Iconic Capitals and Towns of the Baltic

Located on the southern coast of Finland, Helsinki gives you a modern city experience with historic roots. Walk through the city center where neoclassical buildings stand alongside contemporary architecture. Visit the Kallio district to find local shops, cafés, and restaurants serving Finnish dishes such as graavilohi, marinated salmon. Head to Keskuspuisto park near the center to relax in a quiet green space away from the busy streets.

Opening onto the Baltic Sea in northern Estonia, Tallinn gives you a well-preserved medieval city with strong historic character. Walk through narrow streets in the Old Town where the Gothic Town Hall, built in 1404, still stands. Visit key landmarks such as Kiek in de Kök tower, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, and Toompea Castle to see layers of the city’s past. Explore the UNESCO-listed Old Town, known for its intact medieval layout and architecture.

Included Excursion
Tallinn and Folklore
Duration : 3h30
You explore Tallinn’s UNESCO-listed Old Town, starting from the pier with a coach drive around the medieval city walls. Continue into the Upper Town and walk through cobbled streets, watch-towers, and spires. Visit the exterior of Toompea Castle, now home to Estonia’s parliament, and view the Russian Orthodox Church built in 1900.

Descend to the Lower Town through historic streets and enter a cultural venue where you experience an Estonian folk show. Resume walking past key sites such as the apothecary from 1422, Great Guild House, Holy Ghost Church, and Gothic Town Hall (exterior). Finish with free time before returning to the pier.
This excursion includes about 4 km of walking on cobblestones with steps and uneven paths. Wear comfortable footwear and modest clothing for church entry. Access may vary on Sundays due to services. Not suitable if you have difficulty walking.

The capital of Sweden occupies an archipelago in the east of the country at the junction of Mälar Lake and the Baltic sea. In Gamla stan, meaning “old town” in Swedish, you can stroll at your leisure in picturesque medieval streets until you reach the majestic Royal Palace. On the green island of Djurgården, you can visit several very different kinds of cultural centers: the Vasa museum is dedicated to a 17th century three-mast, the ecomuseum of Skansen presents traditional customs, and the ABBA museum is dedicated to the legendary pop group. For a fantastic, all-encompassing view of Stockholm, you can take a ride in SkyView, a glass-encased sphere gondola that takes you to the top of the world’s largest building, the Ericsson Globe, a Stockholm landmark.

This old Hanseatic city lies to the west coast of Gotland, a Swedish island in the Baltic sea. Pass through the spectacular Visby fortifications and visit the old town, a UNESCO World Heritage site. You’ll discover the grand Visby homes of rich merchants as well as the lovely low wooden houses in the little cobbled streets. Don’t miss Saint Mary’s cathedral with its octagonal steeples, as well as Powder tower along the fortifications. Make sure you stop over in one of the rose-adorned cafés; indeed roses abound in this town where you can taste one of the island’s specialities, namely saffron pancakes with red fruit.

This ravishing city on the Baltic sea is nicknamed “the golden door of Poland”, and you’ll understand why when you see its beautiful Hanseatic architecture. You’ll be charmed by the moldings and gables that enhance the colorful façades of the houses. Along the Vistula Quays, you can take a pleasant stroll among the crafts shops. In elegant Mariacka street, the amber jewelers will most certainly tempt you into their boutiques. You can visit the church of Saint-Mary and its astronomic clock. Not far, the majestic Long Market square offers the famous Artus Court and the rich Gdansk History Museum.

In the very heart of the Baltic Sea, in the Ertholmene archipelago, the small island of Christiansoe – less than 0,5 km2 (barely 0,3 square miles) – awaits you. Thanks to its geographic form, which constitutes a natural harbor with the island of Frederikso, it has been used as such for more than a thousand years. Pirates and fishermen succeeded one another here before the construction of its fortress, built between the 17th and 18th centuries, in the time of the Danish-Swedish wars. Visiting Christiansoe, you see the shaping of great history, the re-emergence of the rivalries and alliances that took place in the Baltic Sea. Today, this peaceful island offers you wild and preserved nature. A natural reserve since 1926, it is home in particular to a very large population of nesting and migrating birds that find food and tranquility here.

Connected to the far eastern side of Sealand island, a few kilometers away from the Swedish coasts, Copenhagen offers you the high colour of Scandinavian capitals. You can discover the city's riches that weaves through the canal networks through the historical districts of Christiansborg and Nyhavn. Many palaces provide an apercu of Danish history. For eating, you can try out the smorrebrod, traditional danish sandwiches made with ham, cheese or smoked fish.