Liden & Denz to open third language centre – in Riga

Twenty-one years after setting up its first language centre in St.Petersburg and nine years after opening the very successful Moscow operation, Liden & Denz is now opening a school outside Russia, in Latvia. Riga is the capital of Latvia and the largest city of the Baltic republics. Latvia gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. In 2004 the country joined the European Union. In 2014 it will adopt the Euro as its currency. One of the results of the long lasting Soviet occupation is a high number of ethnic Russians living in the country. In fact, Riga is the only city outside Russia, Ukraine and Belarus with a clear majority of Russian speakers, which makes the city an ideal business hub for Russia. And this is the main reason why Liden & Denz has chosen Riga as a third location. However, Riga is an attractive place to learn Russian for many other reasons, among them:

• Latvia is a Schengen country: most students will travel visa-free.
• Riga is a lovely city, very close to an impressive coast line. Jurmala, the suburban resort with over 20 km of sandy beaches is a famous hang-out for wealthy Russians and will serve as a summer residence for junior courses.
• Riga offers executive accommodation options (host-families with private bathrooms; host-families living in villas rather than apartments etc.).
• Riga is easily accessible from our most important markets. The Latvian airline AirBaltic is a low-cost carrier. Other low-cost airlines, Ryanair among them, serve Riga (RIX) regularly.

The Liden & Denz Language Centre Riga will open its doors officially in January 2014, using the premises of Education Centre Durbe, an existing operator which recently passed the very demanding EAQUALS inspection. The cooperation between Durbe and Liden & Denz is based on a far-reaching agreement covering both academic and non-academic areas of the business. Liden & Denz owner Walter Denz says: “This is the first time ever we enter such a close cooperation. Our partner school has made great efforts to bring their course portfolio, starting dates and syllabi in line with ours. This will allow students to move easily from Riga to St.Petersburg and Moscow or vice versa. Nora Poisa, the owner, runs a lovely school right in the historical centre. I am convinced that our students will appreciate Riga to learn Russian!” Durbe’s owner Nora Poisa says: “Our two teams have worked hard to create a win-win situation with the aim of bringing more students to our beautiful city. Liden & Denz have an impressive agent base and are the market leader for providing Russian courses. Teaming up with them makes absolute sense to us”. Liden & Denz will start processing bookings for 2014 courses in Riga very shortly. Dates and prices for Liden Denz Riga are already set and can be downloaded here. We have uploaded a first batch of photos of Riga and Jurmala. Please write us if you are interested studying in Riga.