Tallinn, Estonia

Helsinki and Tallinn are sisters separated by the Baltic Sea. While Helsinki is modern and a beautiful Scandic capital, Tallinn’s old town offers a charming medieval alternative. Only 2 and a 1/2 hours across by ferry, Tallinn is a great day out from Helsinki

Day 4 – Day out to Tallinn

We started a rather long day with a filling breakfast at Scandic Marski, one of the best we had in our travels! Make your own juice stations, a waffle station, hot meal options and everything else, it was one terrific way to start the day!

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Eckero ferry

With three ferry lines operating out of Helsinki we chose the Eckero Line that departed from the West Terminal at 9 am. We rode a taxi down to the reach the terminal 1 hour before departure. As it was Easter Monday the terminal was very crowded by the time we reached. Having booked our tickets online we walked directly to the turnstiles to board our ferry. We did not reserve any cabin or seats in advance. Perhaps that was a mistake as almost every seat was taken. After scouting a few floors and the open deck we finally found 4 seats in the front of the ship. 2.5 hours went by in a jiffy with a short nap!

As we approached Tallinn we could see the steeple of the church of St. Olaf welcoming us and defining the skyline of Tallinn. For a long time this steeple was thought to be the tallest in the world. The port of Tallinn is very close to the old town and it took us about 30 minutes to leave the ship and walk to the old town with its imposing town walls and gates.

Pikk and Holy Spirit Church

There was no definite walking route or designations on our itinerary except for a few highlights. We walked up the Pikk to the Holy Spirit Church with it’s famed clock. We got access to the interiors for a small fee and admired the ancient interiors. 

Raekoja Plats and St. Catherine’s passage

We then walked to the expansive Raekoja Plats, a large square with its Gothic town hall and a multitude of restaurants gearing up for lunch. Being the off season (technically) it wasn’t much crowded and we took our own time around the square clicking away pictures and marvelling at the beautiful buildings. We then made our way to St. Catherine’s passage, one of the oldest and most exotic passages in Tallinn. 

Olde Hansa

It was now almost time for our lunch and we walked through charming streets to Olde Hansa, a medieval themed restaurant that was part of almost any itinerary to Tallinn. We made reservations for our table a few days in advance despite it being for lunch time in the off season. We were very impressed with their options for vegetarians and got around to ordering one of each. The restaurant uses grains, vegetables and spices that were common in the medieval times. Tallinn was a popular port back in its hey days and they traded in a lot of spices from the east. The dishes were tastefully cooked and were visually pleasing too. We were served in earthen and glass wares designed like the medieval times. There was Celtic music playing and with complete medieval decor, including candles for lighting, we were transported instantly to the medieval world. We spent considerable time enjoying the surroundings and the food. As we had no further plans we were in no hurry to leave this charming restaurant.

Toompea Hill

After a long and hearty meal with some excellent service we walked slowly up to the Toompea Hill. This part of the old town is known as upper Tallinn and has the Toompea Castle, the parliament, the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral along with the best view of old town from Kohtuotsa! We would have spent at least an hour in this part of Tallinn, slowly savouring in the views and the environment.

Viru Gate

With still some time to kill before our ferry back to Helsinki we decided to visit the Viru Gate, a 14th century gate with two watchtowers. The area was pretty busy with pedestrians and shops. We purchased some souvenirs to remind us of our trip to Tallinn and started our long way back to the port to board the ferry to Helsinki.

The ship was more crowded with lot of day trippers returning and we really struggled to find seats. People sat themselves in every inch of space that was available, including the floors and the stairs. Not a very convenient way to cross the Baltic. We just about managed to find seats at the back of the gaming machines. The crossing seemed longer due to the crowd and our tiredness!

We reached Helsinki just as the sun was setting and rode a taxi back to Marski looking forward to a good night’s sleep before our last day at Finland.

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