***Official RIGA travel thread***

[alicante jambo]

22 minutes ago, Biffa Bacon said:

We have booked Edi to Luton on easyjet Tues 13th 19:45 - 21:00, hang about airport unti

Wed 14rh 06:50 Luton to Riga arriving 11:30 wizz air

2 nights in Riga (still to sort out accommodation

Friday 16th , bus to Kaunas (to be sorted but shouldn't be more than €20)

Hotel in Kaunas

Sat 17th Ryanair kaunas 23:40 arrives at 00:30 in Edinburgh.

 

£99 for flights per person

Bus plus 3 nights hotel to be added.

Were on that flight coming back.

[FionaHmfc]

Also just noticed that this will be a late kick off local time! It starts at 8pm UK time so that’s 10pm in Riga. Any chance this will get changed?

[Joey J J Jr Shabadoo]

I've booked Edinburgh 12:55pm - Amsterdam -Riga, arrive 9:30pm 13/9

3 nights at Justus Hotel, Old Town, 

4:30pm flight to Amsterdam on 16/9, Friday night in Amsterdam, back into Edinburgh at 10:20pm on the Saturday.

[Heartsmad1874]

42 minutes ago, FionaHmfc said:

Also just noticed that this will be a late kick off local time! It starts at 8pm UK time so that’s 10pm in Riga. Any chance this will get changed?

Nope all confirmed now.

[FionaHmfc]

13 minutes ago, Heartsmad1874 said:

Nope all confirmed now.

Game will finish just before midnight. Going to be a few sore heads and missed flights the following morning going by times I’ve seen of peoples flights leaving Riga on the Friday 😂 

[periodictabledancer]

6 minutes ago, FionaHmfc said:

Game will finish just before midnight. Going to be a few sore heads and missed flights the following morning going by times I’ve seen of peoples flights leaving Riga on the Friday 😂 

People are gonna be absolutely hammered by kick off. 

 

😁

[Lostinwales]

Flying from east Midlands 2pm flight on Wed retuning 11pm on Friday, Ryanair. horrible drive up though to Scotland when we return. 200 quid spa Hotel with a pool and breakfast for 2 nights for 3 of us 25mins from stadium. Get those feet rubbed darling, get rid of my hangover . Can't wait

[Carl Weathers]

9 hours ago, Jamboross said:

Booked in the Hotel Valdemars. 10 minutes walk from the Old Town and 5 minutes walk from the Skonto Stadion, which is where they played Linfield so I assume where we will also play. Looks decent, £48.50 for the night. 

 

Booked this as well. Cheers. 

[cuthy2k]

I'm down south so got the options of Luton and Stanstead on my door step. 

 

£65 return flights to Kaunas on the 14th, and then back on the 16th late afternoon. Hire car for £40, 1 night in Kaunas, 3.5hr drive up to Riga on the 15th and then back to Kaunas for the flight back. Still to sort out hotels but plenty options by the looks of things. 

 

Looking forward to this. Going with the Mrs. 

Edited August 27, 2022 by cuthy2k

[Ulysses]

Riga not a runner for me, sadly, as I'll be on holiday in Portugal that week.

[braveheart]

Liverpool to tallinn wed to sunday still only £32.bus to riga €30

[Tommy Brown]

6 hours ago, braveheart said:

Liverpool to tallinn wed to sunday still only £32.bus to riga €30

Made me laugh

 

[periodictabledancer]

1 hour ago, Tommy Brown said:

Made me laugh

 

🤣

[braveheart]

2 hours ago, Tommy Brown said:

Made me laugh

 

Luxexpress or flixbus.done in opposite direction when hearts played in Estonia and buses were very comfortable. 

[daftie]

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

[alicante jambo]

7 minutes ago, daftie said:

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

Buddy im a cash is king guy. I Take cash and try to pay by cash. But i take the chance of losing the money and then im goosed. I always have my card with me in case of emergency but most places you go now you can pay by card. Why no take a couple of hundered in cash and take your card as back up. But my preference is cash.

[alicante jambo]

10 minutes ago, daftie said:

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

Btw by using your card you might get the shity bank rate. Why no get a transferwise card, account or starling and you can put in any currency you like and youll get the best rate. Ive got a transferwise account and used it a few times.

[Biffa Bacon]

27 minutes ago, daftie said:

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

I use a Fairfx card, you move electronically from your UK bank in the currency you need. € in this case. You get the bank rate of exchange rather than tourist rate. You can then use the Fxcard as you would a bank card for purchases, including contactless, top up from bank via App as you require. It is linked to MasterCard, so anywhere that is accepted. There is a charge a couple of €s for taking cash out, so don't use this option unless necessary.

[periodictabledancer]

26 minutes ago, daftie said:

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

I go for convenience & safety over other considerations.

How much you gonna save over a few days by using the cheapest option(s)   ? Not much.

Buying  a wedge of currency, fretting about the "best rate" that really doesn't make any material difference and then converting it back to £ or leaving it lying around for a year until the next time ?

Get a new credit card with zero foreign charges on it ? Can you be arsed - and what will the credit limit be - I got one for a three week holiday in Canada and it came with a £250 limit. 

If I was going abroad for a few weeks and planning to spend £ks it WOULD make a difference but a few days in Riga/Dublin  ? Maybe take some Euros for buses/taxis but that's it for me. 

. 

 

 

[salvo69]

Going to start looking now (I know I’m a bit late 😂) I need to come back on Friday has anybody managed that yet?

[daftie]

Cheers for all the reply guys. Very valid points about only being there 2/3 days, so any option isn’t going to greatly affect me. 

[FionaHmfc]

21 minutes ago, salvo69 said:

Going to start looking now (I know I’m a bit late 😂) I need to come back on Friday has anybody managed that yet?

We could only find flights that had massively long waits in airports or ones that had prices through the roof. If you could afford some time for a stopover somewhere else try that option. We’re flying Riga to Budapest on the Friday, staying there a night and flying home from Budapest on the Saturday morning. Flights between Riga and mainland Europe are very cheap. We also looked at Copenhagen etc too but decided on Budapest and will get home at 9am Saturday morning (same time as we would have if we had chosen to fly with stopovers in airports). But least we are getting an extra night to spend in a city exploring than hanging about Amsterdam airport 

[Carl Weathers]

1 hour ago, daftie said:

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

 

Could you set up a monzo account. Basically a debit card where you won't get charged when using abroad. 

[JimmyCant]

14 minutes ago, Carl Weathers said:

 

Could you set up a monzo account. Basically a debit card where you won't get charged when using abroad. 

This. Get a Monzo account (there are other similar ones) transfer your trip money into it. You can use it as a debit card abroad for any purchases, pubs and restaurants all take them and you can withdraw ATM local currency if you need it or prefer it (maximum £250 a month) You get the full exchange rate with no transaction charges with one of these. just avoid ATMs that charge you for just using them, best to use ATM’s in or attached to proper banks, not just a random one in a shop or in the street.

 

It comes with a phone app so you see your transactions straight away so you know how much you’ve got left and you can block it in the app if you lose it 

 

Money left in your Monzo when you get back you can just transfer back to your main account, again free of charge 

 

Check with your bank though. They might offer the exact same services with your existing debit card.

Edited August 28, 2022 by JimmyCant

[We Can But Worry]

1 hour ago, salvo69 said:

Going to start looking now (I know I’m a bit late 😂) I need to come back on Friday has anybody managed that yet?

 

Booked last night

Edi-Gatwick return Wed-Fri

Gat-Riga return Wed-Fri via Stockholm going and Oslo coming back

 

Good flight times but not cheap

[salvo69]

Cheers lads, the number of days increases the costs so I’ll have a proper look

[Alan_R]

Booked! 

 

First euro away day. 

 

Chances of getting 3 tickets for non season ticket holders? I'm a bit worried about that 😬

[Joey J J Jr Shabadoo]

49 minutes ago, Alan_R said:

Booked! 

 

First euro away day. 

 

Chances of getting 3 tickets for non season ticket holders? I'm a bit worried about that 😬

I don't think there will be problems getting tickets. Might not be in the Hearts end,  mind.

[Alan_R]

still looking at accomodation.

I cringed when i saw the 'RIX Hostel' ! 

[Stanley_]

Probably my only chance of an away Euro game but I'm only allowed 5 days off during term time (work in a school in London) and already using some days off for the home games.

 

If I'm allowed off, I'll fly out Thursday morning very early and probably go back Saturday. Flights and accommodation look very cheap.

[Jeffrey96]

9 hours ago, salvo69 said:

Going to start looking now (I know I’m a bit late 😂) I need to come back on Friday has anybody managed that yet?

We’re flying out from Manchester on Tuesday coming home Friday. Flight out is direct and flight home has a stop in Norway, flights were about £100 each but may have increased by now.

[Alan_R]

Staying in Mosaic hotel. Seems decent at the more budget end. 40 odd quid

[Randle P McMurphy]

10 hours ago, salvo69 said:

Going to start looking now (I know I’m a bit late 😂) I need to come back on Friday has anybody managed that yet?

I had the same issue, having to be back on Friday. Bit risky with all the changes however we are doing Ryanair riga to Oslo then Ryanair again Oslo to gdansk. Final stage is wizzair gdansk to Edinburgh. 

Long day hanging about but gets you back for 9.30 ish on Friday 

[ayeken]

Flights and hotel package from Newcastle if this suits anyone. Midlothian based travel agent, Flying Start Travel:

 

⚽️ ♥️ 🤍🇱🇻 
         Heart of Midlothian v Riga
        Europa Conference League
                Limited Availability
            Due to popular demand!

♥️ Flying from NEWCASTLE
♥️Morning flights outbound 
♥️Late afternoon flights home
♥️ 23 kgs luggage included
♥️ 14 September 2022 
♥️ 4* Rixwell Gertrude Hotel
♥️ 2 nights
♥️ Bed & Breakfast
♥️ Centrally located 
♥️ 15 mins walk from Old Town
♥️ ATOL PROTECTED PACKAGE

♥️ add a private taxi transfer from £10pp each way
♥️ add on Airport parking
♥️ add on Fast Track Security passes

 

⚽️ £578pp (based on 4 sharing)
⚽️ £578pp (based on 3 sharing)
⚽️ £579pp (based on 2 sharing)

🌟☎ CALL or MESSAGE US NOW TO BOOK!! 📞 01875 823140 🌟

Edited August 28, 2022 by ayeken

[christhejambo]

Just booked an airbnb in Central District, 10 mins walk to the ground.  Flights will have to wait till payday.  

 

13th Geneva to Charleroi.  Hotel in Charleroi

 

14th Charleroi to Riga

 

16th Riga to Budapest / Budapest to Geneva

 

Hopefully no issues getting a ticket

[Ribble]

On 28/08/2022 at 11:29, JimmyCant said:

This. Get a Monzo account (there are other similar ones) transfer your trip money into it. You can use it as a debit card abroad for any purchases, pubs and restaurants all take them and you can withdraw ATM local currency if you need it or prefer it (maximum £250 a month) You get the full exchange rate with no transaction charges with one of these. just avoid ATMs that charge you for just using them, best to use ATM’s in or attached to proper banks, not just a random one in a shop or in the street.

 

It comes with a phone app so you see your transactions straight away so you know how much you’ve got left and you can block it in the app if you lose it 

 

Money left in your Monzo when you get back you can just transfer back to your main account, again free of charge 

 

Check with your bank though. They might offer the exact same services with your existing debit card.

 

I use Revolut that does the same thing bus has a higher limit for cash withdrawals, if anyone want's a referral link just drop me a PM (I get £50 once the account has been setup and used 3 times for more than a fiver, any referral money I get I'll happily donate to FOH)

[mack515151]

On 28/08/2022 at 09:29, daftie said:

I have a bit of a daft question, but can somebody offer advice about money/ paying for things as I have only ever been to Dublin before. I am not sure what is the best way to pay for things.
 

Should I pay for majority of stuff with my debit card, or should I pay in euros, or do I do a mixture of both. I don’t want to be gullible and choose the most expensive options.

 

Any advice for 2 newbies going abroad would be greatly appreciated. 

I have used Halifax Clarity credit card for years no foreign currency fees. You will get some fees if withdraw cash and instant interest charged as is a credit card. Always select local currency if paying by card or you get a worse exchange rate.

Recently I have used a Chase debit card abroad. Brussels, Amsterdam and Berlin. No foreign currency fees. 

Berlin was odd as lots of places wanted cash. Brussels and Amsterdam contactless all the time.

Be careful of ATMs. In Berlin the postoffice ATMs charged zero fee and good rate but few locations and not 24 hrs. EC branded ATMs were everywhere but charged a whopping fee and forced a crap exchange rate. Riga might have similar pricey ATMs to avoid. Of course if you need cash quickly somes just have to suck up fees etc (or we would have been washing pots in Berlin). 

[thehibsareintheirbeds]

15 hours ago, ayeken said:

Flights and hotel package from Newcastle if this suits anyone. Midlothian based travel agent, Flying Start Travel:

 

⚽️ ♥️ 🤍🇱🇻 
         Heart of Midlothian v Riga
        Europa Conference League
                Limited Availability
            Due to popular demand!

♥️ Flying from NEWCASTLE
♥️Morning flights outbound 
♥️Late afternoon flights home
♥️ 23 kgs luggage included
♥️ 14 September 2022 
♥️ 4* Rixwell Gertrude Hotel
♥️ 2 nights
♥️ Bed & Breakfast
♥️ Centrally located 
♥️ 15 mins walk from Old Town
♥️ ATOL PROTECTED PACKAGE

♥️ add a private taxi transfer from £10pp each way
♥️ add on Airport parking
♥️ add on Fast Track Security passes

 

⚽️ £578pp (based on 4 sharing)
⚽️ £578pp (based on 3 sharing)
⚽️ £579pp (based on 2 sharing)

🌟☎ CALL or MESSAGE US NOW TO BOOK!! 📞 01875 823140 🌟

Tempted by this, prices seem ok. Anyone used flying start before?

[Big Moysey]

Sports Options, an established sports tour provider are doing a day trip to Riga by the looks of things.

From their Web site :-

'To register interest in this trip please e-mail [email protected] and quote "Hearts in Europe" and we will add you to our mailing list for online sale.

 

[pettigrewsstylist]

On 28/08/2022 at 14:20, Alan_R said:

Booked! 

 

First euro away day. 

 

Chances of getting 3 tickets for non season ticket holders? I'm a bit worried about that 😬

Youll be sorted. I think i read 8k stadium with less than 1k average crowd somewhere. 

Hope to hear something soon tho as im not going anywhere near auld reekie in the next fortnight!

[ayeken]

3 hours ago, thehibsareintheirbeds said:

Tempted by this, prices seem ok. Anyone used flying start before?

It’s my mother in law’s travel agency business so can vouch for it 🙂 Based in Gorebridge. Give them a buzz or send an email and Diane will keep you right. 

[Luckies1874]

https://www.sportoptions.com/RFS-v-Hearts-UECL

[connlach]

I have got details on a good trip to Riga if anyone is still looking on going. Reckon it can be done for £300 per person for 4.nights with direct flights.

[iainmac]

Tuesday 13th Edinburgh - Brussels flight - overnight in Brussels 

Wednesday 14th Brussels - Riga flight 

 

Saturday 17th Riga - Berlin flight then same day 

                         Berlin - Edinburgh flight. 

 

Total flights cost £211 then you've got accommodation in Brussels & Riga. 

Riga hotels look to be about £40 per night. 

 

This will be cheaper then the club charter for sure. 

 

 

 

[We_are_the_Hearts]

Staying at the Wellton Centrum hotel. Flying Edinburgh to London to Oslo to Riga on Wednesday morning!!

[Alan_R]

10 hours ago, iainmac said:

Tuesday 13th Edinburgh - Brussels flight - overnight in Brussels 

Wednesday 14th Brussels - Riga flight 

 

Saturday 17th Riga - Berlin flight then same day 

                         Berlin - Edinburgh flight. 

 

Total flights cost £211 then you've got accommodation in Brussels & Riga. 

Riga hotels look to be about £40 per night. 

 

This will be cheaper then the club charter for sure. 

 

 

 

Easily. Our flights were £140 return.

[cuthy2k]

Anyone know when tickets will be released? 

[BASIL_HEARTS]

17 hours ago, connlach said:

I have got details on a good trip to Riga if anyone is still looking on going. Reckon it can be done for £300 per person for 4.nights with direct flights.

Can’t pm you but would be interested for sure. For 2 though? 

[connlach]

3 hours ago, BASIL_HEARTS said:

Can’t pm you but would be interested for sure. For 2 though? 

Hi there, price has sneaked up a bit but hopefully this works:

 

https://www.opodo.co.uk/travel/dp/#dpresults_accommodation/type=R;from=ABZ;to=RIX;dep=2022-09-13;ret=2022-09-17;roomAdults0=2;adults=2;buyPath=FLIGHTS_HOME_FLIGHTS_TAB;internalSearch=true

 

If not look for direct flights out of Aberdeen to Riga 13th to 17th Sept with hotel on opodo via Air Baltic.  Has to be those dates.  Hope that helps.

[BASIL_HEARTS]

11 minutes ago, connlach said:

Hi there, price has sneaked up a bit but hopefully this works:

 

https://www.opodo.co.uk/travel/dp/#dpresults_accommodation/type=R;from=ABZ;to=RIX;dep=2022-09-13;ret=2022-09-17;roomAdults0=2;adults=2;buyPath=FLIGHTS_HOME_FLIGHTS_TAB;internalSearch=true

 

If not look for direct flights out of Aberdeen to Riga 13th to 17th Sept with hotel on opodo via Air Baltic.  Has to be those dates.  Hope that helps.

Thanks very much mate that’s a good deal 👍