Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Toomas the Tourist Train
—This red choo-choo train, mostly for kids and their parents,
leaves (when full) from the top of Town Hall Square (€5, June-Aug daily 12:00-17:00,
May and Sept Sat-Sun only, doesn't run Oct-April, look for
Rong Toomas
sign).
▲▲▲Welcome to Tallinn
This walk explores the “two towns” of Tallinn. The city once consisted of two feuding me-
dieval towns separated by a wall. The upper town—on the hill, called Toompea—was the
seat of government ruling Estonia. The lower town was an autonomous Hanseatic trading
center filled with German, Danish, and Swedish merchants who hired Estonians to do their
menial labor. Many of the Old Town's buildings are truly old, dating from the boom times
of the 15th and 16th centuries. Decrepit before the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, the Old
Town has been slowly revitalized, though there's still plenty of work to be done.
Two steep, narrow streets—the “Long Leg” and the “Short Leg”—connect Toompea
and the lower town. This walk winds through both towns, going up the short leg and down
the long leg. The walk starts near the ferry terminals. If you're coming from elsewhere in
Tallinn, take tram #1 or #2 to the Linnahall stop, or just walk out to the Fat Margaret Tower
from anywhere in the Old Town.
