I’ll be keeping a closer eye on Baltic Bulletin in future.

Actually, as I was writing this post it occurred to me to check out the other Baltic countries and – lo and behold – there is a section on Lithuanian culture but not (as far as I can tell) anything on Estonia.

The twist in this tale comes from the Latvian interior minister Mareks Seglins, whose response to the conviction was to say that he was fed up with the spectacle of Brits abroad: “Those English pigs… they are a dirty, hoggish people.” The Latvian President later distanced himself from the remarks on national radio, while the British Embassy maintains that only a small number of British visitors get into trouble. True enough – it really is a tiny percentage of the total number of visitors – but I do find it depressing that the majority of these incidents seem to involve Brits. Ask around in Riga and you will see that as a nation we are getting a decidedly bad name.

Apologies, by the way, to any regular readers for the severe disruption to normal service recently. I moved out of the UK and have been busy with all the things which that entails. I hope to get the site back on track now. I know I’m behind with this latest bit of news, but since I’ve been following these incidents I wanted to note them here anyway.

The Lonely Planet: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania is perhaps the one with the greatest brand recognition, and it’s a good book if you are planning to visit more than one of the Baltic countries. I don’t always agree with the assessments in the book – I think it’s unduly harsh about some of the less touristed parts of Latvia such as Daugavpils, for example – but it’s a solid choice which is particularly strong on hotel and restaurant reviews. LP also publish a short guide to Tallinn.

The Rough Guide to the Baltic States is also a good choice, with some interesting cultural material at the back and reliable practical information throughout. I haven’t seen the latest edition, which will be published in January 2008, but it will be a welcome update since the previous edition was getting a bit dated. It is possible to pre-order the new edition from Amazon.

My personal favourites, though, are the Bradt guides to Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Partly this is because as single-country volumes they can go into more depth than the Lonely Planet or Rough Guide; they also display an exceptional degree of cultural sensitivity and are written by people with a genuine depth of knowledge. I can’t recommend them highly enough. The only downside is that the Lithuania and Latvia guides are due to be updated (in fact, the latter has a new edition coming out in July).

For those only planning to visit the Baltic capitals, Bradt also has mini-guides to Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius, as well as a guide to all three.

Finally, for those looking for a cheaper option the In Your Pocket guides may fit the bill. They are not available through Amazon, but are easily found within the region’s tourist centres and can be downloaded for free from the In Your Pocket website.

One factor regulating the climate is the Baltic Sea, which means that coastal areas are usually a few degrees warmer than further inland in the winter. The flip side is that the coast is slightly cooler in the summer.

Subzero temperatures are often accompanied by biting winds. There is also snow cover throughout the winter, sometimes starting as early as mid-November, which can make driving hard work – only the largest roads are gritted – and pavements treacherous. Last winter I spent several weeks in Latvia and had a couple of nasty slips which left various body parts aching. Perhaps more worrying was finding my hire car sliding into a ditch on more than one occasion. I have been searching for the photographic evidence but can’t locate it – if I do I’ll post it later (and it will be the first photo I have posted except for the blog header!).

The other downside is that the days are very short in winter. Some days it hardly seems to get properly light at all, which can make sightseeing less pleasant than in summer. It also means that, as everywhere, people can be less outgoing than they are in warmer months.

It isn’t all gloomy though. Some days bring wonderfully clear skies and crisply invigorating weather. There are also winter sports to draw visitors: downhill skiing is surprisingly popular given the lack of any serious slopes, for example. A more unusual draw is the international standard bobsleigh track in Sigulda, where in winter the Latvian national team will take visitors for a hair-raising ride lasting around a minute.

Another of the joys of the Baltic winter is seeing the snow-covered landscape and frozen lakes. Ice fishing is a common pastime throughout the region, with locals cutting holes in the ice and sitting in wait for hours at a time. It is not generally recommended that tourists join them, as every year a handful of local people die after falling through the ice, but there is something satisfying about spotting the hardy souls sitting out there.

The other thing to bear in mind is that many people visit the Baltics for city breaks, and if you are spending most of your time in museums or pubs then the weather is not of the utmost importance. In fact it can be positively cosy to be indoors. I met quite a few tourists in Riga last winter, including a couple wandering the Ethnographic Museum as it snowed, and none of them had regretted making the trip.

So the answer, unsurprisingly, is that the Baltics can be fun at any time of the year. Just make sure you take along appropriate clothing, bear in mind that getting from place to place may take longer, and prepare to steel yourself against those icy winds once in a while. If you require any further meteorological information, try the meteorological institutes in each country: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

Finally, while I’m on the subject of climate I’d like to recommend a book called Weather to Travel. While it’s possible to find most of the information on the web if you are so inclined, the book is reliable and easy to use: each country in the world has an entry indicating ‘comfort’, rainfall, sunshine hours and daylight hours for each month, tips on regional variation and advice on what clothes to pack. I use it before I head off anywhere.

Source: Eesti Paevaleht (via Baltic Stand By)

The hotel’s website raises more questions than it answers, including ‘what on earth is the “mysterious tree of dreams” which is touted as central to the New Year’s party?’ But it does give details of spa packages which look tempting – the treatments are not in the hotel itself, but in a beauty salon nearby. The hotel’s ‘relax centre’ does however have a jacuzzi and steam room.

The website doesn’t offer a rack rate for a room, but I had a look at the booking system which is all very flash (and, indeed, uses Flash). It makes it very easy to order an airport transfer, late check-out or even a dozen red roses; the dates I checked in January had doubles for 82 Euro.

As usual, I’d love to hear from anyone who actually stays there and has an opinion on the place or on the mysterious tree of dreams.

I’ve gone back to the old version of the plugin for now and will test the new one when I have more time.

For what they haven’t got, not for what they have. The simple life can be the good life.

It’s an entertaining piece, reveling in idiosyncracies such as ‘the world’s smallest public library’ on Abruka, which captures the charm of the three islands.

Earlier this year I spent a few weeks driving around the country conducting research for the forthcoming Dorling Kindersley Eyewitness Guide to the Baltic States, and managed to find a number of decent new hotels – some of them in quite unexpected locations. Nevertheless there is certainly room for more quality accommodation.

This is why it was good to read about the development of hotel chains beyond the capital. A report in Diena newspaper, translated by Standby News, mentioned both the new Day & Night chain and the more established Kolonna. The former already has a three star hotel in Bauska (where it was much needed) and has plans for Ventspils and Cesis. The latter group, also known for its spas, has hotels in Cesis, Riga, Rezekne and Kuldiga. None of these are particularly off the beaten track, but they are good options particularly in Cesis and Rezekne.