Tallinn's top sights, things to see and see: see the essentials! ⠀

Tallinn is a city where there is no notion that any of the capital's attractions are far away. In this city, everything is really close by, you can literally walk everywhere. In our opinion, the best times of year to visit the Estonian capital are summer and winter. In summer, of course, Tallinn blossoms and is covered in gorgeous flowerbeds, numerous cafes and terraces all over the city. It is a completely different Tallinn than it is at other times of the year, and it is beautiful! The medieval chill combined with the bright sunshine leaves a lasting impression on any tourist.

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In winter, especially around Christmas, Tallinn truly looks like an illustration from Andersen's fairy tales. Although in recent years there has been very little snow in December, the colourful Christmas market certainly puts you in the festive mood with a touch of magic. Be sure to have comfortable shoes and clothes for the season and go for a walk!

Outline what you can plan to see and what to look out for.

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• See the Old Town

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Tallinn's Old Town is small, divided into Vyshgorod (Toompea, city of knights) and Lower Town (city of merchants and craftsmen). On the Vyshgorod are some viewing platforms from which one can get an amazing view of the city

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If you are in the very center of town on Town Hall Square and need to get up to Vyshgorod, take Luhige Jalg street for the way up, it will not be too difficult and it will be too boring; but if you go down, take Pikk Jalg street for the way down - it is really beautiful and very comfortable!

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• Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and the Estonian Parliament building

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When you go up to Vyshgorod, be sure to visit the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, and at the same time you will see the Estonian Parliament building right in front of it.

The cathedral was opened in 1900, in 1960 they tried to rebuild it into a planetarium (Riga Cathedral suffered the same fate), but Alexis II, the future Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia interfered and the church still remained a temple.

The building of Estonian Parliament, on the other hand, is unique because of its expressionist style, and the Governor's Garden adjoining the building is a lovely place to stop off in summer.

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• Kadriorg Palace

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This is a gift of Emperor Peter I to his wife Catherine, in whose honour the park is named. Kadriorg means "valley Kadri" (Estonian counterpart of the name Katherine). It is also worthwhile to take a walk through the Japanese garden and have a look at the Mikkel Museum and Kumu. Walk through the park toward the Gulf of Finland to the "Rusalka" armadillo monument, and along the Gulf of Finland you can walk along the newly landscaped Reidie Tee.

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• Telliskivi Creative City and Fotografiska Photo Centre in Tallinn

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Numerous restaurants and cafes for every taste and over 600 cultural events each year - all this is the Telliskivi Creative Village. A branch of the world famous Swedish Center of Photography Fotografiska has recently been added to it. Fotografiska Stockholm has at various times organized photo exhibitions where it has presented renowned photographers such as Annie Leibovitz, David Lachapelle, Sarah Moon, Nick Brandt, etc.

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• Be sure to have coffee at the Maiasmokk pastry shop in Old Town!

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The café itself has been open since 1864 and here you can not only buy marzipan figurines as souvenirs but also taste the delicious pastries! Some of the tastiest are cottage cheese pockets and Moscow/Venice buns :)

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Author of the article:
Dmitry Lebedev, expert at onlineexpo
https://www.tripadvisor.ru/Profile/Dimatll