland.In 1706, during the Great Northern War, both castle and palace were blown up by the retreating Russians and left unrestored. More than 150 years later, in 1874, Prince Paul von Lieven purchased the ruins and began their restoration. €9 (complete visit), students and seniors €4.5.  
• 56.41509624.181132 Bauska Motor Museum, Sarkanmuiža 6, ☏ +371 67 025 887. Branch of the Riga Motor Museum.  
• 56.40952924.1860013 Bauskas vecpilsēta (Bauska Old Town), ☏ +371 63960508, [email protected].  

• 56.39745524.2042641 Bauskas alus darītava (Bauska Brewery), ☏ +371 63 960 013, [email protected]. Visits for groups by prior arrangement only.  
• Bauska Country Music Festival. Annually, for 2 days, mid-July. European and U.S. country musicians perform. On-site camping is possible. 

• Bauska Cheese Shop, Camembertielas (near the city centre). 09:30-19:30. Latvia's most famous cheese shop, famous for selling up to seventy thousand different kinds of Latvian cheese, although admittedly the majority of those are just traditional Latvian cheese made with a slight variation to the breed of cow, flavouring of the milk, etc. Many Bauskan merchandise is based on the famous cheese shop, including a cartoon character, Mr. Cheese (Mr Sieru in Latvia), who can be seen on posters throughout the city. Nice spot for enjoying whatever type of cheese you seem to be interested in. Due to hygiene issues, the 'make your own cheese' option has been closed. (updated Dec 2017)

There is one hotel and three benches.

• Riga