Falstaff recommends 10 carefully selected hotels in Estonia for a gourmet holiday now, as spring in Estonia offers the best value for money in hospitality.
Until now, March and April have not been considered a good time to visit Estonia. These months mark a lazy time of awakening from winter, when nature is just beginning to emerge and people's lives move at the same slow pace as nature. But Estonia's hospitality has changed dramatically during the course of the recent years. Here you can find very special and personal places to stay, that are hard to find elsewhere. (The Igloo Hotel and Konteiner Hotel are described below.) Hotels that were once unimpressive are now coming to life. One of them is:
With a new name and new staff, the hotel, previously known as L'Embitu, has quickly become one of Tallinn's most sought-after properties. Located in the heart of the city centre, the hotel is particularly convenient for those wishing to visit the theatre or opera, go shopping or enjoy a delicious.
THE BEST RESTAURANTS IN ESTONIA
The hotel also offers its guests more than just a comfortable night's sleep. Every day at 5 o'clock there is a chocolate bar in the lobby bar. The wine bar with wine dispensers is open all day long. Relax in the spa area with several saunas and a large swimming pool. The hotel has its own small courtyard where you can sit and enjoy the fresh air when the weather is nice.
The hotel rooms are all slightly different. Each room has a window overlooking Lembitu Street or the beautifully landscaped courtyard. Depending on the purpose of your trip, you can choose the right room category. For a simple holiday, choose a superior room with balcony (we recommend room 423). If you are travelling on business, an Executive room is a good choice (for example, 317 is a spacious room with a comfortable work area and private sauna). If you want to impress your significant other romantically, try the Deluxe Suite (no. 502).
A very exclusive view of the hotel's immediate surroundings can be enjoyed from the hotel's restaurant, the Roof, where you can observe history meeting modernity. The mood of the view changes with the time of day and the weather. The restaurant serves Estonian-style Mediterranean cuisine in oversized portions.
An igloo is an exotic dwelling, wherever it is. Finding an entire igloo park in the fast-growing and hip Noblessner district, close to Tallinn's city centre, is sure to surprise anyone. Noblessner in Tallinn stands out because everything built on the site of a former submarine factory has been carefully thought out and planned in advance.
The apartments here, overlooking the sea and the neighbourhood's own marina, are among the most expensive in the city. Tallinn's finest and most personal restaurants are also located here. There is no hotel in the area. If you don't live here but want to spend the night, you'll be an igloo resident. And a very happy one the next morning.
Even for someone who can't afford to sacrifice comfort, the Igloo is very comfortable. It's warm enough when it's cold and cool enough when it's warm. Space is limited, but this is more of an exoticism than a drawback.
The endless sea begins right in front of the igloos. Just beyond the park, modern apartment blocks rise up. It all looks surreal in the evening darkness. Directly in front of you there is nothing. Directly behind you is a selection of some of Tallinn's most distinctive restaurants.
The closest one to the Igloo Park is Lore Bistroo. For an igloo dinner it is the best place to go. Whether there are two or more of you, Lore offers a communal table and food sharing, as well as one of the best wine lists in Tallinn. The Lore dinner experience can be booked with an overnight stay in an igloo.
The igloo experience will seem exotic and appealing even if you don't know much about igloos. The option of sleeping in a container is sure to provoke the opposite reaction. But then again, you don't really have any idea until you've had a night's sleep.
Tallinn's Telliskivi Creative City is located on the site of a former railway car repair factory. A popular attraction for residents and visitors alike, the campus has changed the way of life in Tallinn. Peering through the hotel window, it looks like a warehouse full of containers. That's right, except that each container is a hotel room.
Each room is 14 square metres in size. Comfortable enough for a good night's sleep. For other activities, there's an impressive interior space, from a kitchen where you can cook your own meals to lounges and a bar area.
Unlike an ordinary hotel stay, a night at Hotel Hektor Conteiner is long remembered.
