Karlines Iela 28, Ventspils. However a group immediately before us was being turned away as we arrived. The guesthouse was full. We had booked our room as early as February and were able to say confidently "We have a booking for David and Camilla Taylor from Australia." No good. The idiot teenage boy operating the reservations on the computer had lost our booking. Fortunately the owner and manager Italo Freimanis was there and accepted our story. He went out of his way to find us alternative accommodation for the night at a private boarding house just around the corner at Kapitenu Iela 8. He came around the corner with us and I was amused to see that in addition to knocking on the door he simultaneously used his mobile phone to ring the landlady. The lady of the house spoke fairly good german and we were quickly settled.
We paid 16 latai ($39 australian) for the two of us without breakfast.
Kapitenu Iela is a narrow old cobbled street at right angles to the riverfront. The house in which we stayed was in common with the adjacent houses some 90 to 100 years old, fronting directly onto the street but with a substantial courtyard behind the house. As the only guests we had two adjoining ground floor rooms with 4 beds to ourselves and a small kitchen where we were able to make our own tea and breakfast. The landlady was very helpful hanging out our wet clothing to dry. When her husband Viktor came home from work he insisted on guiding us to his recommended fish restaurant although we really had no common language.
A comfortable quiet night's stay. It was a simple ride from there to the ferry the next morning early. - Recommended
| Karlines Nams Hotel in
Ventspils. | Italo Freimanis | 371 292 77050 |