We visited Tallinn, Estonia for a couple of days as part of our month-long train adventure in June. We knew that Tallinn had a great Old Town and that it was a popular cruise ship destination. We learned a lot about this small country despite our short visit! When Tallinn joined the EU, it became a digital hub for digital nomads and entrepreneurs. It’s possible to start a business in Estonia without even living there! All Estonians have a multifaceted digital ID. It is possible to certify a marriage through their digital portal! Many Estonians speak Estonian, English, and Russian with ease.
Where Did We Stay?
We booked our 2-night stay at the GO Hotel Shnelli. It was literally beside the train station, which was very convenient upon arrival. It was also a ten-minute walk to the Old Town through the park. We arrived during a heritage festival, so many outdoor events were scheduled. Again, the hotel was clean, and the staff was helpful. Here was our spectacular view of the castle from our room! We left Tallinn by ferry and the port was a 10min Bolt car service ride away.
Things to do in Tallinn
Old Town Walking Tour
We used our favourite app, GuruWalk, to book a walking tour. Our local tour guide was easily found at the meeting point on a rainy morning. Kadri was enthusiastic and taught us a lot about the history and insights into today’s Tallinn residents while answering all of our questions. She delivered a well-paced tour, and her personal stories really deepened our understanding of Tallinn’s complex history. She was an excellent guide, and thanks for lending us an umbrella!
The description of the tour we took is at this link:
https://www.guruwalk.com/walks/31780-tallinn-in-a-nutshell-from-medieval-streets-to-modern-life-tip-based?ref=b0daqs9t53by2ul34xjt
I loved how the church crosses are uniquely designed here. We also learned that there are similar words in both Estonian and Finnish languages, but being understood by each other is a whole other challenge! Even though Estonia is often grouped with the other Baltic nations of Latvia and Lithuania, they do not share a common understanding of each other’s language. English is the common language between these nations.
Our tour began in the rain, but it cleared as the tour progressed. We came across some dancers dressed in traditional clothing as part of a heritage festival. Each skirt pattern represents a specific village. We also came across a small PRIDE parade in the city.
Tallinn Architecture
Tallinn has a large Old Town with many well-preserved buildings from medieval times. The old wall is intact in many parts of the city. As you walk out of the Old Town, the buildings switch to modern designs. We walked through the famous KGB Hotel to explore some Soviet-era memorabilia and learn how some of the rooms were bugged to monitor visitors’ activities. The imposing white rectangular building was built in sharp contrast to the nearby medieval structures.
If you are visiting Tallinn as a cruise ship stop, it would be easy to book a walking tour on your own rather than booking an expensive cruise ship trip. Tours start at the visitor’s centre. It is a very walkable city with a few inclines and lots of cobblestone!
Dining
Estonian Cuisine
Our short visit to Tallinn meant we did not get a chance to try many places. We enjoyed our dinner at Nunne Ollekoda and experienced some traditional Estonian meals. Estonian food is meat-based, which we loved.
Viking Ferry to Helsinki
Our early ferry booking meant an early morning departure from Tallinn. We had to check out of our hotel before breakfast was served. We arranged to pick up a boxed breakfast instead. Unfortunately, the kitchen did not have our packed food ready for our checkout time. We were refunded for our two breakfasts (after a quick email was sent to our Expedia agent). So, instead of a boxed breakfast, we ended up purchasing the buffet meal on the ferry to Finland.
This turned out to be a great decision. The buffet was expansive! There were many Finnish items to try, including caviar and a variety of recognizable and new-to-me breakfast options. Purchasing the buffet also meant we got to enjoy the quiet and relaxing private dining area during our crossing to Helsinki. It felt like an airport lounge! The ferry crossing takes a couple of hours, and we had calm seas. We would recommend taking the ferry between Tallinn and Helsinki! We chose the ferry operated by Viking and made our reservation through the OMIO app.
A Northern City
One of the things we noticed about our time in Tallinn was the amount of daylight we experienced in early June! Here is a series of photos taken from our hotel room at different times. The first one was taken at 3:00 pm. The long days made exploring the city easier.
We enjoyed our brief visit to Tallinn, Estonia. It was an easy train ride from Riga, Latvia, and another easy ferry ride to Helsinki, Finland. Our next post will be about our time in Helsinki. Have you considered visiting the Baltic countries?
Our month-long journey continues…
This post is one of a series about our month-long train journey.
If you missed the earlier destinations, feel free to access them below:
- Tallinn, Estonia
- Riga, Latvia
- Vilnius, Lithuania
- Warsaw, Poland
- Kraków and Auschwitz
- Berlin to Prague
- Train Trip Planning: Berlin to Finland
I took my first flight at 6 months of age and I have continued to plan trips and travel to more than 60 countries. Now as a middle age traveler we have learned some travel hacks and budget saving ideas that we are happy to share. Follow our posts for ideas and tips to stretch your travel budget in your gogo years!
