Tallinn: CruisingGrade.com Port Of The Day

Tourists Want To See St. Petersburg For The Grandeur, Connoisseurs Want To Visit Tallinn For The Compact Study Of A Medieval Town.

When travelers book their Baltic cruise, most eyes are on St. Petersburg for obvious reasons-- former capital of Russia, home to overwhelming museums and monumental architecture. After a swing through Baltic stars like Copenhagen or Stockholm, few focus attention on that last port before St. Petersburg-- Tallinn, Estonia.

Tallinn, Estonia

Yet Tallinn, CruisingGrade.com Port of the Day, is at its core a charming Medieval town, scrubbed and welcoming to visitors, who come to savor the capital of Estonia. Plan ahead for your hours ashore in this storybook Old Town and you will be rewarded.

LonleyPlanet gushes:

No longer the plaything of greater powers – Danish, Swedish, Polish, German and Soviet – Tallinn is now a proud European capital with an allure all its own. It's lively yet peaceful, absurdly photogenic and bursting with wonderful sights – ancient churches, medieval streetscapes and noble merchants' houses.

Tallinn, Estonia

We agree. We were impressed after a visit a few years ago during just the kind of cruise described here. Week or two cruises call on Tallinn roughly June through September. Other shorter or longer sailings call on Tallinn while on their way to or from more distant ports, from London to Brisbane to Arusha, Tanzania.

24 Nights Baltic Roundtrip Copenhagen, With Five Night Reach Into Iceland

June 27 Holland America Zuiderdam, 1,918 passengers, built 2002, refurbished 2017. Our review of Holland America line can be found here on CruisingGrade.com. Balcony cabins are offered from about $4,000 per person, oceanview about $500 less. Ask for promotions that may be available for bookings made before May 31.

The more than three week itinerary provides a generous introduction to the Baltics, including Tallinn. The cruise appends five nights visiting ports in Iceland, an increasingly popular and promoted destination for cruisers, many of whom have already "done" more familiar European ports.

Note that the port of Warnemunde is at least 2.5 hours from Berlin by road, which makes for a long day if you choose an excursion to Berlin.

Holland America also sells the June 27 departure as a 10-day cruise including Tallinn from about $1,400 per person balcony cabin.

Tallinn, Estonia Viru Gate

Itinerary

Wednesday, June 27 Copenhagen, Denmark

Thursday, June 28         At Sea

Friday, June 29         Tallinn, Estonia

Saturday, June 30         St. Petersburg, Russia

Sunday, July 1                 St. Petersburg, Russia

Monday, July 2         Helsinki, Finland

Tuesday, July 3         Stockholm, Sweden

Wednesday, July 4         At Sea

Thursday, July 5         Berlin (Warnemunde), Germany

Friday, July 6                 Kiel, Germany

Saturday, July 7         Copenhagen, Denmark

Sunday, July 8                 At Sea

Monday, July 9         Bergen, Norway

Tuesday, July 10         Alesund, Norway

Wednesday, July 11 At Sea

Thursday, July 12         Seydisfjordur, Iceland

Friday, July 13         Akureyri, Iceland

Saturday, July 14         Isafjordur, Iceland

Sunday, July 15         Reykjavik, Iceland

Monday, July 16         Reykjavik, Iceland

Tuesday, July 17         At Sea

Wednesday, July 18 Torshavn, Denmark Faroe Islands

Thursday, July 19         Lerwick, Shetland Islands, Scotland

Friday, July 20         At Sea

Saturday, July 21         Copenhagen, Denmark