Tallinn

The city of Tallinn, formerly known as Reval, is the capital and principal seaport of the Republic of Estonia. It is located on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

Historically, the city has been attacked, sacked, razed and pillaged on numerous occasions. It was the centre of the mediaeval salt-trade on which it grew rich and prosperous.

In addition to the native Estonian language (which is of the Finno-Ugric group, closely related to the Finnish language), both Russian and English are widely spoken in the city.

Although extensively bombed during the latter stages of World War II, much of the mediaeval old town still retains its charm.

The population is about 400,400 (2000).

On May 25, 2002, the 47th Eurovision Song Contest took place in Tallinn.

Transport

Tallinn is served by an airport approximately 5 kilometres from the city centre.

A ferry service taking approximately 2 hours connects Tallinn to Helsinki in Finland, as does a recently initiated helicopter service, vaunted as being the "fastest capital to capital link in the world" (at 189 Euros one way it certainly is not the cheapest, although more modestly priced advance bookings are available).