 LATVIA
Of all the Baltic states, Midsummer is most popular in Latvia. Three days of festivities begin on 22nd June with an open-air fair on Dome Square in the heart of Riga. Here you’ll find everything you need to celebrate Ligo on the 23rd and Janis Day on 24th June. There are leaf and flower crowns, traditional handicrafts, locally brewed beer and traditional foods. It’s also a chance to practise Latvian folksongs and dancing, ready for the next two days. There’s a midsummer exodus from Latvia’s towns as people head out to the countryside, to stay with relatives and friends or just camp under the stars by one of the Latvian lakes. People gather around bonfires to sing traditional ’Ligo’ songs, drink beer and watch the sun rise. Those filled with enough ‘midsummer spirit’ might even try leaping the flames of the midsummer fire. To join in with Latvian midsummer you can fly to Riga from 45 cities, then take your own party into the countryside, or ask a travel agent to organize a Midsummer tour for you. FINLAND Finns celebrate Midsummer on the Saturday after the Solstice - June 23rd. Bonfires are at the heart of their celebrations, as people leave the towns to go camping in the countryside. The tradition of lighting fires started in North eastern Finland, where fire was believed to banish evil spirits. Now it’s a rite celebrated throughout the country - with old boats particularly popular fuel. You can warm yourself by one of the country’s biggest bonfires, while learning more about Finnish history, at the openair museum of Seurasaari, just a few kilometres from Helsinki. airBaltic flies to Helsinki from Riga (18 times per week) and from Vilnius (11 times a week). DENMARK The Danes also mark midsummer with bonfires, but theirs are topped by a witch made of old clothes and stuffed with straw. Danish folklore says that witches fly past on midsummer night - and burning them in effigy protects you from evil. Before the fire’s lit people gather for a speech usually given by a well-known local person, and around each one you’ll find Danes singing ‘Midsommervise’, the ‘Midsummer Song’ written by Holger Drachmann in the 19th century. airBaltic flies to Copenhagen from Riga (20 times a week) and from Vilnius (21 times per week).  SWEDEN
‘Misommer’ as the Swedes call it, is their biggest festival of the year. Celebrations start on 22nd June, when people decorate huge maypoles with flowers and dance around them to traditional tunes, such as the highly popular ‘Frog Dance’. Swedes celebrate the start of summer by eating the year’s first potatoes with pickled herring, sour cream and dill, and if they’re lucky, feasting on the summer’s first strawberries too. And with food comes drink - and Swedish drinking songs - making Swedish Midsummer one of the liveliest parties of the year. airBaltic flies from Riga to Stockholm (18 times a week) and to Gothenburg (3 times a week) and from Vilnius to Stockholm (12 times a week). | 
