When to Visit Tallinn, Estonia?
The best time to visit Tallinn, Estonia is from June to August when the weather is nice and warm, making it great for you to explore the outdoors.
This period is considered to be the high season, but since the Baltic countries don't get as many tourists as other places in Europe, you do not have to worry about big crowds ruining your trip.
Other months outside of the peak season can be extremely cold in the Baltic countries, and many of the tourist attractions you might want to visit might not be open. So, I highly recommend you stick with the summer months when planning a trip here.
How to Get to Tallinn, Estonia?
To get to Tallinn, you will have to either fly into its international airport or catch one of the many buses that run between other cities in Europe via Latvia from Western Europe or take a cruise via Finland from Northern Europe.
To find a flight to Tallinn, you are going to have to search for flights that fly into Tallinn International Airport (TLL).
From the US, unfortunately, there are no direct flights to Tallinn, but you can still fly into the city via one of the many transit flights that pass through cities like Helsinki (Finnair), Zurich (Swiss Airlines), or Istanbul (Turkish Airlines) from big cities in the US like New York, Boston, and Miami.
From Europe, you can fly from the most popular European hubs like London, Paris, or Frankfurt via local carriers such as British Airways, Air France, or Lufthansa to Tallinn. You can also go with low-cost airlines like airBaltic, Wizz, and RyanAir that often fly directly from big cities around Europe for as low as 14 USD.
From Asia, your only option is to fly into Tallinn via transit flights through big European cities like Helsinki via Finnair, or you can transit in Istanbul via Turkish Airlines, which can take anywhere from 12 to more than 16 hours, including transit time.
It's not ideal, but this is the only way to do it from Asia. A better way would be to visit Tallinn as part of your larger Europe trip, which is exactly what I did to make the long flight worthwhile.
To find a cheap flight to Tallinn, I would recommend you use Skyscanner or Expedia to look for the cheapest route and schedule so you can compare and choose the best one.
How to Get Around Tallinn, Estonia?
By Walk: Tallinn's tourist attractions are all located within the confines of its old town, and you should be able to walk to most of the tourist attractions I listed here without using any public transportation.
By Buses & Trams: Tallinn has one of the best public transportation systems out there. If you are looking to go further, such as the TV Tower or Kadriorg Museum, you can simply punch in the location on Google Maps to find which trams and buses can take you there. It is as simple as that.
The public transportation operates by a single smart card, which you can buy from any R-Kiosks and Maxima store around the city, or you can purchase a paper ticket from the driver for a single journey. The buses and trams in Tallinn run from 6 AM to 11 PM, so be sure to plan your time carefully.
By Train: You can also take a train to other cities like Tartu if you want to do a day trip there. Simply go to Tallinn Railway Station and catch one of the trains from there. You can find Tallinn's train schedule here.
By Tours: If you want to dive deeper into the culture and history of Tallinn, you can also opt for walking tours or day trips to travel further into the countryside of Estonia from Tallinn. You can find tours to join in Tallinn with the link below:
How Many Days To Spend in Tallinn, Estonia?
One full day (2 nights) should be enough to see everything in Tallinn. Yup, it's that small, and it helps a lot that all the tourist attractions are conveniently concentrated in one area. Below is a rough 1-day itinerary for Tallinn, Estonia.
Day 1: Visit all the tourist attractions within Tallinn, such as the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, St. Mary's Cathedral, stroll around Toompea, and hang out at Tallinn Town Hall, etc.
How Much Money Do I Need For Tallinn, Estonia?
With the rough itinerary above, we can calculate approximately how much you will be spending in Tallinn, Estonia as follows:
Accommodation: For 2 nights in Tallinn, you can expect to pay around 26 USD (21.88 EUR) for accommodation.
Food: Food costs about 10 EUR on average per meal, so for one day, you can expect to pay around 30 EUR per person for food.
Transportation: For transportation, you will have to take a tram to the TV Tower and Kadriorg Museum, which should cost around 4 EUR in total.
Activities: For activities, you will have to pay the entrance fee to St. Nicholas' Church and Museum (8 EUR), access to Tallinn TV Tower (15 EUR), the entrance to Kadriorg Art Museum (8 EUR), and Lennusadam Museum (15 EUR), so in total, you will pay around 46 EUR for activities in Tallinn.
Total Budget for 1 day in Tallinn: 101.88.54 EUR (121 USD)
Is it Safe in Tallinn, Estonia?
Estonia is a very safe country to travel around. You won't find many problems here, especially if you compare it with bigger cities like Paris and Barcelona, where pickpockets and thieves run rampant. I'm not saying it never happens in Estonia, but it is rare and not as prevalent as in Western Europe.
That said, it is always a good idea to take precautions and be aware of your belongings and surroundings when you are traveling. Anything can happen, especially if you are in a crowded area, so don't forget to keep your belongings near you when you are out and about at all times.
Which tourist SIM card is best for Estonia?
There are 3 major carriers in Estonia: Telia, Tele2, and Elisa. All of them offer pretty similar 4G/LTE coverage, so picking one over another shouldn't make that much of a difference.
That said, Telia is the most popular one, and they have a pretty great selection of data packages you can purchase. The SIM cards are available at most newsstands, kiosks, supermarkets, and other outlets in the city for only 1 EUR.
With the sim in hand, you can then top it up with a data package, which can cost between 1 EUR (250 MB) to 8 EUR (10 GB), depending on the amount of data you want. All packages come with a 30-day duration, which should be more than enough for most travelers.
For more information about Estonia's local SIM card: Estonia's Prepaid Data SIM Card.
Tips: To stay connected with your loved ones at home, make sure to have a VPN service like NordVPN installed before traveling. This way, you can bypass any local Internet censorship you might encounter while in Estonia.
What to Pack for Tallinn, Estonia?
As you may already know, I am an advocate of light traveling, and indeed, packing light for a journey like this is a unique art form. Here are some packing tips for your upcoming trip to Estonia:
- Walking/Hiking Shoes: With all the walking and possible hiking during your travel, a comfortable pair of shoes is a must. I recommend the Timberland 3-Eye Classic Boat Shoes that are my go-to pair for long strolls and hikes.
- Breathable Shirts: Given the potential for hot weather, pack a few breathable shirts for your outdoor adventures.
- Shorts/Jeans: Anticipate lots of walking during your travels? Be sure to pack some breathable shorts and a pair of Levi's jeans for when the weather cools. For women, leggings are excellent for both hot and cold climates, so consider packing some as well.
- Fleece Jacket: For colder weather, layering is the key, and a fleece jacket makes an excellent insulating layer. I recommend the Columbia Steens Mountain Fleece (for women).
- Outer Shell Jacket: An outer shell jacket is great for windy or rainy conditions. I highly recommend the Columbia Watertight Jacket (for women). It's lightweight, breathable, and even comes in a cool orange color.
- Microfiber Towel: A Microfiber towel is the ideal backpacker's towel due to its lightness, quick drying, and compressibility.
- Camera: You should also pack a good camera for your trip so that you can capture all the beautiful experiences you might have. I recommend the Sony a7R V camera together with the Sony 24-70mm f2.8 GM II lens, which is probably the highest-performance camera and lens combination you can get right now.
- Power Bank: Keep your electronics charged on the go with a 20,000+ mAh Power Bank.
- Water Bottle: The Hydro Flask Trail Water Bottle is a great insulated water bottle to have with you in cities or on hiking trails. It is lightweight and can keep your water cold or warm for more than 12 hours. It's a total game-changer.
- Universal Adapter: You'll need just one universal adapter to plug in your electronics in any country you visit.
- Packing Cubes: Packing Cubes will help you save space in your backpack and keep all your belongings organized.
- Daypack: The Langly Alpha Globetrotter is my go-to everyday camera backpack. It's large enough to carry all my travel gear, and it comes with plenty of slots and pouches. Plus, it's stylish as hell!
- Large Backpack: You will need a large backpack to carry all of your stuff. I recommend the Osprey Atmos AG 65L backpack. With excellent weight distribution and a lifetime guarantee, you can't go wrong with Osprey.
For more information on what I pack in my backpack for this trip, check out: My Packing List: 60 Travel Essentials.
