Tallinn Old Town (Vanalinn)

Tallinn Old Town is the historic core of the Estonian capital, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1997 for being the best preserved Hanseatic town in northern Europe. It splits into two halves that spent centuries mistrusting each other: Toompea, the limestone hill where bishops, knights and later the Russian governor sat, and the lower town below, where German-speaking merchants ran the Great Guild, the Brotherhood of Blackheads and the trade in salt, grain and furs. Around 1.9 km of the medieval wall still stands, along with roughly twenty of the original towers. The Town Hall on Raekoja plats was completed in 1404 and remains the only surviving Gothic town hall in the region. The Town Hall Pharmacy on the same square has been dispensing since at least 1422, which makes it one of the oldest continuously operating pharmacies anywhere in Europe.

A visit is a walk rather than a ticket. Most people start at Viru Gate, where two round towers frame the entrance to Viru Street, then drift up to Raekoja plats for the Town Hall and the pharmacy. From there the lanes fan out: Pikk Street with its guild halls and the extravagant Blackheads House facade; Lai Street with tall merchant houses whose hoist beams still jut from the gables; Katariina käik, a narrow passage of workshops and old gravestones. Climb Lühike jalg or Pikk jalg to Toompea for Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the pink Toompea Castle that houses parliament, and the Kohtuotsa and Patkuli viewing platforms over the red roofs. St Olaf's Church, once claimed to be the tallest building in the world, and the Town Hall tower both open their steps in season for a climb.

Plan it as a half day on foot, with a second visit at dusk if you have the time. Wear proper shoes, because the cobbles are uneven and slick in rain, and skip the wheeled suitcase entirely. Nothing needs booking except a table at the better restaurants and a guided tour of the Bastion Passages under Toompea. Skip the medieval-themed tourist restaurants on Raekoja plats itself and the roasted-almond stalls, which cost double what the same nuts cost 200 metres away. If cruise ships are in port, walk the loop anticlockwise from Toompea downwards, because the guided groups all move the other way and you will pass them once rather than shuffle behind them.

Getting there is easy on foot from anywhere in central Tallinn. From the main railway station, Balti jaam, walk south through the park past Toompea in about 8 minutes. Trams 1, 2, 3 and 4 all pass the Old Town: get off at Viru or Vabaduse väljak, both a 2-3 minute walk from a gate. A single public transport ticket bought from the driver costs €2, or €1.50 loaded onto a Ühiskaart smartcard; the Tallinn Card includes transport. From the ferry terminals in the port it is a 12-15 minute walk, or bus 2 to Linnahall. From Lennart Meri Airport, tram 4 runs into the centre in about 17 minutes. Driving is a bad idea: only residents and deliveries may enter, and the nearest paid garages are at Viru keskus and Solaris.

Walking the quarter costs nothing at all, and the squares, walls from the outside, churches at prayer times and the viewing platforms on Toompea are free. Money starts once you go up or inside. Expect roughly €5-€6 to climb the Town Hall tower and a similar amount for the tower of St Olaf's Church; Alexander Nevsky Cathedral asks only for a donation. Museum tickets in the quarter typically run €8-€16, with student and senior concessions usually around half. The Tallinn Card, sold in 24, 48 and 72-hour versions from about €42, bundles dozens of these plus public transport and is worth it only if you plan three or more paid sites in a day. Guided walking tours run €15-€25; the tip-based free tours leave from outside the tourist information office.

Come early or late. Between 11:00 and 15:00 from June to August, when cruise passengers are ashore, Raekoja plats and Viru Street are shoulder to shoulder; at 08:00 the same lanes are almost empty and the light on the limestone is at its best. Evening after 19:00 is the other quiet window, and the walls lit from below are genuinely beautiful. September and May give you warm days without the crush. Winter is cold and dark by 16:00, but the Christmas market on Raekoja plats through December is the single prettiest thing in the Estonian calendar. Most museums close on Mondays, and many shorten hours from October to April. Midsummer, 23-24 June, empties the city of locals and closes a lot of small businesses.

It suits almost everyone, with caveats. Families do well: children like the towers, the marzipan shops and the costumed staff, and there is space to run in the Danish King's Garden. Teenagers usually prefer Telliskivi. Wheelchair users and anyone with a pushchair should know that the cobbles are punishing and Toompea is reached by steep ramped lanes or steps; the smoothest approach is by car or taxi to Lossi plats. On a rainy afternoon, duck into the churches, the museums and the covered passages rather than trying to walk the whole loop. With only an hour before a train, do Viru Gate to Raekoja plats to Katariina käik and back, which is a comfortable 45 minutes.

Fold in what is next door. Telliskivi Creative City and Balti Jaam Market are 10-12 minutes on foot past the station, which makes an easy afternoon after a medieval morning. The Rotermann Quarter, all raw limestone and new glass, is 5 minutes east of Viru Gate on the way to the port. Kadriorg Park and its palace are 10 minutes by tram 1 or 3. Freedom Square and the Kiek in de Kök tower cluster sit at the southern edge of the walls, and the seafront at Linnahall is a 10-minute walk north for sunset.

The honest caveats: the Old Town is small, and a fair slice of the ground floor along Viru Street is amber shops, tourist knitwear and identikit souvenirs that have nothing to do with Estonia. The famous medieval taverns are theatre with average food at high prices; eat one street back. The viewing platforms are free but crowded and photographed to death. People also arrive expecting a museum-town frozen in aspic and find a working city centre with offices, buses at the edges and stag parties on Friday nights. And in July the walk from Viru Gate to the Town Hall can take twenty minutes for a distance of 400 metres.

Hours & entry

Always free to enter and walk · Individual towers, museums and church spires charge separately

Streets and squares open 24 hours · Most shops and museums Mon-Sat 10:00-18:00 · Restaurants and bars until 23:00 or later

What to see

• Town Hall and Raeapteek pharmacy — Raekoja plats, lower town
• Kohtuotsa viewing platform — Kohtu 12, Toompea hill
• Katariina käik passage — Between Vene and Müürivahe streets

Tips from the ground

• Enter through the Nunne Street side, not Viru Gate, to skip the tour-group bottleneck.
• Climb Toompea before 09:00 for empty viewing platforms.
• Buy water and snacks on Vene Street, not on Raekoja plats.