A Wintery Weekend in Kadriorg

Text Stewart Johnson
Photo Visit Estonia

Kadriorg is Tallinn’s famous park at the edge of the city, and provides a beautiful buffer for the traditional walk between downtown, and the Song Festival Grounds. Its centrepiece is the Swan Pond, and also features several garden districts, especially the Japanese Garden at the northeastern corner. This year the park will also have its own Christmas market, open this weekend from noon until 20:00 each day.

Traditional Estonian Christmas foods will be on sale by local vendors, as well as handicrafts and art. What sets this holiday-themed market apart from others in Estonia is that this one is not on the Town Hall Square of a city, surrounded by medieval architecture. There will also be music, and activities for the whole family.

The Orangery will also have an open-doors day on Saturday. The event will include a lecture at 12:30 on the history of Kadriorg Park and the Orangery. The portion of the lecture about the history of the Orangery will likely be rather short, as the building is brand new. Immediately following will be a musical interlude by Duo Lennak, and the lecture/music will repeat again at 14:00 if you can’t make it to the first one.

You should try to attend the first one, however, because also at 14:00 in the Orangery is a workshop on how to make a gorgeous holiday arrangement of flowers and other decorations for your Christmas dinner table. You only need to bring a vase, as all other materials and tools will be provided. Tickets are available here.

If you’re lucky, there will be fresh snow to light the paths, trails, and promenades of Kadriorg Park as you explore it among the wintery lighting installed in several places. It’s the perfect weekend in Tallinn.

To learn more about this and similar topics
Christmas Christmas Market Events in Tallinn Fair Kadriorg Kadrioru park Orangery Workshop