Western Estonia
Sightseeing tour to the western part of Estonia
This was a corporate trip by bus together with work colleagues to the Estonian islands. It was a short weekend sightseeing tour to western Estonia to relax, have some fun and look around. Our destination was Saaremaa island, with a short stop in the summer capital of Estonia – town Parnu.
The border between Latvia and Estonia
You may cross the border between Latvia and Estonia using main road E67. However, there is an interesting alternative – turn left just before the Estonian border to the small town Latvian town of Ainazi. Driving through the town you may be surprised that after a short period, you will see a road sign showing that you are passing the state border.
Just before the border, there is a small parking place. If you stop there, you can go for a short walk to the old mole (located in Latvia just a few hundred metres from the Estonian border) and enjoy the beautiful landscape.
Sea resort Parnu
The next stop we made was in Parnu (to be honest, nothing was interesting before that point except some recreation areas near the beach of Riga Gulf, still far away from E67). It was the end of the weekend as well as the end of the summer; the town was very quiet.
Most cafes and restaurants are closed or without visitors.
Parnu town itself is quite nice, especially the old part of it – worth wandering around a bit. If you go from Riga (Latvia) to Tallinn (Estonia), this is a good place to take a short break and enjoy some coffee before driving another 130 kilometres (80 miles) to reach Tallinn. We did the same before continuing our trip to the Estonian islands.
Estonian islands
Saaremaa is the biggest Estonian island and there is regular ferry traffic between the mainland and the island. The ferry terminal is in the small village of Virtsu and arrives in Kuivastu on Muhu island (Muhu island is located between the mainland and Saaremaa island; to reach Saaremaa you should cross Muhu at first).
The journey lasts about 25 minutes – just enough to have some beer and snacks available on the board of the ferry. Here is the ferry timetable for this and another line connecting the Estonian mainland with the islands. In general, during business hours ferry departs every 35 minutes, two boats are operational on this route ships are about 97 metres long, 18 metres wide, draft of 4 m). Saaremaa island forms the main barrier between the Gulf of Riga and the Baltic Sea.
The highest point of the island is 54 metres above sea level. Old sagas talk about conflicts between islanders and Vikings. Saaremaa was among the wealthiest counties of ancient Estonia and the home of Estonian pirates sometimes called the Eastern Vikings. Nowadays Saaremaa is known as a good recreation place with unique nature and a lot of sights. It has retained its uniqueness due to its location and insulation.
The cultural heritage of Muhu island
After arrival in Kuivastu on Muhu island you can find Koguva village, which is located near Kuivastu – Kuressaare road. Koguva is the best-preserved village of the 19th century in Estonia. Some of the buildings date even from the 18th century. You can observe the traditional living style of Estonians as it was a long time ago – living and farmhouses, storehouses, saunas, barns and summer kitchens.
Saaremaa sightseeing
Saaremaa has an area of 2700 square kilometres (about 1050 square miles) and its population is about 35 thousand people. In the villages, there are still stone fences and houses with thatched roofs. The symbols of Saaremaa are windmills, junipers and home-brewed beer. An interesting site on the island is the Kaali meteorite craters formed after an accident approximately 650 – 700 BC (explored in 1937).
The largest of the craters measures 110 metres in diameter, the mass of meteorites was from 20 to 80 tonnes. The main crater has a depth of about 22 metres. If driving in the right direction you can easily find this site following road signs (it is located 18 kilometres from Kuressaare towards Kuivastu).
Capital of Saaremaa – Kuressaare
The last stop of our trip to the Estonian islands was Kuresaare. There is only one town on Saaremaa island, which is Kuressaare – the capital of the island. The most important, and I would say the most exciting sight of Kuressaare, is the bishop's castle.
The castle was built in the late 14th century, the basic plan of the building is a square with the length of each side about 43 metres. Among the medieval castles in the Baltic countries, this is the one that has survived very well.
A few words about Saaremaa hotels. Most of them are comfortable Spa hotels built very recently. You can expect to have access to the pool, sauna, bar and other facilities. However, be aware that in early autumn there may not be heating operating in rooms and walls are extremely thin to both keep the rooms warm and silent.