Doubts - Estonia, Latvia and Lituania

1

Yes of course you can enjoy in winter. They look beautiful in snow, and everything esle keeps going.

Just don't plan sunbathnig on the beach. Oh -and if you likem skiing, forget it, the Baltics are flat as a pancake.

Andrew Smith

2

Hi Alex!

I absolutely agree with Andrew! If you are prepared to the cold weather you
will surely enjoy some great days in the Baltics.
The cultural and nightlife of the capitals has improved extremely, you
wont get bored at all and people are really friendly and English is
more common than in other Eastern European countries.
I have not been to the Lithuanian coast in winter, in summer it is
a must, but I am pretty sure that the cold season is unique there,
too.

3

Estonia is best enjoyed in the summer, so I hear, though I've not been there during the winter so I can't personally draw comparisons... but I've got a few friends out there and this is what they say:

Winter in estonia can get a little bit depressing at times, especially when its too cold to go out (its common for the weather to go 30 below), but it's beautiful nonetheless, and the sunsets are especially eccentuated during the cold months...

Some of the nightclubs or pub venues become more friendly during the winter months due to the drop in annoying tourists who clog up the city during the summer, and the cold weather seems to bring out the talkative side in many estonians!

well, whatever they say, I certainly enjoyed my time in estonia, and I certainly reccomend a visit to the Hell Hunt bar in Tallin (and if subversive underground rock music is your thing then theres a really cool bunker-esque pub just down the road from there!)
Its really an amazing place! and I'm not even going to start talking about the beautiful women! hehe...

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You are not a warrior, you are a beginner!

4

I was in Estonia in January 2007 and it was surprisingly mild for the time of year. I was there for 6 days and the first three the temperature was over freezing during the day. The last three it snowed but still only got to about -5 degrees C at night. However, you always have to be prepared that it can suddenly get much colder. It also wasn't as dark during the day as I expected - it got light at about 8.30am and dark at about 3.30pm. I really enjoyed my time there, there also weren't too many tourists around at that time of year.

LL

5

Estonia no thanks
see above

6

Like #4, we went in winter to Tallinn. Absolutely fantastic - even though I'm from the north of England it was great to see "real" snow again.

I know someone who went to Tallinn in summer and it was packed with people from cruise ships and very busy - go in winter and it's nice and quiet but yep, cold.

#3 is right about Hell Hunt bar - a great place to get warm, have lunch with a glass of wine or beer.

Just layer up before you go outside... oh, and make sure you have a hat.

I want to come back as an egg - either getting smashed or getting laid.

7

Won't have to fight with the tourists in old town :)

It will get dark early!!

You'll do fine unless you get snow/ice. I've been in Vilnius with about 4 inches of ice and while it was nice to look at...walking and getting around was another story.

8

in addition to HappyCrusader's addition to my point on Hell hunt breath, if you do pop in, I reccomend the cheese and beer deal they have!

you get a massive platter of cheese which compliments the rugged taste of their beer! Very cool!

and if you're not a beer drinker, well, you NEED to try some of the fruit ciders!

Just don't order a snakebite & black.... I made that mistake on my first day out there and recieved a litre glass half filled with pear cider, half filled with hoegarden and topped off with a quadruple shot of black vodka!

oh, worth a mention, the vodka in estonia verges around 80% as opposed to the weak stuff in the civilized world :P

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You are not a warrior, you are a beginner!

9

To anyone who is thinking about touring estonia and latvia. just doen it and its great, hotter than the uk!! (well anywhere has to be dryer than the uk). One place we found was a pub/guesthous which was very popular with bikers and the Fins/Swedes. Alexandras guesthouse in Parnu its well clean , satff very good and the breakfast is just help yourself!. meals are great. and very cheap. it is well reccomended., any info just ask away