Gulbene is a small town in northeastern Latvia, out in Vidzeme's quieter manor and forest country. It is too far from Riga to be an accidental stop, but the town has one very good reason to come: the Gulbene-Alūksne narrow-gauge railway.
The Bānītis is the only regularly running narrow-gauge passenger railway in the Baltics, and it gives Gulbene a stronger identity than its size suggests. Around it are old railway buildings, quiet streets, and the remains of manor life.
The town itself has Vecgulbene Manor, while Stāmeriena Palace makes the best nearby side trip. Gulbene is not polished in the way Cesis is, but if old trains, Baltic manor houses, and rural Latvia appeal, it is worth a deliberate day.