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An Article on the early trading of Germany and the Baltic states by an Antipodean travel company serving World Travellers since 1983 with small group educational tours for senior couples and mature solo travellers who are curious.
Odyssey offers easy, convenient, and relaxed escorted small group tours across the Baltics and beyond. We explore Estonia’s incredible natural beauty, its ancient Scandinavian heritage, World Heritage Sites, and fascinating cities, with some truly spectacular scenery along the way. This and more is all waiting to be explored on one of Odyssey’s small group tours of Estonia, designed for the senior traveller, and led by experienced, and enthusiastic like minded people.
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An escorted small group tour to the Baltic States of Europe that explores the key destinations of this region starting in Warsaw, then making its way through Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Stockholm and concluding in Copenhagen. Each day has scheduled itineraries supported by local guides who share knowledge and authentic experiences of the places visited. This is small group travelling to the Baltics for like minded people.
Estonia is one of the three states (the others being Latvia and Lithuania) known as the ‘Baltics’, due to the fact that they are surrounded by the Baltic Sea to the west and north. Located in north-central Europe, the Baltics are at the crossroads between Scandinavia, Germany, Poland and Russia. The smallest, northern-most, and in many ways ‘most Scandinavian’ of the Baltic States, Estonia has plenty to offer visitors.
Located just 80 kilometres from Helsinki, Estonia and Finland share many cultural similarities, and many in Estonia identify as Nordic. Its capital Tallinn, a city with a long history, could have been satisfied with its fairy-tale Old Town of castles, domes and spires, but it instead embraced the modern world as a foodie hotspot, with its many cafes and restaurants, and as a tech hotspot, being the city where Skype was invented. Estonia has been nicknamed ‘tomorrowland’ or ‘e-stonia’ thanks to its innovative digital development plans. Faced with the struggle of adapting economically after the fall of the Soviet Union, Estonian leaders saw the fledgling internet as an opportunity for a small country like Estonia to make a mark, and thus put considerable resources into getting Estonia online. A city tour of Estonia’s capital would be like travelling through time, exploring diverse sights from ancient towns to futuristic boulevards.
Outside of Tallinn, visit the atmospheric Rakvere Castle, which plays host to historic reconstructions of 16th century life, and the beautiful Lahemaa National Park or ‘land of bays’, a stretch of coastline lined with forest trails for walkers and bikers. Rivalling Tallinn for charm is the university town Tartu, with its elegant 18th century centre.
An Article on the early trading of Germany and the Baltic states by an Antipodean travel company serving World Travellers since 1983 with small group educational tours for senior couples and mature solo travellers who are curious.
Article for mature and senior travellers interested in small group European escorted tours for couples and solo travellers. Explore European and Baltic history in Estonia and Latvia Lithuania and the cultural relationships to Germany, Poland, Finland and Russia and the historic importance of Tallinn.
Enjoy exploring and learning on a small group tour for senior travellers about Tallin and Estonia as part of a tour of the Baltic states program that includes Latvia and Lithuania.
History of the Baltic States The term “Baltic states”–used to describe the countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania–is a geopolitical term, a shorthand to group together these three Northern European sovereign states. But though the…
Baltic States Guide for mature & senior travellers Odyssey Traveller offers a 21 day tour of the Baltic States for mature and senior travellers. We explore Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, as well as parts of…
Odyssey travels by coach and occasionally uses local transport, including trains and ferries. Specifics are always outlined in your tour itinerary. Bus services extensively cover Estonia, and bus tickets can be bought from either the bus ticket office or directly from the driver. While not as comprehensive in coverage as the bus network, the rail network links Tallinn with several major towns around Estonia, including Tapa, Rakvere, and Narva.
In major cities, Odyssey stays in centrally located 3-4 star hotels, with easy access to public transport. In smaller towns or rural areas, we usually stay in family-run hotels or guesthouses. On our longstay tours, during which you spend the length of the tour in a single location, we use serviced apartments.
Odyssey always engages local guides with regional knowledge to ensure an authentic experience during which you can learn as much as possible about the history and culture of places you visit.
Situated alongside the Baltic Sea, Estonia covers an area of 45,339 square kilometres. The terrain in Estonia is largely flat, with much of the country covered by forest. Estonia has 3,794 kilometres of coastline, indented by numerous bays, straits, and inlets. Estonia has over 1,400 lakes, with the largest, Lake Peipus, covering an area of 3,555 square kilometres.
The climate in Estonia is temperate, with mild summers, and cold winters. Depending on when you intend to travel, check the weather reports and dress accordingly.
Estonia has 2 properties listed on the World Heritage List, with a further 3 listed on the Tentative List. You can view the listed properties here: (https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ee). The listed properties include:
Historic Centre (Old Town) of Tallinn, which dates back to the 13th century and features many historic medieval and early modern buildings, including monasteries, churches, and Tallinn Town Hall
Struve Geodetic Arc, a remarkable multinational project involving Estonia and several other nations involving a chain of survey triangulations to measure a portion of the world’s surface
Estonia’s history and heritage are celebrated through several events and festivals held throughout the year. Old Town Days commemorates the cultural heritage of Tallinn’s Old Town district, with medieval themed celebrations, markets, street entertainment and folk music staged in celebration. St Martin’s Day Fair is an important event on Estonia’s calendar, traditionally marking the end of the harvest season, but these days being better known as the day of Estonia’s largest handicraft and and folk lifestyle event. Alongside crafts and handicraft exhibits, folk music and costumed dancing are also staged. Many events dedicated to music and the performing arts are held throughout the year, including the Baroque Music Festival and the Parnu Opera Days event.
Estonia: A Modern History, by Neil Taylor
Truth and Justice, by Anton Hansen Tammsaare
A History of the Baltic States, by Andres Kasekamp
My Estonia: Passport Forgery, Meat Jelly Eaters, and Other Stories, by Justin Perone
The cuisine of Estonia is based around seafood, meat, bread and potatoes. Given the many lakes and long coastline of Estonia, fish are plentiful in Estonian waters, with fish used in dishes such as Kiluvõileib (a sandwich made with sprat fish and boiled eggs). As with other Baltic nations, rye bread is of central importance to Estonian cuisine, with black rye bread accompanying almost every meal. Other notable savoury dishes include mulgipuder (a porridge made from mashed potatos, groat, butter, and covered with bacon sauce) and hakkliha kotlet (fried meatballs made from veal, beef and pork, eggs, and spices). Sweeter offerings include sweet cheese curds and baked sweets such as vastlakukkel (wheat buns filled with cream).
Beer is widely consumed in Estonia, though vodka and other spirits are also popular. Traditional Estonian beverages include kali (sweet, unfermented beer) and vana tallinn (a dark rum-based liqueur).
Generally speaking, Estonia is safe to travel in, though always exercise common sense while travelling.
Whenever you travel overseas, it’s always wise to take an appropriate travel adaptor. Estonia’s electricity supply runs at 230V and 50Hz. Estonia uses Type C and Type E electric plugs, so make sure you have the right travel adaptor with you.
Estonia has a single time zone, Eastern European Standard Time (UTC+2). Daylight savings in Estonia commence on the last Sunday of March, and conclude on the last Sunday of October.
Yes. The Australian government’s advice for travel to Estonia is “exercise normal safety precautions”. Odyssey Traveller follows government travel advice in all our tours, and we also have our ears to the ground, with the help of our local guides. Estonia is also party to the Schengen Convention, which allows citizens of certain countries, including Australia, to enter without a visa for travel.
Estonia is part of the European Common Currency Area, and thus uses the Euro.
More than two thirds of the population speak Estonian as their first language. Estonian is part of the Uralic language group, one of only four languages spoken in Europe (along with Finnish, Hungarian and Maltese) that are not part of the Indo-European language family. In particular, it is closely related to Finnish. By contrast, Latvian and Lithuanian are part of the Baltic sub-group, and are closely related to the Slavic languages.
A significant minority of older Estonians speak Russian as a first or second language, thanks to Estonia’s long period of Russian and then Soviet rule. Many young people, especially in Tallinn, speak English as a second language, meaning that travellers should find themselves able to communicate easily.
Estonia offers travellers a fascinating mixture of Slavic, Russian, Scandinavian and altogether unique local cultures.
Tallin is Estonia’s magnificent capital, retains its walled, cobblestoned Old Town, home to cafes and shops, as well as Kiek in de Kök, a 15th-century defensive tower.
Parnu is full of beautiful nature and culture, famous for it’s beaches and best surfing spot in Scandinavia, cafes, boating and sailing, cycling and long walks.
Lake Peipus: Europe’s 4th largest lake is dotted with traditional culture, scenic country roads and is an especially rewarding destination for those who enjoy fishing on ice and water.
Hiiumaa: The second largest island in Estonia and is part of the West Estonian archipelago, in the Baltic Sea.
Otepää: A well-known winter holiday destination for all those who love, skiing, skating and snowboarding.
The best time to visit Estonia and other Baltic countries, is in late spring or the summer, when the weather is at its warmest.
The official language is Estonian, but many people can also speak some English, Finnish and Russian.
Traditional Estonian cuisine is based on meat and potatoes, and on fish in coastal and lakeside areas, but now bears influence from many other cuisines.
The group of countries referred to as Baltic states are Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
For all the articles Odyssey Traveller has published for mature aged and senior travellers, click through on this link.
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