News

On May 23, the 20th International Sand Sculpture Festival will take place on Pasta (Post) Island in Jelgava, celebrating a jubilee year. This year, the festival invites visitors on an exciting journey millions of years into the past. The theme will bring stories of the Jurassic era to life in sand, creating an impressive environment where dinosaurs, ancient sea creatures, and rulers of the skies will meet.

The Jelgava Municipality continues to develop the nationally significant Zemgale Industrial Park (ZIP) in an industrial area owned by the city. Infrastructure construction works will be completed this year, and entrepreneurs are already being offered the opportunity to obtain land development rights and develop their business in the ZIP territory.

A delegation from Jelgava, a partner city, visited the Šiauliai City Municipality. The guests showed interest in attracting investments and reviewed the latest infrastructure projects currently being implemented.

From May 8 to May 17, the Restaurant Week campaign “Spring Tasting in the Jelgava Region” will take place in Jelgava and Jelgava Municipality. This spring, 19 restaurants, pubs, and cafés have united under the theme “Spring on the Plate” to offer visitors the chance, over ten days, to enjoy new variations of dishes and flavors made from seasonal spring ingredients.

On June 6, in Jelgava at the “Zemgale” sports complex next to the Jelgava Ice Hall, a large-scale and inspiring event – the Children and Youth Technology Festival – will be held for the second time. It will bring together school pupils, students, teachers, families, and technology enthusiasts from across Latvia and neighboring countries. It will be a day where creativity, science, engineering, and young people’s courage to create come together. Registration for festival activities is now open.

The municipal institution “Pilsētsaimniecība” has granted SIA “Bolt Services LV” permission to deploy shared mobility vehicles and provide services in Jelgava starting Wednesday, April 1. Please note that Jelgava has established clear restrictions regarding both scooter parking and speed. Users of rental e-scooters should be aware that this year mandatory identity verification will be required – the service will only be available after verification of an ID card and valid driving license. Additionally, before each ride, users will need to complete a short reaction test, which will serve as an additional safety mechanism.

From today, 14 February, the exhibition “In the Movement of the Soul” by textile artist Laurine Malengreau is on view at the Ģederts Eliass Jelgava History and Art Museum. The exhibition will be open until 1 April. A meeting with the artist will take place at the museum on 13 March at 3:00 PM.

Due to changing weather conditions and rising temperatures, ice sculptures have begun to rapidly lose their original quality and artistic appearance. After assessing the situation and prioritising visitor safety, a decision has been made to close the Ice Sculpture Park starting Monday, March 2.

Nikolas Deičmans, a student of the Jelgava Specialized Swimming School, has been awarded a scholarship under the World Aquatics Scholarship Programme of the World Aquatics Federation. The scholarship is intended for the 100 most promising young swimmers in the world aged 18 to 27.

On 19 February, the Ambassador of the French Republic to Latvia, Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, paid an introductory visit to Jelgava together with representatives of the French Embassy and the French Institute. During the visit, the Ambassador met with the leadership of the City of Jelgava and became acquainted with the city’s business, education, and cultural environment, discussing opportunities for future cooperation. The Ambassador highly praised Jelgava’s long-standing and successful cooperation with its twin city Rueil-Malmaison in France.

On Saturday and Sunday, February 7 and 8, Jelgava will host the 27th International Ice Sculpture Festival. The theme of this year’s festival is “The Power of Illusion”. Alongside the festival, visitors are invited to explore Jelgava’s tourism attractions, many of which will operate with extended opening hours during the event. Enjoy the sculptures, the festival atmosphere, and discover Jelgava!

At the beginning of February, Jelgava invites visitors to immerse themselves in a winter atmosphere and experience the 27th International Ice Sculpture Festival, which will take place over two days on February 7 and 8. Internationally recognised ice sculptors will reveal their interpretation of this year’s theme, “Power of Illusion”, encouraging visitors to look beyond what is visible and experience moments where truth intertwines with illusion.
The festival will be complemented by a rich entertainment programme, including ice sculpture duels, science shows, illusionist performances, ice games and a slide, children’s play performances, and concerts by well-known Latvian musicians.