The Home Café Days

The Home Café Days in Ogre Municipality will take place at the beginning of September (12-13 September), when the local harvest - vegetables, fruit, berries, and other farm products - is ready to be served to the guests.

^{Ogre Municipality boasts the pine-surrounded and well-kept city of Ogre, where modern technologies are widely used for the convenience of residents and visitors. Lielvārde is known throughout Latvia for its rich cultural heritage, which can be explored in the Andrejs Pumpurs’ Lielvārde Museum and the Lielvārde Park with the ruins of a medieval castle, whereas the name of Ikšķile associates with the beginnings of Christianity in Latvia - the ruins of the oldest stone building in the Baltics can still be seen on St. Meinard’s Island. Ķegums, in its turn, is connected with the beginnings of Latvia's unified electricity supply. A visit to the Energy Museum will provide anyone with new knowledge about the history and development of Latvia's energy sector. The rural territory of Ogre Municipality with its beautiful landscapes, diverse forests, vast meadows and the meanders of the Ogre River attracts nature lovers.}

^{The home cafés of Ogre Municipality offer a chance to enjoy a meal in the city's cafés, pubs and farmsteads where farm work is done on a daily basis but a festive atmosphere is created outdoors during the days of home cafés. You are welcome to enjoy the magic of the late summer in one of the improvised home cafés found throughout the Ogre Municipality. There is plenty to choose from!}

^{More info: www.majaskafejnicas.lv}

 

         

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SIGHTS in Ogre Municipality

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Ikšķile church ruins of St. Meinhard Island

Ikšķile church ruins are the most ancient ruins of a stone building in Latvia, located on a small island, the St. Meinhard Island, in the manmade reservoir of Rīga hydropower plant. Ikšķile church was built in 1185 under the government of bishop Meinhard, rebuilt in 1879 - 1881, ruined in 1916. After the filling of Rīga hydropower plant reservoir in the 70s of the 20th century, it is encircled by the waters of the hydropower plant. Nowadays the ruins are conserved, a roof is constructed over them, and the island is fortified. Nowadays, to see the ruins, you can get to the island by boat or by ferry.

56.8154, 24.5008

Ikšķile, Ogres Municipality

Historic Buildings and Square of Ogre town, Independence Square and the exhibition “Latvia's Path of Freedom”

Brīvības street in Ogre is notable for its architectural samples of the 20ies and 30ies of the 20th century. Most buildings are architectural monuments of local or national importance. The landscaped square at the beginning of the street has become a popular gathering place for the locals and city guests. During the summer, the residents and the guests of the city can enjoy the complex of fountains named The Digital Water Curtain, and a fountain that you can step in and paddle, which is especially appealing to the youngest visitors.

Independence Square is located in the historic section of Brīvības (Freedom) Street, which was once a part of the city centre. The square features two symbolic environmental installations: “The Holders of the Military Order of Lāčplēsis” and “The Rock of Latvian Freedom”, both representing Latvia’s enduring quest for freedom across different periods of its history.

The exhibition “Latvia’s Path of Freedom”, which highlights the most important events and key figures of the 20th century related to Latvia’s struggle for independence, is situated near the square. It is housed in a building that is more than 100 years old and is a local architectural monument.

GPS: 56.8164, 24.6044

Brīvības iela, Ogre city,  Ogre municipality

Ķegums view terrace and nature trail
Recreation place for guests and locals - a viewing terrace, which has an artistically unique photo bench. There is also an informative stand, where the visualization and description of the construction of the historical bridge arches of Ķegums HPP is depicted. This is the beginning of a 1 km long nature trail with stands displaying information about the history of the Ķegums HPP, as well as the natural values of Ķegums. Children and adults will enjoy educational environmental pieces, such as a puzzle about plants and fishes, or educational benches about different types of rocks.

GPS: 56.7432, 24.7123

8 Smilšu iela, Ķegums, Ogre municipality

Medieval castle ruins, park and museum in Lielvārde

The stone castle and rampart was built at the beginning of the 13th century according to German Crusader instructions on the site of the ancient Livonian wooden castle. It was damaged by repeated war activity and was renewed several times, but since 1613, only ruins remain. The territory of Lielvārde Park is home to numerous protected dendrological species. There are 16 wooden sculptures depict various characters from the epic “Lāčplēsis” in the Sculpture Garden. The Andrejs Pumpurs Museum has been located in the old Lielvārde Manor granary on the banks of the Daugava.

GPS: 56.7113, 24.8342

E. Kauliņa aleja 20, Lielvārde, Ogre municipality, +371 65053759, 29322468

Ķeipene Cinema Station

A cinema station, built inside the former railway station Ķeipene, was created by the staff and associates of the Film Forum Arsenāls. In the waiting room, there is an exhibition dedicated to the film director Sergei Eisenstein. There are environmental installations in the vicinity of the station – a lighthouse with mailboxes, a gigantic table for the prodigies of filmmaking, a tunnel made of movie frames and an environmental installation Potemkin’s Well created as an underground exhibition hall. The old railway station is the only place where a section of the railway between Riga and Ērgļi has been preserved.

GPS: 56.8959, 25.1872

“Dzelzceļa stacija”, Ķeipene parish, Ogres Municipality, +371 65033717, 25577645

Meņģele viewing tower and Crazy Dauka’s (Dullais Dauka) grove

The tower is located in the territory of the Ogre Valley nature park. It offers a wonderful view over the valley of the Ogre River, as well as the Aderkaši Orthodox Church. 

Meņģele rural territory is the place where the writer Sudrabu Edžus, the author of a story about a curious boy named Crazy Dauka (Dullais Dauka), was born and spent his youth. An oak-and-birch grove on the bank of the river Ogre was a favourite place of rest for the writer. In the 1970s, poet Imants Ziedonis with his contemporaries created Crazy Dauka’s path with special stones there. One of them bears the inscription Dullais Dauka (Crazy Dauka).

GPS: 56.8388, 25.3560

Meņģele parish, Ogre municipality

Taurupe Manor Barn

Next to the manor park is the renovated Taurupe Manor Barn, opened in 2025, which is a significant cultural and historical heritage site that serves as a modern and multifunctional community centre. The first floor of the barn houses a local history exhibition, which displays evidence of the history of Taurupe, its people and events. The second floor has a hall for exhibitions and various cultural events. Advance reservation is required.

GPS: 56.8843, 25.3509

Taurupe, Taurupes parish, Ogre municipality, +371 28679036