Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
For advice on taking taxis, and more details on the public transportation op-
tions mentioned below, see “Getting Around Tallinn,” later.
By Boat or Cruise Ship:
Tallinn has four terminals lettered A through D,
a fifth one called Linnahall (used only by the fast Linda Line boat), and a ded-
icated cruise terminal. A-Terminal, B-Terminal, and C-Terminal are clustered
together; the cruise terminal is just to the north; D-Terminal is a 10-minute
walk to the east (and the farthest from Old Town); the Linnahall terminal is
a 10-minute walk to the west (just over the large stairway). Each terminal of-
fers baggage storage. Be sure to confirm which terminal your return boat will
use. The main cruise pier can accommodate two large ships; when more are in
town, they may use one of the other terminals.
If you have no luggage, you can
walk
15 minutes to reach the center of
town—just follow signs to the city center and set your sights on the tallest
spire in the distance (or follow my self-guided walk, later). If you have bags,
it's best to grab a
taxi
—otherwise your rolling suitcase will take a pounding
on the Old Town's cobbled streets and gutter-ridden sidewalks. While the le-
gitimate taxi fare to anywhere in or near the Old Town should be less than €5,
unscrupulous cabbies may try to charge double or triple.
Togetintotownbybus,youhaveseveraloptions:Public
bus#2
goesfrom
A-Terminal and D-Terminal directly to the “A. Laikmaa” stop—behind Hotel
Viru and the Viru Keskus mall, just south of the Old Town—then continues
to the airport (2/hour, buy transit pass or €1 ticket from kiosks in terminals).
The privately run bus
#90K
also carries travelers between A-Terminal, D-Ter-
minal, and downtown, but costs a bit more and takes a different route: It loops
around the northern end of the Old Town, stopping at the train station, then
curls to the south (stopping at major hotels en route) before heading to the bus
station and airport (€2, 3/hour, get off at the Viru stop,
www.hansabuss.ee
)
.
From the Linnahall terminal, Linda Line provides a
shuttle bus
(€2) to major
downtownpointsforitspassengers.Cruiselinessometimesalsoofferashuttle
busintotown(totheRussian Cultural Center,nearHotel Viru),but—since it's
so easy to just stroll from the port into town—this isn't worth paying for.
