Walk Estonia, Latvia And Lithuania

Arrive in Tallinn, Estonian capital city. Situated on the coast, in the Gulf of Finland off the Baltic Sea, Tallinn is also a major port. Its 'Old Town' is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the city was a European Capital of Culture in 2011. For those arriving on time our Leader plans to meet you in the hotel reception at 7pm for the welcome meeting and for those that wish, there is the chance to go out for dinner. There are no activities planned today, so you are free to arrive in Tallinn at any time. If you would like to receive a complimentary airport transfer today, you'll need to arrive at Tallinn Airport (TLL) which is around 20 minutes' drive from the hotel. Should you miss the meeting, your leader will inform you of any essential information as soon as you catch up. The city is easy to explore on foot, if your flight arrives earlier in the day, perhaps you might choose to discover the medieval architecture strolling through the cobbled streets to the busy town square which is dominated by the 14th century Gothic Town Hall.

This morning we take a brief walking tour of Tallinn's 'Old Town', the colourful houses of the crooked streets reflect the German, Scandinavian and Russian periods of Tallinn's history. We'll walk through the quarter where merchants once traded and take in the historical and architectural highlights. We travel east to Estonia's largest and oldest national park, Lahemaa National Park. As well as its rich nature the park also celebrates Estonia's cultural heritage, encompassing ancient fishing villages and 17th and 18th century manor houses. Today we walk the 'Beaver Trail', discovering the diversity of the plant and animal life of the park and looking for beaver dams and dens along the Altja River Valley. If we are lucky we will see also see the beavers themselves amongst the trees or in the water. This walk ends in the 400 year-old fishing village of Altja. Later, after an optional lunch, we learn to bog walk in special bog shoes. Traditionally used by local villagers, these specially adapted clip on 'shoes' allow us to hike through this fascinating ecosystem. We stay overnight in the national park in a beautiful converted distillery set within landscaped gardens. Today's four kilometre walk along the Beaver Trail is expected to take around two hours, gently undulating and forested. The afternoon six kilometre bog walk is expected to take around three hours.

Today we cross the border into Latvia, and drive to Cesis in Gauja National Park (approx. 3.5 hours). This is Latvia's biggest park and is known as 'Latvian Switzerland' due to its rolling landscapes. The park includes the valleys of the Gauja River and its tributaries, and also over 500 historical features including hill forts, stone castles, churches, watermills and windmills. Cesis itself is a medieval town, over 800 years old, and its 13th century castle was the main stronghold of the Livonian knights who ruled most of Latvia and Estonia during medieval times. In the afternoon we make a walk in the park along a forested nature trail to Gauja River and Gauja Rocks, a famous local site. Today's five kilometre walk is expected to take around two hours. The terrain is slightly hilly and forested.