I was flying via Helsinki, Finland and had a long stopover. I had the option to stay over in Helsinki, but instead I decided to take the ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn, Estonia and explore the small city.
I landed at Helsinki at 10.25 am on June 25, 2024. It is short 2 hour ferry ride from Helsinki to Tallinn, Estonia across the Gulf of Finland.
My ferry was at 1.30 pm. I took the train from Helsinki airport to Helsinki main railway station. From there, I went to the ferry terminal by tram. It turned out that I had reached the wrong terminal. I was traveling on the Tallinn Silja ferry line. Therefore, for Tallinn, I had to go to the West Harbour terminal. I took an Uber and made it to the ferry just in time at 1.07 pm. The ferry took off early at around 1.20 pm.
The ferry was huge. It was like a cruise ship with shopping malls, cafe and very comfortable seating. The weather was great.
The ferry docked at Tallinn, Estonia at around 3.15 pm.
A little about Estonia, a European country. Estonia issued the Estonian Declaration of Independence on 24 February 1918 from the then-warring Russian and German empires. Democratic throughout most of the interwar period, Estonia declared neutrality at the outbreak of World War II, however the country was repeatedly contested, invaded, and occupied; first by the Soviet Union in 1940, then by Nazi Germany in 1941, and was ultimately reoccupied in 1944 by, and annexed into, the USSR as an administrative subunit (Estonian SSR). Throughout the 1944–1991 Soviet occupation, Estonia’s de jure state continuity was preserved by diplomatic representatives and the government-in-exile. Following the 1988–1990 bloodless Estonian “Singing Revolution” against the Soviet rule, the nation’s full independence was restored on 20 August 1991. It is currently a part of the European Union, so no visa controls when coming from Finland. It is a small country with 1.4 million people.
From the harbour, I walked to the old city Tallinn and reached the gates.
The first major sight was St. Olaf’s Church, believed to have been built in the 12th century and to have been the centre for old Tallinn’s Scandinavian community before Denmark conquered Tallinn in 1219. The fees to go up the tower were 5 Euros, but I did not have cash, only credit card. So I could not go.
Walking through the streets of Tallinn was a very pleasant experience. No traffic. I saw an embassy.
There was also a display protesting the war in Ukraine.
I visited the Estonian Museum of History. It was a private museum set up in a former Guild in the city of Tallinn. The cost of 13 Euros. The museum was ok, but I was expecting a grand national museum, which this museum was not.
From the museum, I continued to the Town Hall Square, a large square filled with lots of open air restaurants. Very pleasant place to hang out.
I checked into to Taanilinna hotel, a small boutique hotel in old town Tallinn. It is very basic, but clean and very charming. Highly recommended for a stay when you are trying to tour Old Town Tallinn.
Viru Gate was walking distance from my hotel. It was part of the defence system of the Tallinn city wall built in the 14th century. Viru Gate marks the main entrance to Tallinn old town.
From Viru Gate, I walked back to the Town Hall Square and had pizza for dinner. The town hall is clearly visible in the picture below.
The next stop was the Alexander Nevski Cathedral, built in between 1894 and 1900 in a typical Russian Revival style in 1894–1900. The church is dedicated to the grand prince of Kiev, and later Russian orthodox saint, Alexander Nevsky. The cathedral was built during the period of late 19th century Russification and has been disliked by many Estonians as a symbol of former Russian oppression. After Estonia had become an independent country, the parliament and government, by the popular demand, had to discuss and consider removing the cathedral on multiple occasions in the 1920s and 1930s, however no final decision on the demolition of the building was ever made.
I slept at around 9 pm and woke up in the morning on June 26 and headed to Lennusadam, Estonian Maritime Museum. The cost was 20 Euros but it was a truly amazing museum with lots of cool maritime exhibits.
I finished the museum at around 11 am and headed to ferry harbour for my 12 noon ferry back to Helsinki. My ticket was on the Eckero line, but in comparison I thought the Silja line ferry was much classier. There were hardly any comfortable places to sit on the Eckero line ferry.
The ferry started late around 12.30 pm instead of 12 noon. It reached Helsinki by 2.45 pm. I took the train back to the airport and reached by 3.45. There was enough time to catch my flight at 6.30 pm.
It was a short but fruitful one day trip to Tallinn, Estonia.
