Private jet to Latvia

Latvia sits in the middle of the three Baltic states, with 494 km of coast on the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Riga. About 1.8 million people live here, and most of the business is done in Riga, the largest city of the region, with a port, banks and the head offices of many Baltic companies. Summer adds a second kind of trip: Jūrmala, the resort town of white sand and wooden villas west of the capital, and the Kurzeme coast around Liepāja.

For a business jet the choice in Latvia is short. Riga International takes any aircraft at any hour and has its own business aviation centre, while Liepāja on the west coast accepts light and midsize jets during its working hours. Ventspils and the Jūrmala airfield near Tukums are limited to visual flights. As a broker, we compare aircraft from operators across Europe and pick the airport by the address, with Tallinn, Vilnius or Kaunas as the backup.

Tell us where you are going in the country, the dates and the number of passengers, and we will send aircraft and airport options:

Why fly to the Baltic coast privately

Flight times to Riga and Liepāja

Times from the price tables below, taxi, climb and descent included:

• Vilnius: 0:51 h, Tallinn: 0:53 h, Helsinki: 1:01 h, Stockholm: 1:06 h (Phenom 300)
• Copenhagen: 1:27 h to Riga, 1:13 h to Liepāja (Phenom 300)
• Hamburg: 1:50 h, Vienna: 2:02 h, Munich: 2:15 h, Frankfurt: 2:16 h (Citation CJ3)
• Amsterdam: 2:21 h, Zurich: 2:33 h, Milan Linate: 2:46 h, Paris Le Bourget: 2:50 h (Citation CJ3)
• London Farnborough: 2:53 h to Riga, 2:38 h to Liepāja (Citation CJ3)
• Nice: 3:07 h, Larnaca: 4:03 h, Madrid: 4:14 h (Citation CJ3)

Liepāja lies about 180 km closer to western Europe than Riga, so London - Liepāja is a quarter of an hour shorter than London - Riga. From Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn or Vilnius a turboprop needs 10-20 minutes more than a jet and costs less. From Dubai the heavy and long-range types need 5:20-5:37 h non-stop, and from New York 7:59 h in a Global 7500. Remember the clock: Riga is two hours ahead of London, so a departure from Farnborough at 09:00 lands just before 14:00 local time.

Private jet prices to Latvia

Every price is for the whole aircraft on a one-way leg, with an aircraft assumed close to the departure airport; handling, landing fees and passenger taxes are added. Flight times belong to the first aircraft in each row.

From the European hubs

From London a Citation CJ3 costs EUR 14,500 to Riga and EUR 13,500 to Liepāja. Hamburg is the closest of the hubs: EUR 11,000 to Riga and EUR 10,500 to the west coast in the same light jet. From Madrid, Larnaca or Nice the super midsize Praetor 600 adds a stand-up cabin and room for a week's luggage.

From the Nordic countries and the neighbours

Stockholm Bromma, Helsinki, Tallinn and Vilnius are all about an hour away by jet, and on these sectors the fixed part of the price weighs more than the distance: a Pilatus PC-12 costs EUR 7,000-7,500, and a light jet costs EUR 9,500-10,500. Riga - Liepāja is a domestic leg that any EU operator may fly, from EUR 6,500 in a turboprop.

Turboprop to Ventspils

Ventspils has a 1,298 m runway without an instrument approach, so it takes only aircraft flying by sight in daylight, in practice a turboprop:

Long-haul flights

The 3,200 m runway at Riga takes every long-range jet. European operators keep away from closed airspace to the east, and the operator confirms the routing and the flight time in the quote:

Three things set the price: hours in the air, the base of the nearest free aircraft and the length of the stay. For a day of meetings it is usually cheaper for the aircraft to wait at Riga; for a week at the coast, two one-way flights cost less than parking and crew hotels. Latvian airport and handling charges are listed in the quote. The departure country adds its own passenger tax: France about EUR 420 per passenger on a jet and about half on a turboprop; Italy EUR 100 up to 1,500 km and EUR 200 beyond, on flights to or from Italy; Austria EUR 12 (EUR 30 up to 350 km); Germany, Norway and the Netherlands (aircraft of 5.7 t or more) also tax departures, while Sweden has no passenger tax. UK Air Passenger Duty does not apply to aircraft under 5.7 t such as the PC-12; aircraft of 20 t or more with fewer than 19 seats pay the higher private-jet rate, other jets the standard rate.

Business jet price per flight hour

Heavy Jets from EUR 8,300 / hour

Light Jets from EUR 3,200 / hour

Ultra Long Range Jets from EUR 12,000 / hour

Super Midsize Jets from EUR 6,300 / hour

Very Light Jets from EUR 2,500 / hour

Long Range Jets from EUR 9,800 / hour

Midsize Jets from EUR 4,500 / hour

Turboprops from EUR 2,000 / hour

Three typical trips and what they cost

Price per person

Divided among the passengers, the one-way price per seat comes out as follows:

Online calculator

Type in the airports, the date and the group size; the estimate arrives by e-mail a few minutes later.

Airports and the business aviation centre

Latvia has one airport that receives any jet at any hour and three smaller fields with limits. Arrivals from outside Schengen must make their first landing in Latvia at an airfield with border control, which in practice means Riga, or Liepāja with notice:

Spilve, the old airfield on the Daugava in Riga, is open to national visual flights only. When weather closes Riga, the alternates are Kaunas (3,250 m runway, about 218 km), Vilnius and Tallinn; all three work around the clock, and the two Lithuanian airports ask for prior permission 24 hours ahead. A charter by an operator from outside the EU may need a permit from the Latvian Ministry of Transport, filed a few working days before the flight; we handle it when it applies.

Choosing the aircraft

Liepāja's 2,002 m runway suits light jets and midsize jets; with a heavy load on a hot day or a wet runway, the operator checks the performance and may suggest Riga. In winter ask for a hangar at Riga when the aircraft stays overnight, which also saves the de-icing before a morning departure.

Not sure whether Riga or Liepāja fits your programme? Leave your number and a consultant will call you.

When to fly: the year month by month

Business trips to Latvia are spread over the whole year. The leisure peak is short: Jūrmala and the west coast are busiest from late June to mid-August, and Midsummer on 23 and 24 June empties offices and fills the countryside. The quietest months for flights and hotels are March, October and early November. Empty Legs are most frequent after the summer weekends and after Midsummer, when aircraft that brought guests to Riga or Liepāja return to Scandinavia, Germany and Britain empty.

From the airports to the city, the coast and the castles

Helicopter times are estimates from the centre of Riga and change with weather and load; landing sites near castles and old towns are narrow, so the site is agreed with the operator and the landowner first. Fog and low cloud over the Gulf of Riga can stop a helicopter, and we keep a car booked as a backup. Distances in Latvia are modest, but a winter road adds time to every one of them. For a stay of several days on the coast, a minivan instead of a saloon takes suitcases, golf bags and a pushchair.

Empty Legs to and from Latvia

An Empty Leg is a flight the operator must make without passengers, for example after dropping a group in Riga. Flights to Latvia produce them because many parties fly one way and come back a week later. Typical directions:

Date and hour belong to the operator, and a leg vanishes if the paying trip is rebooked, so it works best for a party that can move by a day. Write to empty-legs@jets.flights with the route and your dates, and matching offers come to you by e-mail.

Flying with a dog or cat

Latvia applies the EU rules and has no quarantine. The animal flies in the cabin beside you, and the operator must approve it, with its breed and weight, before the booking:

• ISO microchip, implanted before the rabies vaccination; if the vaccine came first, it has to be repeated.
• Rabies vaccination from 12 weeks of age; after a first vaccination 21 days must pass before travel.
• EU pet passport; pets from Great Britain travel on an animal health certificate, valid for ten days for entry into the EU.
• Up to five dogs, cats or ferrets per person on a non-commercial trip.
• Latvia requires no tapeworm treatment.

If the dog flies on afterwards, Finland wants a tapeworm treatment 24-120 hours before landing, and Ireland, Malta and Norway one to five days before arrival. Britain applies the same one-to-five-day window, accepts pets only through approved routes and handlers, and for trips of five days or less lets the dog be treated before leaving the UK, at least 24 hours before the return. Some Jūrmala hotels do not take dogs and some beaches have local rules, so we ask before booking the stay.

Documents, customs and passenger taxes

Checklist before departure

• Passport or ID card for every passenger, children included.
• Names, dates of birth and document numbers for the handler at Riga, sent no later than the day before.
• Final address in Latvia: Old Town hotel, Jūrmala, Sigulda or the west coast; it decides between Riga and Liepāja.
• For Liepāja or Ventspils: arrival on a weekday in daytime, or the extra opening requested in advance.
• Number of suitcases, golf bags and pushchairs.
• Pet passport or animal health certificate, and the hotel's pet policy.
• Whether the aircraft waits, flies home between the legs or continues to Tallinn, Vilnius or Helsinki.
• Company name and VAT number for the invoice.

How to book

1. Send the departure airport, dates, passengers, luggage and the final address, for example a hotel in Majori or an office in central Riga.
2. We choose the airport: Riga for the capital, Jūrmala and night arrivals; Liepāja for Kurzeme on a weekday; Ventspils only by turboprop in daylight.
3. The handler at Riga requests the slot; for Liepāja we request the opening hours and, from outside Schengen, the 24-hour permission.
4. Our reply brings two to four aircraft with operator, model, cabin photos and the whole-aircraft price, together with the car or helicopter.
5. Once the operator's contract is signed and paid, we confirm handling, slot, de-icing or hangar and the transfer.

Questions about private flights to Latvia

• • How much does a private jet to Latvia cost?

  • A Pilatus PC-12 from Stockholm or Helsinki to Riga costs EUR 7,500 one way for the whole aircraft. A Citation CJ3 costs EUR 11,000 from Hamburg and EUR 12,500 from Frankfurt or Munich; from London it costs EUR 14,500. Handling, landing fees and passenger taxes are added in the quote.

• • Which airports in Latvia can a business jet use?

  • Riga takes every jet at any hour, and Liepāja on the west coast takes light and midsize jets during its weekday hours or on request. Ventspils and the Jūrmala airfield are for visual flights only.

• • Is there a private terminal in Riga?

  • Yes, the FBO Riga business aviation centre has its own terminal, apron, VIP rooms and a heated hangar. Handling is compulsory, and the handler also requests the slot.

• • How long is the flight from London?

  • About 2:53 h to Riga and 2:38 h to Liepāja in a Citation CJ3, non-stop. Add two hours on the clock for the time difference.

• • How do we get to Jūrmala?

  • Land at Riga: Majori is 18 km by the A10 without crossing the city, or about 15 minutes by helicopter. The Jūrmala airfield near Tukums is farther from the beaches.

• • Can we fly from Riga to Liepāja?

  • Yes, with an EU operator. A Pilatus PC-12 takes 0:52 h and costs EUR 6,500, against about 200 km by road.

• • Do we need passports for Latvia?

  • From Schengen countries there is no check, but every passenger needs a valid passport or ID card for the operator. From the UK, passports are checked at the first landing, and the passport must be under ten years old.

• • Can our dog fly with us?

  • Yes, in the cabin, with a microchip, rabies vaccination and an EU pet passport or animal health certificate. Latvia asks for no tapeworm treatment; Finland, Ireland, Malta, Norway and the UK do.

• • Can we return the same day?

  • Yes. Riga is open around the clock, and the aircraft can wait while you hold the meeting; crew waiting time and handling are added to the price.

• • When are Empty Legs most likely?

  • After summer weekends and Midsummer, and on short business sectors to Stockholm, Helsinki and Warsaw all year. Write to empty-legs@jets.flights with the direction and dates.

• • How early should we book for Midsummer or the Song Festival?

  • Several weeks ahead, and book the hotel and the car before the aircraft. In March, October and November a few days' notice is usually enough.