Dear travellers!
Kate's place is perfect if you are looking for some peace and quiet, as Vecaki is not Jurmala. The sea is only a 5 minute stroll through the pine forest, the air in the forest is magic (we came from Moscow) and a joy to breathe! The water in the sea was about +18+20 (very good for June :-)) and the sea depth in this location is ideal for your young children as it is shallow and yet you can splash and play ball and build sandcastles.
The main activities will be walking, swimming, playing games on the beach. By the life guard station there is a playground with different climbing constructions and swings, etc. Actually swimming near the life guard station which has a display that shows time/date/temperature is very useful as you can monitor how long you have been in the sea and drag the "little dolphins" out before they start shivering.
A big thank you (or Paldies as they say in Latvian) from me and my friend goes for the trampoline which was strategically positioned in the front yard so that we could oversee the jumping of our "rabbits" (5 y.o. and 8 y.o.) while preparing meals in the kitchen.
The kitchen is equipped to make your holiday meals: there is a frying pan, a big pan which we used to boil spaghetti, a couple of saucepans, plenty of plates, cups, glasses, knives and forks and spoons. There is a gas cooker with an electric oven, and a kettle.
There was also a French press coffee maker (another paldies, Kate!) for our morning cup of coffee! and a dishwasher with dishwasher tablets! :-)
Kate's mum lives next door and if you need anything - you can ask - but we didn't need anything extra.
On the patio by the back door you have two reclining chairs and a grill with charcoal and liquid to start your BBQ! Inside the house there was a big living room where an armchair was unfolded into a bed for our 8 y.o. boy and a sofa for me (my sofa was very comfy to sleep in!). There was a separate bedroom where another sofa and a folding bed was set up for the 5 y.o. and my friend. The beds were made up and we each of us got two towels - paldies again!
The bathroom was a big size with a bath tub and a shower over it - thank you for the shower gels/shampoos! there was also a washing machine with washing powder, and with children you always need to wash clothes. The weather for us was absolutely fabulous and we hung our washing on the line in the back garden.
In the summer time there is quite a few cafes on the front beach. One place I would recommend is when you walk from the beach from the Life Guard station you will pass a small kiosk with ice-creams and milk shakes - we tried their plum milk shake - it was absolutely delicious! Take the big one!
Getting into Riga is easy - you either catch a train (about 25 minutes), it's about 10-15 minute walk from Kate's place to the train staion or you can catch a minivan N300 (on the intersection of Kapu and Selgas streets) - about 5-7 minute walk from Kate's place - and takes about 30-45 minutes (traffic jams). For time table of public transport you can check the web-site https: // www. rigassatiksme. lv /en / (remove spaces, it's available in Latvian, English and Russian). Note that not every N300 goes to Vecaki!
I usually get my shopping in Rimi by Riga's railway station and then hop on the train to Vecaki. Vesko shop on Mangalu prospekt is 1.7 km away walking.
This was our first stay using airbnb! Kate's place was superb for our type of holiday! Many thanks once again and see you again in the future! :-)