(Update April 2010!!! The old days of the police not helping in Riga are gone. Now if you have any problem you can call the tourism police at +371 67181818 and you can be certain that they will assist you. See this post for more details!)

If you have read our post about the various Riga Strip Club scams then you already know to stay out of most of the stripclubs in Riga. Now the US embassy has come out with a blacklist of the clubs which have robbed American tourists in Riga. It is good to use as a guide although the list is not comprehensive.

You can see the updated list here: US Embassy Riga Clubs Blacklist.

Here is the current list as of May, 2010:

Angels - Elizabetes 22, Riga

Babylon (formerly Roxy Klub) – Kalku 24, Riga; located near the entrance to Old Town on Kalku street.

Livu Krodzins Bar/Pizzeria (formerly Lord’s Pub, Groks Pub, and Royal Pub) - Kalku 22, Riga; located next door to Babylon (formerly Roxy Klub).

Red Lion Pub (formerly Saxon) – Laipu 7, Riga; located near Livu Square in a small street to the right of restaurant Steiku Haoss.

Infinity Bars (formerly Bar Fly) – Vagnera 8, Riga; located near Livu Square in a small street to the right of Babylon (formerly Roxy), Royal (formerly Lord’s and Groks) and Enigma (formerly Puzzle and Pink Panther).

Mary – Audeju 13, Riga; located on the east side of Galleria Center Mall in Old Town.

Enigma (formerly Puzzle and Pink Panther) – Kalku 22, Riga; located next door to Royal (formerly Lord’s Pub and Groks Pub).

Kapsula Bar (formerly Zephyr Bar) – Audeju, Riga; located near Galleria Center in Old Town.

Monroe’s Nightclub – Skarnu 7, Riga; located behind Indian Raja.

We have also had numerous bad reports about the following:

Caprice (formerly Cognac bar) - 1/3 Baznicas, Riga Centre.

Flames - on Kalku in Old Town.

Blow (formerly Kleopatra) - Stabu 15, Riga Centre.

Brilliant - 9 Blaumana, Riga Centre.

Extreme - 37 K. Valdermara, Riga Centre.

Royal Source - 14 Marstalu in Old Town.

Hostel Pub - 12 Teātra in Old Town.

As we have stated in previous warnings if you go into any of these clubs you will be robbed. We have had reports of people losing as much as 5,000 EUR!!! If you are not sure about a club do not go in!

Riga has a great nightclub scene which offers a chance to see and meet some of the hottest girls in the world dressed to impress. Unlike many major cities, the hottest clubs in Riga are typically open to everyone. Because of this, Riga offers a unique opportunity to mingle with some model quality girls who would typically be in some roped off, VIP only club in most other cities. Of course if you really want to meet some of the hotter girls it always helps to be rich, charming and good looking just like anywhere else, but even if you are just an average guy, there is still a lot of fun to be had in Riga’s hot club scene.

Most of the good clubs in Riga cost between 10-20 Ls for entry. There is sometimes a line but usually you will not have to wait long. On Thursday nights the hottest club is Essential on Skolas 2 near the Hotel Reval Latvia. This club features world class lights and sound but what will really interest you will be the throngs of incredibly sexy local hotties grinding it out on the dance floor! Essential on a big night will truly feature some incredible looking girls! On Friday nights you can find all the local Russian models and model wanna bes at Studio 69 on Terbatas 73. This Moscow style club is extravagantly designed and decorated and features some of the truly hottest Russian women you will ever see. On Saturday you can try a more relaxed atmosphere at the Skyline Cafe on the top of the Hotel Reval Latvia. This modern, well designed bar/lounge features incredible views of the Riga night skyline as well as the well dressed local girls looking to meet some rich guy. After that you can check out Push Club on Terbatas 2 near the Freedom Monument. This hot club also features some over the top stage shows and sexy go-go shows and occasionally some famous Russian pop acts on its catwalk like stage.

In general it is best to be wary of girls in the clubs who seem overly friendly. Typically they are working for a drink commissions from the club and will order a few rounds of overpriced drinks and then disappear into the “ladies room” never to come back. Worse they may try to lure you into one of the scam stipclubs we have warned you about. It is possible to meet a nice local girl for a good time in a Riga nightclub but in general it is just like anywhere else…..if you are rich and good looking it is a lot easier then if you are just an average guy, so play it smart. Of course if you find yourself back in your hotel room at the end of the night with nothing but some nice memories of all the incredible Riga girls you can always order up a private party in your room with some girls who know exactly what you are looking for!

For a complete list of Riga nightclubs with descriptions and addresses check out this Riga Nightclubs page.