Tallinn, Estonia: the new short break destination

Clare Thomson can think of lots of reasons why we should visit Tallinn in Estonia. To start with, she is half Estonian with friends and family who live in this best preserved medieval city in northern Europe and she certainly knows her ground. Tallinn is a vibrant, fashionable and under represented destination, making it perfect for short breaks. Situated on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, where northern Europe and the Orient collide, Tallinn is a combination of Teutonic efficiency and Russian extravagance. With Thomson's Footprint Guide to Tallinn in hand, you are confident that you will get to see the best sights, eat at great restaurants and rest your head at night in hotels that represent excellent value.

WHAT MAKES TALLINN SO SPECIAL?

Already labelled as the new Prague, it is small enough that most of the sights are within walking distance of each other. The city is only a ten-minute ride from the airport and with a good public transport service and cheap taxis, getting around could not be easier. A number of new boutique hotels have opened and with cheap local prices, you get value for money. The Footprint Guide to Tallinn has a very strong restaurant and nightlife section. It also explores parts of the city not covered before, making it indispensable.

Here are Clare Thomson's recommendations of the sights to see, Ten of the best:-

1. Raekoda Northern Europe's only surviving Gothic town hall is a proud, rough-hewn charmer, with spectacular dragon waterspouts.
2. Pühavaimu church A modestly sized but magical medieval church with an exquisite old clock and interior.
3. Lossi plats (Castle square) The spirits of Estonia (the pink parliament building) and Russia (Nevsky cathedral) face off in the foreground, with soaring Pikk Hermann Tower and enchanting woodland providing a powerful backdrop.
4. Oleviste church Once Europe's tallest edifice, it is still able to stir the soul with views of Toompea and the Lower Town from its needle-thin copper spire.
5. Applied Arts Museum Glassware, textiles, jewellery and copper work, all Tallinn traditions.
6. Katariina käik Tallinn's most enchanting alleyway, with low vaulting, wrought-iron lamps and a displaced unusually radical gravestone.
7. Tornide väljak (The Square of Towers) One of the city's most breathtaking vistas, with three rampart towers shrinking into the distance.
8. Kadriorg Palace Baroque splendour in leafy surrounds, built for Peter the Great and living up to his name.
9. St. Birgitta's Convent, Pirita Lofty and lonesome, these skeletal seaside ruins form one of the city's most fragile silhouettes.
10. Rocca al Mare An open air museum of peasant dwellings, barns and windmills, set in a rolling rural landscape with clifftop views over Kopli Bay.

Reproduced by kind permission of Footprint Books. To order a copy of Footprint Tallinn (£7.99), click here.

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