Tallinn Christmas Market - a romantic break
Tallinn, which is also known by the German and Swedish name of Reval, is the capital and largest city of Estonia, lying on its northern coast, along the Gulf of Finland. The Christmas market in Tallinn has been running every year since 1991, and is held at the beautifully picturesque Raekoja Plats, which is a magnificently cobbled square, dominated by the 15th-century Town Hall, and surrounded by eye-catchingly quaint old buildings. Being pretty far north, Tallinn has a fair number of white Christmases, which give added charm to the market.
The square has a wonderfully decorated and brightly lit Christmas tree, and there are brightly decorated stalls lining the square, selling a great range of Estonian arts and crafts, mulled wine and sausages. There are some very good hand-made, natural, gifts available here – such as carved wooden bowls, or decorations made from wood and twine. One of the best bargains on offer at this particular market is the wide range of knitted goods, including sweaters, socks and bobble-hats, with the predominant wool colours being a striking mixture of natural grey, white and beige wool. One novelty is a hat like a bobble hat, which is so long, it actually turns into a scarf too, and you can wear it on your head, and keep your neck warm with it at the same time. As I have never seen this type of hat outside Estonia, I assume it must be an original Estonain design!
If you have children with you, in the evenings there is a Father Christmas who will pose for photos with them.
If you start to find it a little cold, then you can escape into one of the several candle-lit restaurants around the square, which help to make it a very romantic getaway for couples.
Filed under: Estonia, Shopping, Christmas markets, Eastern Europe
