With 1.9km of its original city wall still standing, Tallinn boasts one of Europe’s best preserved Medieval fortifications together with 20 defensive towers. In fact, a large part of what gives Old Town its fairytale charm is the system of walls and towers that surrounds it.
Work on the town's defences first began in 1265, but the current outline of the wall dates to the 14th century. By its heyday in the 16th century, the wall was 2.4 km long, 14 to 16 metres high, up to three metres thick, and included 46 towers. Today 1.9 km of the wall and roughly half of the original towers still loom over Old Town, evoking images of heroic knights and damsels in distress.
The best places to see the wall from the outside are the Patkuli viewing platform on Toompea and Tornide väljak (Towers’ Square), a park area near the train station.
It's also possible to get a look at the wall from the inside. The portion of the wall that’s open to the public connects Nunna, Sauna and Kuldjala towers. Visitors can climb up and imagine what it felt like to guard the town against would-be invaders, but the wall is even more popular for its picturesque view of the red-tiled roofs of Old Town. Many of the Town Wall’s towers open to the public are great adventure for the smaller or teen visitors.
| Open/ Available |
2-6.01 Mon-Sun 11-17;
1.04-31.05 Fri-Wed 11-17;
1.06-31.08 Mon-Sun 11-19;
1.09-31.10 Fri-Wed 11-17;
1.11-31.03 Fri-Tue 11-16 |
| Ticket |
1.50 € |
| Child ticket |
0.75 € |
