Arrival, Information and City Transport
Tallinn's international train station is the Balti jaam at Toompuiestee 35, just northwest of the Old Town, while the city's bus terminal ( Autobussijaam ) is at Lastekodu 46, a couple of kilometres southeast of the centre - trams #2 and #4 run from nearby Tartu mnt. to Viru valjak, right on the eastern fringes of the old town. For those coming in by sea the passenger port ( Reisisadam ) is just northeast of the centre at the end of Sadama. The airport ( Lennujaam ) is 3km southeast of the city centre and linked to Viru valjak by bus #2 (every 20-30min, journey time 10min; 15EEK). Tallinn's tourist office at Raekoja Plats 10 (April-Oct Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat & Sun 10am-4pm, Nov-March Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 10am-4pm; tel 2/645 7777, www.tallinn.ee ) sells various maps and city guides and has limited information about other destinations in Estonia. You can also buy a Tallinn Card here, which entitles you to unlimited use of public transport, entrance to museums, a tour of the city, discounts on car rental and savings in some shops and cafes. A 24-hour card costs 195EEK, a 48-hour one 270EEK, and a 72-hour one 325EEK - it's worth doing a few sums to work out if a card will actually give any savings on your planned itinerary. Good sources of up-to-the-minute listings and what's on in the city are Tallinn This Week (free) and the very good City Paper (29EEK; www.BalticsWorldwide.com ), available from most newsstands, which also contains information about Riga and Vilnius. The excellent Tallinn In Your Pocket city guide (19EEK; www.inyourpocket.com ) is available from shops and hotels. Though most of Tallinn's sights can be covered on foot, the city has an extensive tram , bus and trolleybus network should you need to travel further afield. Services are frequent and cheap, though usually crowded, with tickets ( talongid ) common to all three systems available from kiosks near stops for 10EEK or from the driver for 15EEK. Tickets should be validated using the on-board punches. Taxis are reasonably cheap (around 10EEK per km, slightly more after 10pm) though as a foreigner you may occasionally find your meter running faster than it should. Try to ensure that you're not charged the evening rate during the day. Most companies have a minimum charge of 25EEK, but a taxi from one point in the city centre to another should never exceed 50EEK.
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