Things to do in Pärnu
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Ranna Café
Overlooking the beach, this handsome new three-storey café boasts several outdoor terraces and a laid-back ambience perfect for sipping cocktails at sunset.
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Jazz Café
A bit disappointing for jazz-lovers, this indoor-outdoor café still makes a lively spot for a drink. Live performances most Fridays.
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Red Tower
The main thoroughfare of the historic centre is Rüütli tänav, lined with splendid buildings dating back to the 17th century. Just off the main street is the Red Tower, the city's oldest building, which dates from the 15th century. Originally bigger, this was the southeast corner of the medieval town wall, of which nothing more remains. At one stage the tower was used as a prison. Today a small gallery is housed on the top floor, and a craft market fills the courtyard.
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Pärnu New Art Museum
The Pärnu New Art Museum, in the former Communist Party headquarters, is among the cultural highlights in Estonia, and it often features some of the country's most forward-thinking exhibitions. Founded by film maker Mark Soosaar, the centre also hosts an annual film festival. There's a café and art shop near the entrance, and a decapitated Lenin statue out back.
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Historic Centre
The oldest building in the central square, dating from the early 15th century, is the misnamed (it's actually white) and originally bigger Red Tower, once the corner of the medieval town wall. Two blocks west is a fine pair of 17th-century conjoined houses. One block further is the former Town Hall, a classical yellow and white edifice originally built in 1797.
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17th-century conjoined houses
On Pühavaimu tänav, is a pair of large 17th-century conjoined houses, a fascinating example of ambitious early home-renovation efforts. Originally separate residences belonging to a chemist and an eminent city councillor, the buildings received a neoclassicist face-lift in the 1840s before becoming a department store in 1877.
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Town Hall
The former Town Hall is a yellow and white classical edifice originally built in 1797 as the home of a rich merchant. The grey and white Jugendstil north wing with its little spire was added in 1911.
Across Nikolai from the main Town Hall building there's a half-timbered house dating from 1740.
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Trahter Postipoiss
One of Pärnu's new additions, this converted 17th-century postal building houses a delightful Russian tavern, with excellent Russian cuisine, a garrulous crowd (especially after a few vodka shots) and imperial portraits watching over the proceedings. The spacious patio opens during the summer.
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Café Grand
Pärnu's most stately dining room serves up delicately prepared Chateaubriand, rack of lamb and other favourites amid 1920s grandeur. The plush chairs in the bar and café make a cosy spot for coffee and crème brûlée.
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Pärnu Museum
Despite its modest size, the Pärnu Museum covers 11,000 years of regional history. Archaeological findings along with relics from the country's German, Livonian, Russian and even Soviet periods are on display.
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Kuursaal
This early-20th-century spa hall has been transformed into a spacious countrified beer hall with a large terrace at the back. An older mix of tourists and locals come for draft beer and occasional rock shows.
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Picadilly
This cosy wine bar has plush chairs you can sink into while you sample some of the vintages. Colourfully painted walls decked with local artwork and a small front patio add to the allure.
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Romantic Bar
Although the name is uninspiring, this glass-sided hotel bar has extraordinary views over the water, and we can't deny the appeal of the stylish loungelike interior or the patio outside.
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Sunset Club
In a grandiose building dating from 1939, this youthful club has an outdoor beach terrace and a sleek multifloor interior with plenty of cosy nooks when the dance floor gets crowded.
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Lydia Koidula Memorial Museum
The charming Lydia Koidula Memorial Museum stands on the north side of the river. Here you can learn about one of Estonia's great poets in the former school she attended.
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Water park
An upscale mud/spa experience can be had at Tervise Paradiis, which also boasts a sparkling new water park, with pools, slides, tubes and other slippery fun.
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Beach
The wide, sandy beach, and Ranna puiestee, the buildings along which date from the early 20th century, are among Pärnu's finest attractions.
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Elisabeth Church
On the corner of Nikolai and Kuninga is the baroque Lutheran Elisabeth Church, from the 1740s and named after the Russian empress of the time.
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City Bike
Offering summer cycling, walking, canoeing and horse riding excursions, City Bike is a professionally run outfit based in the Maritime Hotel.
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Club Tallinn
This summertime-only club is held in one section of Kuursaal. It's the city's hottest spot, with excellent DJs and an eager young crowd.
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Endla Theatre
Pärnu's best theatre stages a wide range of performances. It also houses an art gallery and an open-air café on the rooftop.
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Mõnus Margarita
This colourful Tex-Mex restaurant serves freshly prepared Mexican fare, with vegetarian options, and seductive strawberry margaritas.
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Ranna Park
Open in summer, Ranna Park, west of Seedri tänav, is a small amusement park with a Ferris wheel, bumper cars and bouncy rides.
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Väike Klaus
A casual, welcoming ambience prevails at this German-inspired pub; it's a popular meeting spot over drinks or billiards games.
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Steffani Pizzeria
A good choice for thin-crust and pan pizzas, particularly in summer when you can dine alfresco in the courtyard.
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