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Voykit pocket guide · Estonia
Tallinn
Tallinn is a compact old town with a creative district next door: do the hill and the Town Hall Square by midday, avoid the lanes when cruise ships land, and use the tram for Kadriorg.
Tallinn's Old Town is small and steep in places, and busy when cruise ships are in port. The trips that go wrong drag bags over cobbles, visit in December without daylight, or skip Telliskivi and Kalamaja next door. Four clusters cover a first visit; Lahemaa National Park and Helsinki by ferry are trips from one kept bed.
- Country
- Estonia
- Best months
- Apr · May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep
- Time zone
- Europe/Tallinn
- Stay
- 2 days: Old Town, Toompea, Telliskivi
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Cash is rarely needed; keep EUR 20 for a rare cash-only stall; withdraw at bank ATMs.
- Daily spend
- Budget EUR 40–70 excl. bed · Mid EUR 70–120 excl. bed · High EUR 120+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Telia, Elisa and Tele2 sell prepaid SIMs in supermarkets, kiosks (R-Kiosk) and phone shops; EU roaming applies to EU SIMs.
- Emergency
- Police, ambulance, fire and rescue 112 · Medical advice line 1220 · State helpline 1247 · Country code +372
- Plugs
- Types C, F · 230 V · 50 Hz · Standard EU two-pin; UK and US visitors need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Restaurant: Round up or 5–10% for good service; not expected.; Café or bar: Round up.; Taxi / Bolt: Not expected; tip in the app if you like.; Guide: €5–10 per person for a good walking tour.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere; Tallinn's is hard but fine.
- Toilets
- Free in malls and museums; public toilets €0.50–1; cafés expect you to buy something.
Get in
By air
- Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport (TLL)
- TLL to the Old Town: one ride-hailing car or taxi, about 15 minutes — tram 4 also runs to the centre, so the airport is the easy leg; the risk is a hotel door that locks at midnight.
Get around
Walk inside a cluster; tram to Kadriorg and the airport, taxi or ride-hailing late.
- Passes
- No pass needed. Single tram tickets cover the airport and Kadriorg; a day ticket pays back after three rides.
- Late at night
- Trams run until around midnight (unverified); ride-hailing and taxis run later.
See and do
01Alexander Nevsky CathedralAleksander Nevski katedraal
The onion-domed Orthodox cathedral on Toompea: a short stop; go in the morning and cover up; the viewing platform beside it is free.
02Telliskivi Creative CityTelliskivi Loomelinnak
Former factory yards turned into cafés, studios and a Saturday flea market: go for lunch or the evening; shops and stalls keep their own hours.
Hours and prices are desk estimates (checked 2026-09); anything marked (check) is not confirmed. Coordinates open in any map app.
Eat
- Rataskaevu 16
- Estonian restaurant in a lane of the Old Town: go for an early dinner or a late lunch; book ahead in summer and on weekends.
Sleep
- Old Town (Vanalinn)
- First-timers: a hotel inside the walls near Town Hall Square, a walk from the hill and the food streets; choose one with a 24h desk and a car-reachable door.
- Telliskivi & Kalamaja
- Nights in the creative district: flat streets, cafés at the door and a 20-minute walk or a tram to the Old Town; less central, easier for bags.
Language
Estonian is a Finnic language, unrelated to Latvian, Lithuanian or Russian and close to Finnish. English is widely spoken by people under 50 and in all tourism; Russian is common in Tallinn's Lasnamäe district, Narva and Ida-Viru county.
- Useful words: tere (hello), aitäh (thank you), palun (please / here you are), vabandust (sorry), jah / ei (yes / no), terviseks (cheers).
- Estonians value directness: a short, clear request is polite.
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and eye contact; avoid: Hugging strangers
- Conversation: Get to the point; silence is comfortable; avoid: Loud talk on buses and trains
- Homes: Shoes off at the door; bring flowers (odd number); avoid: Even numbers of flowers — those are for funerals
- Sauna: Shower first; sit on a towel; avoid: Talking loudly or refusing to follow house rules
- History: Ask and listen; avoid: Calling Estonia 'ex-Soviet' or 'Eastern Europe' carelessly — many prefer Northern Europe
- Queues: Keep your place and distance; avoid: Standing close
Red lines
- Cover shoulders and knees inside churches; no photos during services.
- Do not walk on frozen shore ice.
Scams (Estonia page)
- Unregulated street taxis: Use Bolt or check the tariff sticker on the rear window before getting in.
- Strip-club and bar bill inflation: Avoid bars where someone invites you in off the street; check prices before ordering.
- Dynamic currency conversion: Always choose to pay in EUR; use bank ATMs.
- Fake EES or ETIAS 'registration' sites: EES needs nothing in advance; ETIAS only on the official EU site once it starts.
- Pickpockets: Zip bags; phone out of back pockets.
One and two days
1 day
The first day of the timed plan.
Day 1 — Toompea and Alexander Nevsky, a 13:00 lunch table in the Old Town
- 09:00Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
- kohtuotsa platform (optional)
- 13:00Lunch table 13:00 (Old Town)
- Hotel or a café 14:30–17:00; short winter days mean the walk down to Viru Street starts before 16:00.
2 days
The first two days of the timed plan.
Day 1 — Toompea and Alexander Nevsky, a 13:00 lunch table in the Old Town
- 09:00Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
- kohtuotsa platform (optional)
- 13:00Lunch table 13:00 (Old Town)
- Hotel or a café 14:30–17:00; short winter days mean the walk down to Viru Street starts before 16:00.
Day 2 — Telliskivi Creative City, Balti Jaam market, dinner at Rataskaevu 16
- 09:30Telliskivi Creative City
- balti jaam market (optional)
- Rataskaevu 16
- Evening: Kadriorg by tram if it is still light, or Old Town lanes.
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Visit Tallinn: www.visittallinn.ee/eng
- Tallinn Airport (official): www.tallinn-airport.ee/en/
- Wikivoyage — Tallinn: en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Tallinn
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/tallinn). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.