6 best day trips from Tallinn

Day trips compared

The day trips

80 km · About 2 hours each way by ferry

1.Helsinki

Several ferry lines cross the Gulf of Finland to Helsinki many times a day. A day return leaves time for Senate Square, the Market Square and a ferry ride to the Suomenlinna sea fortress.

Getting there

Ferry from the Old City Harbour

Best for

First-timers, Culture, Couples

70 km · About 1 hour by car

2.Lahemaa National Park

Estonia's oldest national park combines restored baroque manor houses at Palmse and Sagadi, the old sea captains' village of Käsmu with its boulder-strewn coast, and the Viru Bog boardwalk with an observation tower over the peat bog and pools.

Getting there

Car or organised tour

Best for

Families, Quiet stays, Culture

185 km · About 2 hours by train

3.Tartu

Estonia's university city has a Town Hall Square with the Kissing Students fountain, the Toome Hill park with cathedral ruins and the Estonian National Museum in a striking modern building on a former Soviet airfield.

Getting there

Train from the Baltic Station

Best for

Culture, Solo travellers, Couples

30 km · About 45 minutes by bus

4.Keila-Joa

A waterfall about 6 metres high on the Keila river, with a restored 19th-century neo-Gothic manor, riverside parkland and suspension footbridges. A short forest walk leads towards the sea.

Getting there

Regional bus or car

Best for

Families, Quiet stays, Couples

100 km · About 1 hour 30 minutes by bus

5.Haapsalu

A small seaside resort with a ruined episcopal castle, a wooden promenade along the shallow bay and a long-platformed former railway station that now holds a railway museum. Its mud spas have drawn visitors since the 19th century.

Getting there

Bus from Tallinn bus station

Best for

Quiet stays, Couples, Families

130 km · About 2 hours by bus

6.Pärnu

Estonia's 'summer capital' has a long, shallow sandy beach with a seaside park and spa hotels, plus an old town of wooden and stone houses. It is best between June and August.

Getting there

Bus from Tallinn bus station

Best for

Beach, Families, Couples

Day-trip tips

• Leave early: most trips are more relaxed with a morning departure and a return before dinner.
• Buses reach Pirita, the TV Tower and the Open Air Museum at Rocca al Mare, mostly from stops around Viru Keskus and the Baltic Station.
• For trips over about 150 km, an overnight stay or an organised tour saves a lot of travelling.

Questions travellers ask