ESTONIA - Scandinavia - page 1033

$$ Hotel Shnelli, a big, high-rise “efficiency hotel” adjacent to the sleepy
little train station (a 5-minute walk from the Old Town in a neighborhood that
feels a bit seedy at night), rents 124 Ikea-mod rooms. It fronts a noisy street,
so request a quiet room in the back—these overlook the tracks, but no trains
run at night (Db-€60-65, sometimes €10-20 more on weekends, connecting
family rooms, elevator, pay Internet access, free Wi-Fi, Toompuiestee 37, tel.
631-0100, fax [phone], www.gohotels.ee , [e-mail] ) .
Budget Beds in the Old Town
$$ Villa Hortensia rents six simple, creaky-floored rooms with kitchenettes
above a sophisticated little café in a courtyard close to Town Hall Square.
The three twin-bed rooms and one single-bed room are furnished sparsely (no
TV), with beds in a sleeping loft. The “deluxe” room comes with a double
bed and a small balcony. The apartment is on two floors, with a double bed
upstairs and a foldout sofa bed in the living room. Named after the home of
a group of down-and-outs in a famous Estonian novel, the hotel is creatively
run by jewelry designer Jaan Pärn. It's a decent, inexpensive choice if you
don't mind the ramshackle feeling and the fact that the rooms aren't serviced
every day. Jaan's jewelry shop, across the courtyard, serves as the reception
(Sb-€40, Db-€55, deluxe Db-€80, apartment Db-€105 or Tb-€130, no break-
fast, no elevator, free Internet access and Wi-Fi, 50 yards from the corner of
Vene and Viru streets at Vene 6, look for Master's Courtyard and Chocolat-
erie signs, mobile [phone], www.hoov.ee , [e-mail] ).
$ Old House Guesthouse and Hostel is small and snug, split between
two buildings halfway between Town Hall Square and the ferry terminals.
There's street noise in many rooms, so bring earplugs (bed in 6-person dorm-
€15, S-€30, D-€44, Quint-€75, see their website for deals, includes sheets and
towel, breakfast-€4, no lockout, shared shower and WC, kitchen facilities,
free Wi-Fi, free parking—reserve ahead, Uus 26, tel. [phone], fax [phone],
www.oldhouse.ee , [e-mail] ).
$ Tallinn Backpackers, a block from the Old House Guesthouse, is a
leave-your-shoes-at-the-door place renting 30 beds in four rooms to back-
packers. Smoothly run and fun for the right crowd, it has a friendly party
vibe (dorm bed-€17, less off-season, kitchen, lockers, free Internet access