The Port-Shaped City: From Hanseatic Merchants to Cruise Tourists (Special Tour in English for Tallinn Maritime Days)
Sunday 12. July at 13:30 - 15:30
Cruise Terminal Gate (Kruiisivärav)
In cooperation with the Port of Tallinn, the Estonian Centre for Architecture now offers an excellent opportunity to discover the history and architecture of the port area, visit the award-winning and architecturally striking Cruise Terminal, hear about the development and future plans for Tallinn’s port district, and experience the berthing of a large vessel in the harbour from up close.
During the Tallinn Maritime Days, we will conduct more tours than usual at seaside sites, and this excursion is also at a discounted price for participants! (supported by the City of Tallinn).
Tallinn has always been a port city and a maritime city, although during the Soviet occupation, due to the closure of the city’s waterfront area, only few local residents were able to truly understand or experience this connection.
It was maritime trade, together with Tallinn’s membership in the Hanseatic League from the 13th century onwards, that laid the foundations for the city’s rise and growth. The port area has shaped Tallinn’s shoreline and has been in constant transformation, gradually pushing the waterfront further and further out to the sea.
The main defining elements of today’s port area were shaped in the early 19th century, when, among other developments, the northern pier was built in front of the harbour. By the first decades of the 20th century, the port had already acquired much of the form and layout that remains recognisable today.
The Second World War, however, destroyed a large part of Tallinn’s ports and harbour buildings, leaving only ruins of many once-impressive structures. Tallinn residents “rediscovered” the port area and the city-centre waterfront only around the time of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, when Tallinn hosted the Olympic sailing regatta and the construction of Linnahall created a “breakthrough” access to the sea for most of the people in Tallinn.
Today, the Port of Tallinn is making ever greater progress each year in developing the harbour area into a modern part of the urban environment. In the near future, several new noteworthy buildings will rise alongside the architectural gems already in place. During the tour, we will also introduce the plans and visions for the Old City Harbour Terminal A quarter.
The tour takes place on foot and lasts for 120 minutes, or 2 hours. The walking distance is approximately 2.5 km. As the tour also includes access to a closed port area — an indoor visit to the Cruise Terminal and the opportunity to observe the automatic mooring of a ship directly beside the quay — participants must register for the tour by name. Visitors’ personal identification codes must also be submitted before the tour (obligatory for port area access).
See here for detailed programme of Tallinn Maritime Days
Tours are available in Estonian, Russian and English.
Tours organised by the Estonian Centre for Architecture are carried out by the best professional guides in Estonia united by a common interest in architecture and its history.
Private tours to Tallinn port area and other exciting special tours to architectural pearls across Estonia are available in six languages. For more information, contact us at [email protected].
See the tours in Estonian here
Also, check out other tours and options provided by the Estonian Centre for Architecture
Cruise Terminal Gate (Kruiisivärav) • CQW6+MCX, Tallinn, Estonia
