Riga Airport to implement ambitious development and rebranding projects

RIX Riga Airport will start the implementation of ambitious development plans this year – the construction of the new passenger terminal and work on the creation of RIX Airport City will begin. The company's vision is to become the future travel hub of Northern Europe, which will promote the competitiveness of Latvia in the region and the development of the national economy. To implement the strategic plans, a competitive and modern RIX Riga Airport brand and visual identity have been created.  

Laila Odiņa, Chairperson of the Board of RIX Riga Airport, commented: “We want to compete with the airports of the Northern European region, so RIX Riga Airport's offer must be competitive. The new development projects – Airport's new passenger terminal and the Airport city, as well as the goal of becoming an important regional travel hub, determined the need to create a full-fledged, competitive and modern RIX Riga Airport brand. This includes our values, our promise to customers and cooperation partners and our vision of RIX as one of the best-connected business and travel hubs in the region.” 

Ambitious development plans – a new terminal and Airport city 

Two main elements that will shape the new Airport environment are the new passenger terminal and the RIX Airport City. New Riga Airport terminal building will be sustainable, modern, and ergonomic to improve passengers' travel experience. The passenger check-in hall, security and border control area, shops and cafés, baggage handling complex, new access roads, multi-storey car park and connection to the Rail Baltica station will be located in the place of the current short-term car park and access ramp. Construction of the terminal should begin in the second half of this year and be completed by the end of 2028. The total construction area will be more than 45 000 m2, whereas the investments are estimated at 167 million euros. 

RIX Airport City will be a new, multifunctional city next to Riga Airport, and it is planned to create hotels, offices, and retail spaces, as well as various services for passengers, cargo handlers and local residents in a 24-hectare area. It will be a new type of city and a self-sufficient destination from which the centre of Riga, other Latvian cities, the capitals of the other Baltic states and the whole world will be easily and quickly reached by car, rail, and air.  

New brand – Latvia's business card 

The new brand name of Riga Airport is RIX Riga Airport or RIX Rīgas lidosta in Latvian. The name retains the internationally recognized Airport code RIX, beloved by Airport employees and cooperation partners, while the full name has been simplified and made closer to everyday use.​ In the brand strategy, the many sub-brands under the management of Riga Airport are also arranged in a single portfolio, giving them a single visual identity and names. The brand's tagline "Closer than expected" embodies the idea of convenient connectivity and easy reach, both within the borders of the Airport and in a global context.​ 

The Airport is Latvia's business card, and it creates the country's image, so the visual language of the new brand was created thinking about the nature and culture of Latvia – the green, blue, and beige colours of the brand symbolize nature, while the graphic elements are inspired by Latvian ethnographic signs and architecture. 

New brand strategy and visual identity of Riga Airport were created by the design studio "Asketic", selected in an open tender, in cooperation with the advertising agency "WKND", involving Airport's employees and cooperation partners in the process.  

The introduction of the brand is starting now and will take place gradually until 2028 to use the funds intended for this purpose rationally and sparingly. This year, the new visual identity is planned to be introduced in more than half of the materials – in the digital environment, record keeping materials, souvenirs, signs, terminal information materials, clothing, transport and elsewhere.

In 2023, Riga Airport handled 6.63 million passengers which is 23 % more than a year before. Last year, 20 airlines operated at the Airport, serving more than 61 thousand flights. In 2023, Riga Airport was also the leading airport in the Baltic States, serving 42 % of the total Baltic air traffic passengers and 40 % of all flights. By 2024, Riga Airport is expected to serve 7.3 million passengers