Aparaaditehas Festival in Tartu

Text Stewart Johnson
Photo Madli Viigimaa / City of Tartu

Housed in an old, Soviet-era complex, Aparaaditehas, as it is known today, is a cultural hub for Tartu, and Southern Estonia in general. Art galleries, restaurants, cafés, premises for workshops, and much more fill the old buildings. For ten years now at the end of August, the Aparaaditehas Festival has taken place here, and this year it is 28–30 August.

Entrance is free for all, and visitors can visit all the various galleries, attend lectures and workshops, and even enjoy a dance performance on the rooftop. The festival is not limited to the premises, however. The whole district around Kastani and Filosoofi Streets will come alive, offering tours to visitors, as well as the chance to view first-hand the relatively new and award-winning pedestrian tunnels under the train tracks.

There will also be several events and activities for children, sports events, a fair and market, and food, food, food! You will not go away from the Aparaaditehas Festival hungry.

The complete programme is available in English here.

The premises of Aparaaditehas had their heyday in the 1970s, when approximately 1500 people were employed there. They could enjoy their own wellness centre, which naturally included a sauna. The factories produced refrigeration equipment, as well as submarine parts. To guard this secret, they also produced umbrellas, but the umbrellas didn’t work properly, as it was just a guise. Unquestionably an interesting place to check out next weekend!

To learn more about this and similar topics
Aparaaditehas Events In Tartu Fair Festival Food market