The story
Staro Riga Light Festival in Riga
Staro Rīga, meaning Riga Shines, is the capital's light festival, held each November when large-scale light installations and projections by Latvian and international artists transform the historic center and public squares after dark. Timed to counter the long, dark evenings of the Baltic autumn, it draws large crowds who walk between illuminated sites across the Old Town and beyond, turning the city's streets and buildings into a temporary open-air gallery of light.
Riga sits far enough north that November brings genuinely short days, sunset arriving mid-afternoon and darkness settling in for the bulk of the day.