In a nutshell
- Old Town of Tallinn: Surrounded by a medieval city wall and seriously stunning — the top highlight of any Tallinn trip and perfect for a guided walking tour.
- Balti Jaama Turg: The coolest market hall in the city — a great place to sample Estonian street food and browse the Soviet antique stalls next door.
- Best viewpoints in Tallinn: The tower of St. Olaf’s Church (5 euros entry) gives you the best panorama in the city — the Kohtuotsa platform is a great free alternative.
- Our hotel pick for Tallinn is the Citybox Tallinn City Center — a great location between the Old Town and the sea.
- Our favorite café: Kivi Paber Käärid — sunny terrace, great beer selection, and a vegan chocolate cake that’s honestly unforgettable.
Interesting Facts About Tallinn and Estonia
Let’s kick things off with 7 exciting — and sometimes surprising — facts about Tallinn and Estonia:
- Tallinn is the capital of Estonia and home to 430,000 people — about one third of the entire Estonian population.
- Until 1918, the city was known as Reval.
- Public transportation is completely free for all Tallinn residents.
- Free internet is a basic right in Estonia — which is why free Wi-Fi is available pretty much everywhere in the city.
- Tallinn is sometimes called the Silicon Valley of Europe. Many startups are based here, and the most famous product of Estonian programmers is Skype.
- Estonia has one of the world’s highest proportions of women in its population — for every 100 women, there are only about 84 men.
- According to the WHO, Estonia has the cleanest air in the world.
Sounds pretty great already, doesn’t it?
Buy Tickets for Tallinn Attractions Online
Tallinn isn’t a city that gets completely overrun by tourists, but during peak season, lines can still form at some of the top highlights. Booking in advance is a smart move to skip the wait.
It’s especially worth it for these attractions:
| Price per Person | Tickets | |
|---|---|---|
| TV Tower | 19 EUR | Get Ticket |
| Skywheel | 12 EUR | Get Ticket |
The Most Interesting Neighborhoods on a Map
On the map below, we’ve marked the most important neighborhoods and things to see in Tallinn. Further down you’ll also find a more detailed map of the Old Town.
Landmarks and Icons
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
The Old Town has no shortage of churches, of course.
The most beautiful of them all is the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, which was built in the late 19th century and is seriously stunning up close.
Patarei Prison
Although Estonia was part of the Soviet Union until 1990, there’s very little left today to remind you of that era. A few concrete apartment blocks on the outskirts and the Soviet antique market are among the few relics that still give off something like Soviet charm.
Two more structures are also inseparably tied to that period — and Patarei Prison is one of them. The sea fortress was originally built in the 19th century but gained a grim reputation during the Soviet era as one of the worst prisons in the Soviet Union.
Unfortunately, guided tours are no longer offered and the prison can currently only be viewed from the outside.
Its future is a lively topic of debate in Tallinn. Proposals range from a cultural center to luxury apartments to a memorial site.
Linnahall
Not far from Patarei Prison, you can’t miss a massive concrete structure: Linnahall. It was built for the sailing events of the 1980 Summer Olympics and was for a long time the largest event venue in Estonia.
The building has been slowly falling apart for years, but today it serves as a quirky photo opportunity and a popular gathering spot at sunset. Sitting here and gazing out at the Baltic Sea is absolutely something you shouldn’t miss — it’s one of those simple Tallinn moments that just sticks with you.
The Most Beautiful Neighborhoods
The Old Town of Tallinn
OK, this one’s no surprise. The Old Town is the undisputed highlight of any Tallinn travel guide. Covering every individual sight within it would take a whole separate article — after all, the entire area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Your best bet is to simply wander through and discover its beautiful corners at your own pace. If you’d like some context along the way, joining a guided Old Town tour is a great idea.
The Old Town is surrounded by a medieval city wall that’s still preserved along a length of 2 kilometers — and it’s genuinely impressive.
Telliskivi
Next up on our Tallinn sightseeing list: the Telliskivi Creative City. On this former industrial site, creative businesses, galleries, design shops, and some of the best bars and cafés in the city have set up shop.
The grounds also host hundreds of events every year — concerts, exhibitions, flea markets. Check the Telliskivi website for what’s on during your visit.
Kalamaja
Just north of Telliskivi stretches the neighborhood of Kalamaja.
The streets lined with traditional, colorful wooden houses are today among the most sought-after residential areas in Tallinn — and it’s easy to see why.
A stroll through Kalamaja with a camera is absolutely worth your time.
Colorful wooden houses alternate with old industrial buildings now home to creatives, and if you follow one of Kalamaja’s streets further north, within just a few minutes you’ll be standing at the Baltic Sea. Seriously, how good is that?
The Best Viewpoints in Tallinn
There are some great vantage points in the Old Town. Our favorites were the Kohtuotsa viewing platform — with sweeping views over the eastern part of the Old Town — and the Piiskopi viewing platform to the west.
But the very best panorama is from the tower of St. Olaf’s Church. Admission is 5 euros and the climb involves a narrow, steep staircase. The effort is absolutely worth it though — you’re rewarded with a stunning vista over the Old Town and Tallinn’s cruise ship port.
Open April to October
5 euros
Great Squares and Markets
Town Hall Square
The most important square in the Old Town is Town Hall Square. There’s almost always a buzz of activity here, and in the weeks leading up to Christmas, a wonderful Christmas market takes over the space.
Balti Jaama Turg
Northeast of the Old Town is Tallinn’s main train station, Balti Jaam. Right next to it is Balti Jaama Turg — probably the coolest market in the city.
The market hall was recently renovated and is looking better than ever. You’ll find meat, fish, and vegetables, but what impressed us most were the many food stalls. From Japanese soups to tasty burgers to vegan wraps, there’s something for every kind of appetite.
If you want to explore Estonian cuisine even further, the culinary tour through Tallinn is a great choice — it includes several stops at Balti Jaama Turg.
Book the culinary tour through Tallinn
Right next to the market hall, you’ll find the complete opposite. While the food stalls draw mostly Tallinn’s young, hip crowd, the antique market next door easily transports you back 40 years. If you’re into Soviet-era curiosities and Lenin statues, you can stock up to your heart’s content here.
Restaurants and Bars in Tallinn: Our Recommendations
Did we eat well in Tallinn! And drink well too! So of course we want to share where we enjoyed ourselves the most.
Kivi Paber Käärid
Kivi Paber Käärid translates to Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Outside there are some great sunny spots where we ended up lingering for hours on more than one occasion.
The beer menu spans several pages, and the food is delicious. The vegan chocolate cake with raspberries is absolutely divine! Directly across the street, by the way, is Pudel Baar — also highly recommended!
Surfcafé
Surfcafé is a small stand inside the Balti Jaama Turg market hall.
They say the barista is the best in all of Tallinn, and the coffee is indeed outstanding. Be sure to try the filter coffee too — sounds odd, but it’s seriously good.
Veg Machine
Also in the market hall, just two stalls down from Surfcafé, you’ll find Veg Machine.
There are exactly two items on the menu: vegan wraps and vegan burgers. Both are extremely tasty, even for confirmed meat-eaters. Totally worth trying!
Boheem Cafe
Boheem Cafe, just outside Telliskivi, serves up solid food around the clock — from breakfast through to dinner. Nothing too fancy, but everything is really good.
Reval Café
The local coffeeshop chain Reval Café has 14 locations across Tallinn. In addition to good coffee, they serve tasty snacks. The Reval Breakfast is well worth ordering — a hearty Estonian-style breakfast that hits the spot.
Getting to Tallinn
The fastest way to reach Tallinn is by plane. A trip to the capital also combines really well with visits to other cities in the region, such as Helsinki, Stockholm, or Riga.
Flights to Tallinn
There are direct connections to Tallinn from a number of major European cities. Tallinn’s small airport is actually very modern and one of the most pleasant we’ve ever been to — and it’s just a stone’s throw from the city center.
Search for flights on Skyscanner
By Taxi or Uber from the Airport to the City
Taxis wait in front of the terminal and will take you to downtown Tallinn for 10 to 15 euros.
A cheaper alternative is booking a driver through the Uber app — it typically costs about half as much as a regular taxi.
By Tram or Bus from the Airport to the City
A tram line runs directly from the airport into the city.
Line 4 stops right at the terminal and reaches the Old Town in about fifteen minutes. The stops in the Old Town are Viru and Vabaduse Väljak. The fare is 2 euros.
Bus line 2 is also 2 euros and connects the airport to the Old Town.
By Ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn
Tallinn and Helsinki are separated by just a two-hour ferry ride. Several companies operate this route, with multiple sailings per day.
Tickets start at around 25 euros. If you just want to do a day trip, there are also affordable day tickets that let you travel to Helsinki and back in a single day for around 34 euros.
Book the ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn
By Bus from Riga to Tallinn
Tallinn pairs really well with a visit to the Latvian capital Riga. The company Ecolines connects the two cities with comfortable buses running up to seven times daily.
The journey takes about four hours and costs 19 euros — book ahead and you can get it even cheaper. You can book tickets online here.
If you’re feeling adventurous, you can also travel by train from Tallinn to Riga. It’s not cheaper, it takes longer, and you’ll need to change once — but it’s definitely more of an adventure.
Our Hotel Recommendations
Tallinn is a really compact city, so picking the right area for your accommodation isn’t too difficult. The Old Town, Kalamaja, and the area west of the Old Town are all great places to stay — you’ll be within easy reach of pretty much everything.
Here are our hotel picks for every budget:
Good and affordable
Better
Luxurious
Practical Tips for Your Tallinn Trip
As we’ve mentioned, Tallinn is an incredibly easy city to get around. That said, here are a few more things worth knowing before you go.
#1 Paying in Tallinn
In Tallinn, the currency is the euro.
Card payments are extremely common — cards are accepted as a matter of course even in the smallest shops. Having a fee-free travel credit card is handy for paying and withdrawing cash without extra charges.
#2 Join a City Tour
You can absolutely explore Tallinn on your own — the city isn’t large and almost everything is within walking distance. That said, a guided tour is always a good call. A local guide can show you the city from a completely different angle and share a ton of insider knowledge you’d never find on your own.
Book a guided walking tour of Tallinn’s Old Town
#3 Don’t Forget When Packing
Since Tallinn is located very far north, evenings can get quite cool even on the warmest summer days — pack a sweater or jacket. Sunscreen is a good idea in summer too, since you can get a sunburn up there faster than you’d expect. If you’re also planning to visit Estonia’s national parks, bring insect repellent.
For a full rundown of what to bring, check out our city trip packing list:
Our Travel Video from Tallinn
We also filmed a short video in Tallinn — come along for a day in the Estonian capital:
