Guided tour of Tallinn - the Kalamaja neighbourhood

Today we're taking you on a guided tour of Tallinn, Estonia! We love guided tours. When you hear stories about what happened around buildings and squares in a city, the city always becomes a little more interesting.

In Tallinn, it is of course most common to take a guided tour inside the Old Town, but we actually went with a guide to a completely different neighbourhood. We start by showing pictures from the Old Town. Then you can also go to the Kalamaja neighbourhood.

Old Town and guided tour in Tallinn, Estonia

Tallinn is a medieval city with its origins in the Hanseatic League. If you read the signs on the buildings, you'll see that many of them were built in the 15th century. For example, the pharmacy on Town Hall Square was completed in 1422 - and has now been operating as a pharmacy in the same building for almost 600 years!

Much of the city wall has been preserved and walking around the cobbled streets you can almost imagine the bustling medieval life here. The Town Hall Square used to be a bustling vegetable market, and there were also pillars of shame for those who did not behave - one for men and another for women. Today the square is full of outdoor cafés.

Tallinn rådhustorget — Full of outdoor cafes - and no need to stand at the punch bowl

Drake — The kite on the town hall does not spray fire but only water

Few live in the Old Town today

There is an upper part of the Old Town, where the "fine people" once lived, and a lower part, where the merchants lived. Today, not many Tallinners live in the Old Town at all. They live somewhere outside, such as in Kalamaja.

Tallinn övre delen — The upper part of Tallinn - today the tourist business is the name of the game here

READ MORE: What to do in Tallinn - 30 sights and experiences
READ MORE: An excursion to Kadriorg Palace in Tallinn, Estonia

District of Kalamaja

The Kalamaja neighbourhood is a short walk from the Old Town. There are many beautiful wooden houses from the turn of the century, mixed with communist-style buildings and modern houses, often under construction.

Our guide, who speaks Swedish because she fell in love with "Vi på Saltkråkan" and "Ronja Rövardotter" as a child and wanted to learn the language, lives in the neighbourhood and seems to know everything worth knowing about this place.

På guidad tur i Tallinn, Estland — On a guided tour of Tallinn, Estonia - beautiful old wooden houses in Kalamaja

Guide Tallinn — Our Estonian guide speaks perfect Swedish, and tells us that about 1 per cent of Estonians speak Swedish.

Bohemian lifestyle in Kalamaja

The lifestyle in Kalamaja reminds us a bit of Söder in Stockholm. There are plenty of second-hand shops and a creative centre with artists and design shops.

At the same time, it's easy to feel a whiff of former Eastern Europe. At the market, where most of the vendors are Russian-speaking, you can buy more than just fruit and clothes. There are also elderly uncles trying to sell everything from military equipment to old toys. Kalamaja may not be a major attraction, but if you want to see a bit more of everyday Tallinn, it's worth a visit!

Kalamaja Tallinn — Small cafes and shops in Kalamaja

Grönsaker — Vegetables at the market in Kalamaja

Helena

16 April 2017 6:00

Estonia

history, attraction, metropolis

Helena

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30 Comments

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Lena - good for the soul says:

Hahaha, I think it was cool at the old pharmacy in Malmö from the late 1800s. It's a dizzying thought to have the same business for 600 years!

Hug Lena

16 April 2017 - 6:47

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  Helena says:
  
  Yes, it is dizzying! Incredibly fascinating!
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:17
  
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Lennart says:

A tour is a good start in a new city.
This gives you a good overview and allows you to return to different places.

16 April 2017 - 6:52

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  Helena says:
  
  Agree! Always good to get an overview, get things explained and ask questions 🙂 .
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:17
  
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Marina says:

Thanks for the trip! And yes, it is tempting to go there in the future. Definitely agree that the "boot tube" was disgusting!

16 April 2017 - 7:32

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  Helena says:
  
  Recommended for a weekend or similar!
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:18
  
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Britt-Marie Lundgren says:

Really agree that a good guide can make you see a place with completely different eyes. Seems like the weather is starting to be on your side and everything is even more beautiful with a blue sky as a background. Nice photos!

16 April 2017 - 7:37

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  Helena says:
  
  Yesterday we had really nice weather. Cold in the air indeed, but so nice in the sun that we could sit for a few hours on an outdoor terrace at lunchtime 🙂
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:19
  
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Matts Torebring says:

A guided tour gives it all, wandering around on your own doesn't give you the same Enjoy!

16 April 2017 - 8:20

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  Helena says:
  
  Really agree! Wishing you a nice Easter weekend!
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:19
  
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Ninny says:

Of course it is good to have guided tours, you probably miss a lot when travelling on your own. In larger cities there are usually "hop-on-hop-off" buses, great to go around with and then choose what you want to see more of.
Tallinn seems nice! Have never been there, but have heard others who also liked that city very much. Happy Easter!

16 April 2017 - 8:25

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  Guiding adds another dimension, and hop on hop off buses can be good too. Wishing you a nice weekend!
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:20
  
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Ama de casa says:

Haha! That was also a reason - as good as any! - to want to learn a language 🙂

How nice it is there!

But 600 years? And I thought that today's 8th anniversary for me was a long time? Haha! Talk about ANOR! 😀

Have a nice Easter day!

16 April 2017 - 8:30

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  Yes, you can really talk about ancestry. A dizzying thought with a shop that has been around for 600 years!!!
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:21
  
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Goatfish says:

I love guided tours, but they have to be in Swedish. So you were lucky!
I like to hear the story behind everything and have it explained.
You offer nice pictures, which are tempting.
Easter Sunday hug this Easter Day ?

16 April 2017 - 9:01

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  We think that guided tours in English are good as well, but it was of course nice to be guided in Swedish 🙂 It may not be so easy in all countries, but here in Tallinn it is fine.
  
  16 April 2017 - 9:22
  
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Ditte says:

Tallinn is a nice city and perfect with a guided tour to know and see more. And not going in a group is a clear advantage but being able to stop and look extra where you want.
We have had the advantage of having family here in the city and over the years there have been many visits to Tallinn, but now it is a few years since I was there. But this summer there will definitely be a trip again.

16 April 2017 - 11:20

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  Helena says:
  
  Well, do you have relatives in Tallinn? Yes, when you know someone there, you always get an insight in a different way 🙂.
  
  17 April 2017 - 6:14
  
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Anette says:

I recognise some things even though it was almost 25 years since I was there,
If I remember correctly, there had been copper thieves on the move, and copper gutters and downpipes were stolen.
They seem to have been replaced long ago.

16 April 2017 - 12:30

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  I was also here 20-25 years ago. The city is similar in many ways, but much has changed enormously. For example, the range of restaurants and the prices 😉 Copper thieves ... oops!
  
  17 April 2017 - 6:16
  
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Mr Steve says:

Thankfully, not much of today's charming Tallinn is reminiscent of the former Soviet Union.

16 April 2017 - 13:12

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  No, it's not the Soviet Union you're reminded of when hanging out in the Old Town, rather the Middle Ages 😉 And modern times of course 😉.
  
  17 April 2017 - 6:17
  
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BP says:

Thank you for letting me join the guided tour in glorious sunshine. Wonderful pictures. And one thing I know - I have been to Tallinn twice, but god how nicely they have "restored" the city, especially the old tree houses.
Definitely worth a return visit after your post.

16 April 2017 - 13:16

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  Tallinn is a nice city! Not so big, but perfect for a weekend 🙂 .
  
  17 April 2017 - 6:20
  
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Biggeros says:

Guided tour is a safe card so you do not miss anything in passing. Perfect that the guide spoke Swedish too:)
Impressed that the pharmacy is still open after 600 years....
Probably worth a visit to Tallinn. I have only been to Riga. We made a quick visit there when we lived in Moscow as we had to leave the country after 3 months in Russia:)

16 April 2017 - 14:52

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- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  Isn't the old pharmacy fascinating? If we compare Riga and Tallinn, we perceive Riga as larger and with more Art Nouveau and Tallinn as smaller and more medieval ...
  
  17 April 2017 - 7:09
  
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Across the board says:

Very nice to see everything nice from Tallinn. We have talked about taking a long weekend there, but have not come to a conclusion. But now you present the city so well that we can go elsewhere instead?

No, they are even more keen to experience the city themselves.
Have a nice weekend

16 April 2017 - 20:32

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  Helena says:
  
  Haha, it's still a bit different to experience the city on site yourself 😉.
  
  17 April 2017 - 7:10
  
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Henny says:

One of my visits to Tallinn was due to the fact that the school I worked in had a co-operation with a school in Tallinn. A group of teachers and students visited our exchange school a couple of times and students from there came to our Swedish school later.
We went to an orphanage and I was invited to the home of the girl who guided us in Swedish. Talk about different worlds. She told me that living in Estonia was so hard that she had chosen to give Swedish lessons, guide tourists and work on a cruise ship in the Caribbean during the winter. The alternative, she said, was to become a prostitute. We later learnt that she had fallen overboard during one of these trips and I wonder what happened to her two little girls. Her husband was Russian, which was not popular even in those days.

17 April 2017 - 10:09

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Maria's Memoirs says:

Oh, getting hungry for Tallinn again! 🙂

20 April 2017 - 9:45

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9 things to see and do in Tallinn - our top tips | FREEDOMtravel

Guided tour of Tallinn - the Kalamaja neighbourhood

Old Town and guided tour in Tallinn, Estonia

Few live in the Old Town today

District of Kalamaja

Bohemian lifestyle in Kalamaja

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30 Comments

Lena - good for the soul says:

Helena says:

Lennart says:

Helena says:

Marina says:

Helena says:

Britt-Marie Lundgren says:

Helena says:

Matts Torebring says:

Helena says:

Ninny says:

Helena says:

Ama de casa says:

Helena says:

Goatfish says:

Helena says:

Ditte says:

Helena says:

Anette says:

Helena says:

Mr Steve says:

Helena says:

BP says:

Helena says:

Biggeros says:

Helena says:

Across the board says:

Helena says:

Henny says:

Maria's Memoirs says:

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