48 hours in Tallinn, Estonia
TOP THINGS TO DO IN TALLINN
Viewing platforms
There are two viewing platforms in Tallinn which look over the city, with the snow topped roofs and church towers, this one of the top things to do in the city.
Patkuli viewing platform and Kohtuotsa viewing platform are only a few minutes walk between each other and offer similar views of the city.
Kohtuotsa viewing platform
Patkuli viewing platform
Tallinn Town Hall Square
The Tallinn Town Hall Square is the main square in the city, with its cobbled stones and the Town Hall towering over, it’s surrounded by restaurants and shops. Spend some time wandering around the different alleys, visiting the souvenir shops and in the winter, you may be able to see the Christmas tree in the square.
Tallinn Town Hall Square in February
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral was built between 1894 – 1900 and is an Eastern Orthodox Cathedral in the centre of Tallinn. It was built when the country was part of the Russian empire and this can be seen within the architecture on both the inside and the outside of the Cathedral. You can visit the inside of the Cathedral, free of charge.
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral
KGB Prison Cells
The KGB prison cells are located in Tallinn and can be visited for around £8 for an adult. It’s a small museum but contains a lot of history and information. The museum has lots of information about what happened in the KGB prison cells at the time and is full of personal stories and tragedies of the Estonian politicians, civil servants and other citizens. It was quite moving reading about the torture that people went through during that time. You are able to see the cells that were used and there is the solitary confinement cell that people were kept in for hours/days at a time.
KGB Prison Cells
Kiek in the kok museum and bastion tunnels
Kiek in the kok museum and bastion tunnels are a complex of 4 medieval towers along with underground tunnels which were used in the 17th and 18th century to conceal the movement of soldiers, ammunition and equipment when Estonia was under Swedish rule. The towers were used to track the movement of the enemy.
Later on in the 20th century, Estonia was under Soviet occupation and the tunnels were then used as bomb shelters. In 1991, when Estonia gained independence, the tunnels were used for homeless people up until 2001. Then in 2004, it was renovated and converted into a museum to showcase the deep history of this place.
Now, the museum shows what life was like in the tunnels during the different time periods with information and displays.
There are different ticket prices for different parts of the museum. We had a limited amount of time so we were only able to visit the Bastion passages and the carved museum which take between 30-45 minutes to walk through. Tickets for just the bastion passages and carved museum cost €10 for an adult and €5 for students and seniors.
Tickets for the whole museum, which includes the bastion passages and the four towers cost €16 for adults and €8 for students and seniors. For just the four towers, an adult ticket costs €12 and for students and seniors, €6.
