Estonia Transport

Air
Tallinn International Airport is situated just two miles south east of the city centre; Tallinn’s airport is the major gateway to Estonia. There are direct flights every day between Tallinn and other major Scandinavian and Baltic cities such as: Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Riga, and Vilnius. There are also flights to the major European cities including London, Amsterdam and Paris as well as Prague, Warsaw, Moscow and Kiev.

Estonian Air is the national carrier of Estonia and is responsible for around 50 per cent of the flights here. The other major airlines serving Tallinn are SAS, Finnair, Lufthansa and Easyjet. It is also possible to fly by helicopter between Tallinn and Helsinki, with commercial services every hour.

The airport is fairly small, but there are reasonable facilities such as ATMs, food and drink options, shops and hire car firms.

There are many taxis at the airport, which is the most common method of arriving and departing the airport. There are no trains running directly to the airport although there is a local bus running from the airport to the city, via the old town, with frequent services throughout the day. There are also shuttle bus services to some of the major hotels and the city centre.

Rail
Travelling by train to Estonia is not the most common route. The main international train service is from Moscow, with a daily sleeper service run by the EVR Ekspress Company. There are no longer trains between Estonia and Latvia and travelling by train in Estonia tends to be fairly slow.

Bus
There are regular long distance bus services to Riga, Vilnius, St Petersburg, and Kaliningrad. Tallinn is served by Eurolines buses, which connect to many cities in Europe including Berlin, Hamburg, Moscow, Riga, Warsaw, as well as farther a field to places such as Paris and London. Tallinn’s main bus station (Tallinna Bussiterminal) is just a 10 minutes walk from the old town. 

Car
There are reasonable road routes here and driving is a good option. You will find direct routes along the Baltic coast into Latvia and Lithuania as well as east into Russia. However, there are few dual carriageways and this can make driving quite slow at times. The E67 is the main route south and this road only has a single lane in each direction. 

For Russia, the E20 is the main road heading east. There are future plans for a new multi-lane motorway to connect Tallinn with Latvia, Russia, and the European motorway network.

Sea
Arriving by sea is one of the most popular ways to arrive in Tallinn, with a number of different services providing ferries to Tallinn. The most common route is from Helsinki to Tallinn with three different companies running ferries; Ecker Line, Silja Line, and Tallink. There are several services a day and the journey time is just under 4 hours. There are also some faster services, with catamarans (Silja Line, Nordic Jet, and Tallink) and hydrofoils (Lindaline) taking under two hours. 

From Stockholm, there is a daily boat to Tallinn with a travel time of 11 hours and in the high season Silja line runs a service to Germany (Rostock) with a travel time of 21 hours.

Air
There are only two destinations served by domestic flights in Estonia, the country’s two main Islands; Saaremaa and Hiiumaa. Travel time is 45 minutes.

Rail
The rail service in Estonia is extensive, with most major cities connected. The service is however not the most efficient. There are services operated by the Edelaraudtee Company from Tallinn to Parnu, Tartu, Valga, Turi, Viljandi, Tapa, Narva and Orava.

There is a commuter rail service in Tallinn that runs from the main train station (Balti Jaam) and travels east to Aegviidu, and west to Pääsküla, Keila, Riisipere, Paldiski and Klooga.

Bus
Tallinn’s main bus station is small and has an old feel to it, however the services around the country are extensive and bus remains the major mode of transport. It is usually not necessary to purchase tickets in advance although some weekend services to popular destinations such as Parnu and Tartu can get crowded. 

There are regular buses to the major destinations with over 40 services from Tallinn to Tartu every day, starting at 06:00, with a similar number of buses going in the other direction. Total journey time is approximately 2 hours 30 minutes. There are equally frequent services to and from Parnu, with a journey time of 2 hours. 

The other main routes are between Tallinn and Vijandi, Rakvere, Kuressaare, Narva and Haapsalu.

Trams
Tallinn is the only city in Estonia with a tram service and its history dates back to the late 19th century. The service is fairly extensive and fares are reasonable, with a one-fare system. Tickets can be purchased in advance or you can pay the driver on boarding. All tickets must be validated by the machines on the vehicles.

Car
There are many roads in Estonia, although very few highways. Traffic tends to be light making driving a good option. Road signs tend to be fairly small and rarely lit which can make driving at night fairly difficult. Driving is on the right, with a minimum driving age of 18.

Taxi
There are plenty of taxis in Estonia’s major cities, however Tallinn’s taxi drivers in particular are notorious for over charging, both locals and tourists alike. The best way to avoid any taxi scams is to order one by phone from a reputable firm.