Tallinn

Introduction

Tallinn is Estonia's capital and most important city. Bracing the country's northern coast, the city of 400,000 lies alongside the Gulf of Finland.

Tallinn has a colourful Old Town which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its name is said to derive from the Danish word for castle and it is still sometimes referred to as Reval, an old German name for the city.

You will find Tallinn is easily accessible by boat, plane and bus from many European destinations. Tallinn also boasts a number of low cost airlines that fly into the city airport. It has become a very popular destination in recent years for cruise ships to make stops here as well as weekend breakers, flying in to enjoy the great beers and food on offer around the Old town.

Neighbourhoods

• Toompea
• Lower Town
• Kadriorg
• Pirita

Sights and Activities

There is a really good information point operating in the summer months known as the Travelers Info Tent which is situated just next to the main tourist office. From here they run a number of really cool tours such as bike rides, pub crawls and even a free walking tour. They have information on events and local sites and it is run by young enthusiastic locals.

Old Town

Tallinn's Old Town is a beautifully preserved medieval part of the city with fantastic buildings and elements of its original defensive city wall still in tact. One of the most enjoyable things to do in Tallinn is to take a stroll before the rest of the city wakes up. You can get a true feeling of a time past and gone when there is no traffic and few other pedestrians walking around the Old streets. The Old Town is placed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site and has numerous interesting buildings and squares. The centrepiece is the Raekoja Plats, with the Town Hall and numerous bars and terraces lining up next to it.

Market

Head down towards the train station and you will find a great little city market. Here you can buy all kinds of things from food produce to second hand goods. This is a really good place if you are interested in finding some old Soviet memorabilia, such as badges, flags, coins etc. Prices of food are sometimes better than that of the supermarkets and in general the whole atmosphere here is a real gem in itself.

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Tallinn

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The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is the largest orthodox church in Tallinn's old town. It is built in a typical Russian Revival style between 1894 to 1900. After Estonia declared independence from the Russian Empire the government talked about destroying it but never did it. After separating from Russia the Estonia's faithfully restored the church. The church is located on the top of Toompea Hill.

Kumu

Kumu, an abbreviation of the Estonian "Kunstimuuseum" (art museum), is located near the Kadriorg Park in Tallinn and is one of the best in the country and has even been chosen the European Museum of the Year in 2008. This art museum, the biggest of the 5 branches in the country and even the biggest of the entire Baltic region, presents both permanent collections and temporary exhibitions. The main collection covers Estonian art from the 18th century onwards, including works from the occupations period (1940–1991). Temporary exhibitions include both foreign and Estonian modern and contemporary art.

Other Sights and Activities

• National History Musuem - This museum gives a great description of Estonia history with good English translations. There is also an awesome model of the old town in the lobby.
• Kadriorg Palace - Visit this amazing former palace of Peter Great. Part of this palace now houses the Art Museum of Estonia (see above). The palace and museum are located in the splendid Kadriorg Park.

Daytrip to Helsinki

Yes! A trip to another city and country is easily possible, with numerous connections. If you find yourself spending too much time in Tallinn you can always jump on the boat to Helsinki. Tickets are priced quite fairly and boats run on a regular basis, especially in summer when fast boats make the trip in 1.5 hour one-way!

Events and Festivals

Weather

Summers, though warm, are not particularly inviting. Although temperatures of over 30 degrees are possible, they are around 20 degrees during the day on average. Winters are cold with snowfall. Average maximum temperatures are around -5 degrees Celsius while nights average around -10 degrees. Occasionally, when the winds blow east from Siberia, temperatures can plummit way below -20 degrees. Precipitation is fairly even throughout the year, but winters and spring tend to be a bit drier. On average, there are between 10 and 15 wet days with around 50 mm of rain or snow a month.

Getting There

By Plane

Estonian Air is the national airline of Estonia and operates flights throughout Europe from Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport (TLL), or Ülemiste Airport, with the main destinations being Amsterdam, London, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kiev, Oslo, Stockholm and Brussels. Other airlines serving Tallinn are Air Baltic, Lufthansa to Frankfurt and Munich, Ryanair to Bergamo, Bremen, Dublin, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Girona, London Luton Airport, Oslo, Stockholm and Airport Weeze, and LOT to Warsaw. Low-cost airline easyJet flies from Liverpool and London Stansted Airport to Tallinn.
Both Estonian Air and Avies have a limited number of domestic flights, for example between Tallinn and Kuressaare and Tartu.

To/from the airport

• Bus: There are two bus stops at the terminal, one stop in front of the departure area (coming from the city centre) and another one in front of the arrivals area (going to the city centre).
• Car: Major car rental companies include Avis, Sixt, Europcar, Budget and Hertz.

By Train

Edelarautee is the national railway of Estonia. It has services between Tallinn and dozens of other cities and towns, including Pärnu, Viljandi, Valga, Narva, and Tartu. International trains serve Russia and it's possible to travel between Tallinn and Riga by train via Valga. The train leaves early morning (around 7:00am) from Tallinn and arrives around 11:30am in Valga, where you can catch the onward train at 11:42am to Riga. It takes over 8 hours though, compared to just 4.5 hours by bus.

By Car

Tallinn is easily accessible by car and lies on the Via Baltica, E67 European route. A road that joins Prague to Helsinki, passing through the Czech Republic, Poland, Latvia and Estonia.

By Bus

GoBus within Estonia and Eurolines to other countries operate a number of buses to and from Tallinn. Destinations include Riga and Vilnius.

By Boat

Finland and Sweden

• Nordic Jet - Has boats running between Helsinki and Tallinn, 1 about every 2 hours starting at 8:00am and ending at 7:30pm. A one way super economy ticket is €28 but you have to book your tickets online.
• Tallink Silja - Also has regular service between Helsinki and Tallinn starting at 7:30am but also has service to several other Scandinavia cities.
• Viking Line - One of this companies larger boats makes its first or last stop in Tallinn before going to Helsinki then on to Sweden.

Germany

• Silja Line has ferries between Tallinn and Rostock.

Getting Around

By Car

Tallinn has a well marked road system and Estonians are quite considerate drivers compared to their Baltic neighbours to the south.

By Public Transport

There are Electric trains in Tallinn to the suburbs.

By Foot

Within the Old Town of Tallinn you will be more than fine just walking around on foot. Everything you could possibly need is within easy reach and despite the cobbles and hills it is really simple to get around.

By Bike

Tallinn has bike lanes and in general Estonians are a lot more aware of cyclists than their Baltic neighbours. Bike rental is available from a number of rental services as well as bike tours around the city.

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Work

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Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

Post

Eesti Post is Estonia's national postal service with generally fast and reliable services for sending postcards, parcels and letters. It can take up to 4-5 days to send mail to Western Europe though, longer outside the continent. Domestic services are much faster though. Post offices are generally open from 9:30am to 6:00pm Monday to Friday, and 9:00am to 3:00pm on Saturday, though some variations might be possible depending on the post office. Some larger central ones might be open evenings and on Sundays. There is no need to buy stamps at the post offices though; just get your stamps at some shops or kiosks and drop your mail off in any of the small orange post boxes, which are abundant throughout the country.