Questions on Tallinn, Estonia

[Live the good life]

Have posted on the Baltic port of call, but not many people seem to have visited outside of the Old Town of Tallinn, to Kadriorg Palace, Pririta, etc ...

 

For those of you who have visited Kadriorg Park/Palace and Song Festival Grounds, Pirita, etc...outside of Tallinn, was the sight worth the ride or did you wish you would have stayed only in Old Town, and have more time to enjoy Old Town? Approximately how long was the ride each way? (This private tour company offers both van/walking tour (4 hours) and an Old Town walking tour of Upper and Lower town (2-3 hours))

 

The price for the walking tour would be similar to that offered by the ship, but more privacy and flexibility. The price for the combo tour is 2.5 X higher than the ship price unless we share it with another family...The bottom line for the van/walk tour is whether the time spent riding away from Old Town would be worth it? Heard that Old Town had medieval music, charming, and fun...

 

Thanks, Kim

[alabama ghost]

We went to Tallin as part of our Baltic Cruise in 2003 and found it one of our favorite stops. We didn't take any tours, just wandered through town and up the hill to the church (Russian Orthodox, maybe). Our favorite purchase was some handmade sweaters that I've worn a lot this winter. The square was very interesting--just a neat place that we thoroughly enjoyed. Wish I could give you more info, but that's all I can remember. We took a short bus drive from the dock into town. Have a good trip!

[Druke I]

We were in Tallinn, 5-99, on NCL's Norwegian Dream, and will be there again this Sep on Oceania's Regatta.

 

Like the poster above, we caught a shuttle to the town square, and then just poked about old town, a very easy stroll. I thought it a charming city.

This trip, I just might jump on a trolley car, and see the sights that way.

[Charliesmom]

When we were in Talinn in 1998, we caught the shuttle to the town square and then walked into the Old Town. It was marvelously exciting. There was building going on everywhere and goods were very inexpensive. We bought a tablecloth there which we still use. There were a lot of handcrafts for sale and the people were very friendly. We climbed the stairs of the town tower which was in the middle of the Old Town.

 

We had two strange encounters. An old man in a soldier's uniform followed us and asked my husband "Russki?". He was satisfied when my husband said "No, I'm an American." The other encounter happened to my husband when I was in (of all places) McDonald's using the bathroom. He was seated on a shop's steps waiting for me when a man came up to him and showed him his passport. The man spoke to my husband in a language other than English and then the man tried to sell him a pair of jeans that had a xeroxed Ralph Lauren label. My husband was very relieved when I came out of McDonald's.

 

We're going back there this summer on a land tour. It will be interesting to see how much it has changed. We have a friend who was there in 1995 and she said the place, at that time, was overwhelmingly grim and gray.

 

Roberta

[Live the good life]

Thank you everybody for sharing your experience... During our past Celebrity and Princess cruises, we have met so many super nice people! More questions...

 

(1) Does anybody know whether the official Tallinn combo bus/walking tour will start the "walking tour portion" from the Upper Town? (I noticed that the "walking tour" by itself starts at Lower Town). I think this combo bus/walking tour starts out with the bus ride pass Kadriorg Palace, Pirita, etc, then to the "walking portion"...

 

(2) Another question is whether all ships will dock at Terminal A of the port of Tallinn, right where the combo bus/walking tour starts?

 

(3) Not sure how there will be enough buses to take hundreds of passengers who might be interested in these free tours? Would be interested to hear from those who have taken these combo bus/walking tours...Did they make a stop at Kadriorg Palace and was it a nice palace to visit?

 

At times, we prefer being with a large group and only having to interact with the guide when we wish to, but on the other hand also like the efficiency provided by the private tours. The ideal situation for us is to have narration for part of the day at each port to learn more about the history and culture of that port; and the rest of the day on our own!

 

Thanks, Kim

[trixi]

Kim, we were in Tallin '03 and booked a private tour. Unfortunately, I did not set this up so I can't give you his name. We did the singing grounds (good prices on the handpainted silk scarves-a couple of vendors were set up there) did the palace-nice but nothing compared to St. Petersberg which we had been to the day before. Then we did the walking tour starting by "Fat Margaret" gate. Our guide took us to a group of shops where the scarves, leather goods, weavings, etc. were made on sight. Excellent craftmanship but pricey. I though the items in "Sweater Alley" to be inferior and I wasn't too impressed with the quality of what was offered in the square.

 

I enjoyed the walking tour more than the van ride but the ride allowed us to see the more modern sections of the town and get a feel for the place.

[relevart]

I was there about 5 years ago. Tallin is a wonderful place. The people are so happy they are free. They have been ruled by the Soviets and before them someone else (Sweden?) they have no retirement etc. but they have great attitudes and just being among them is a privilege. I would take some sort of a tour just so you could understand what they have gone through the past few generations. My roommate took a tour of old town and took a bus tour around town and went to the singing grounds and a beach where they served us coffee and had some handicrafts. They are a very inspiring bunch of people and Tallin is definitely worth visiting.

[Mimi White]

We visited Tallin last summer on the WEsterdam and I had made arrangements for a local guide to meet us at the dock. He had e-mailed us that part would be walking tour and part of it driving. We did go out to the Palace, but not sure it was worth the drive. I would suggest your staying in the Old Town for the full time allowed.

 

Have a wonderful cruise!!

Kay

[NitaBcruising]

I visited Tallinn nearly 3 years ago. I went to an Estonia website and emailed them. They sent me a wonderful walking map of the Old Town! We had no trouble finding our way around alone, and had a wonderful time!

 

I'm not sure how I found it, but searched until I did. You might try emailing this place to see if they can help!

info@visitestonia.com <info@visitestonia.com>

[NitaBcruising]

Another email for info from Tallinn. I wish I knew for sure where I emailed for that great city walking tour map, but you can try these, and anything else you can find online!

 

turismiinfo@tallinnlv.ee <turismiinfo@tallinnlv.ee>