Riga.

Advantages: Cheap, friendly place to visit, interesting architecture.
Disadvantages: Might not last too long in its current state. Freezing cold in winter.

...Latvia is not somewhere that would immediately spring to mind when deciding on a city break, but when we researched a possible weekend away for between four and six people (all male) within our budget (£200), there was no clear cut winner. Riga, Berlin, Prague and Barcelona were all able to offer a flight/hotel combination for within that. Riga was decided on by vote, purely for the reason that it was only really opening up as a destination and had that 'kudos' factor that all new things seem to have. Most of our group flew out of Dublin with Ryanair, though there are other routes available from England and one of our party flew with Ryanair out of Stansted. Flights will obviously vary in price, depending on who you're flying with, when you're flying and how far in advance you book. Booking tickets with Ryanair at Christmas for an end...

TheDuke 10.03.2006 · Read review
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Review of Riga (Latvia)

The Scruffy Shoe Diaries EAGER FOR RIGA

Advantages: Architecture, history, market
Disadvantages: Technical University, too many bridges

...advantages and disadvantages is surprising to say the least. FACTS YOU NEED There is most definitely a tourist infrastructure there but as of September 2000, tourism had yet to really take hold - so finding a place to stay (if you haven't pre-booked already) may mean the expenditure of a little shoe leather. However the public transport, if you can figure out the timetables, is cheap and convenient. Accommodation at a range of standards is available, from Hostel (hint: not the Riga Technical University despite what the guide books say) to multi-star Hotels, and generally isn't prohibitively expensive. I stayed at what I would describe as a mid-range (just about 3* hotel) which cost 45 Lat, around 50 quid for a twin room. Needless to say transport links between the Baltic states are good (bus is the more convenient) and cheap. You...

Paiceyjohn 19.03.2001 (08.05.2002) · Read review
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Review of Riga (Latvia)

Hostel

Advantages: Thrilling, Chilling
Disadvantages: the sex scenes could have been little less

...Well this is one freaky and scary movie. Its rather you have to fight to survive through the movie than to watch it. This movie is completely about brutality. God knows what was goin through that directors mind while creating. The movie is packed with complete thrills, scenes which give you chills, goosebumps and some, which make you wanna puke. The violence and gore in the movie is just too horrific. You need to have a stable mind to watch the movie. The actors in the movie, Jay Hernandez has acted very well. The story starts from a hostel in slovakia. The main character reaches this hostel and find two beautiful ladies there, Natalya and Svetlana. They somehow hangout with these females and end up pairing with them. The females distract the two of these friends by showing them good times. Slowly, these two friends find themselves...

anurag440044 16.11.2008 · Read review
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Review of Hostel (Unseen Edition) (DVD)

Horror at the Hostel

Advantages: Gore fans will love this, there are disgusting displays of death galore.
Disadvantages: The film lacks substance, relies heavily on shock value and little else is offered.

...Released in 2006, 'Hostel' was the third film directed by Eli Roth. Having heard good things and previously loved 'Cabin Fever' which Roth also directed I had been really looking forward to seeing this film, when I saw it however I felt nothing but disappointment. Many had praised the film for its gory and grotesque nature, and yes Eli Roth does indeed forefront blood and guts quite freely here but really there is very little substance to this film whatsoever. I like my horror films to have a bit of depth, something about them that makes them stand out as sensational; nothing of this sort is apparent here and 'Hostel' is a purely visual display of disgusting deaths. Three men are here backpacking through Europe, two of which are American and the other is from Iceland. Paxton and Josh are the two Americans, and Oli is Icelandic. They...

RazzaLazza 16.04.2008 · Read review
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Review of Hostel (Unseen Edition) (DVD)

The Hostel from Hell

Advantages: Sex and gore if you like it
Disadvantages: Sex and gore if you don't

...like watching, to see whether anything still surprises me. Generally I am disappointed, sometimes I even feel guilty for watching films about extreme cruelty to people. But that is not really why I watch them, and I don't think most people who watched this film did so because they enjoy seeing people being tortured, but rather because they were curious. Story Two rather perverted young men and a shy-guy who seems uncomfortable around women are off back-packing around Europe. Sounds exciting? Well, for men, I guess. They start out in Amsterdam, staying in cheap hostels and going out for late nights of clubbing and sex. Or at least for two of them, anyway. Then they meet a man who knows of a Hostel in Slovakia, in a place where the women adore Americans and will do anything for them, absolutely anything. After showing some...

Ayesha- 14.09.2008 · Read review
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Review of Hostel, DVD

Riga, the next best weekend retreat?

Advantages: The old town central to accomodation and airport.
Disadvantages: Bars a little too expensive and can be a little too laid back.

...Return flights from Gatwick to Riga = £135, but can be cheaper when bought at last minute. We decided to stay in Riga's old town for a few days before moving on to Russia. The Currency; very easy to deal with, Lats, which one Lat is about equal to the sum of one Pound, makes it easy to keep track of your money and there are also plenty of places to exchange currency. Prices; our accomodation was £7 per night, we stayed in the Dome Hostel, a reasonable, clean place to reside, with a selection of mixed, or single sex dorms, however no en suites. Free water is provided, free internet and free television. The accomodation is right next to the old square and on the main street for nightlife, which can be a little noisy but is bearable. Nightlife, bars, resturants; reasonable but by far not the cheapest, aim to pay about £3 per...

dinkydyke 07.07.2006 · Read review
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Review of Riga (Latvia)

Hostel Endeavours

Advantages: Some nice cinematography, decent acting during tense moments
Disadvantages: boobs and gore but little substance, just too nasty

...So it now appears that Eli Roth is so lauded in cinema that he can present his films with his name before them. Such is the case with Eli Roth's Hostel. Well in case you didn't know, Roth's previous effort was the over hyped Cabin Fever. If you've seen that film than I hope you'd agree it wasn't the saviour of horror that certain websites proclaimed. Either way it doesn't give him the kudos to throw his name before a film like a bigshot. Anyway Hostel is the latest chiller from his demented mind and once again sites like Aint It Cool News hyped it beyond belief. It was lauded as visceral cinema that would be unlike anything ever seen. The film opens with three backpackers. Two of them American, the other from Iceland and looking like he could be the dad of his fellow backpackers. The three of them are trekking across Europe...

utero 04.05.2006 · Read review
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Review of Hostel, DVD

Hostile Hostel

Advantages: Not much of a plot to follow
Disadvantages: Gory, nudism and drugs

...Hostile Hostel A review by KELLYLOUJ on Hostel (Blu-Ray Disc) November 7th, 2006 Author's product rating: Did you enjoy it? Indifferent to it Story Very weak Characters / Performances Unmemorable Special Effects Good How does it compare to similar films? Satisfactory Advantages: Not too much of a plot to follow Disadvantages: Lots of sex scenes and blood Recommend to potential buyers: yes Full review On Thursday of last week I was desperate to look for something that was worth watching on TV there was nothing so I took a look at the Box office movies on Sky and saw that they were advertising Hostel. As there had been a few conversations in the office regarding this film I decided to purchase the film and give it a go. The film is about 2 American college students Paxton (Jay Hernandez...

KELLYLOUJ 08.11.2006 · Read review
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Review of Hostel, DVD

The Dogs of Riga- Wallander is back

Advantages: Good storyline and interesting facts about Latvia demonstrated
Disadvantages: Not much suspence or tension created compared to other works by Mankell

...The Dogs of Riga (Hundarna i Riga) is the second book out of nine in the Kurt Wallander detective series by Henning Mankell. This crime novel series follows investigations led by Inspector Kurt Wallander of the Ystad police department, which is a small town near Malmo in the southern area of Sweden, Skåne. *About the Author* Henning Mankell is a Swedish author, who was born in Stockholm in 1948. His works include another 8 books in the Kurt Wallander series, which are translated from the original language of Swedish into a total of 19 other languages including English. His previous jobs include acting and theatre directing. *About the Book* In this action packed sequel to the gripping "Faceless Killers", Kurt Wallander is back with yet another mystery to solve. The Ystad police department receive a phone call revealing...

emzipops86 02.05.2006 · Read review
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Review of The Dogs of Riga - Henning Mankell

A cheap hostel in London

Advantages: cheap rooms in london, good location
Disadvantages: loud, staff not friendly

...We stayed at the Clink Hostel for 3 nights in May. Rooms are very reasonable priced and you have a choice between -single/double/triple en suite by room -dorms from 4 to 16 beds both en suite or not Booking is possible on www.clinkhostel.com and hostelworld.com - I heard it's also possible to do it via phone. Booking was quick and easy. The location close to Kings Cross is great. Within Zone 1/2 on the underground it is easily reachable. At King's Cross you can get the following tubes: Northern Line (Black), Metropolitan Line (Dark Red), Circle Line (Yellow) and Hammersmith and City Line (Pink). From the tube station to the hostel it's a 5min walk. WE found the hostel easy to find and the location quite central. The quick connection between King's Cross and Camden town was a huge plus point. Plus points: -free walking tour...

sun-is-shining 01.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of Clink Hostel, London