Estonian Open Air Museum: Step into the pages of a history book

Visiting the Estonian Open Air Museum is like travelling back in time. Located on the outskirts of Tallinn, the museum gives you an insight into the daily life of families with different wealth and skills. Here, you can truly experience how people used to live in Estonia.

Nestled in the middle of a picturesque forest by the sea just 15 minutes from Tallinn’s Old Town (a UNESCO World Heritage site), you find the Estonian Open Air Museum. Here, you can breathe in the fresh air, while feeling as though you are transported into the pages of a history book.

“At the Estonian Open Air Museum, you are travelling back in time to a small village where, besides farmhouses, you will find a church, a roadside tavern, a schoolhouse, mills, a fire station, a village shop, and fishing net sheds by the sea,” says Tõnis Tamm, marketing specialist at the museum.

The museum village is arranged to represent different regions: Western Estonia, Northern Estonia, Southern Estonia, and the Estonian islands. The buildings have been sourced from all over Estonia and have been rebuilt authentically. Much emphasis is given to recreating historical landscapes and the preservation of heritage plants. The exhibition also includes a Soviet-era collective farm apartment building, which was awarded Best Permanent Exhibition in 2021.

Experience Estonian traditions

“Depending on season and weather, you can ride a horse-drawn carriage or a sleigh, or discover the museum on a bicycle or a push sled,” says Tamm. In summer, a one-kilometre adventure trail with plenty of hands-on activities is open to kids and they can even see animals at the different farms. Visitors can also enjoy traditional Estonian homecooked food in the Kolu Inn. And the Lau village shops sell goods from the 1930s, from sweets to garden tools.

All buildings are open during summer and, in most of them, visitors are welcomed by a farmer or a housewife who, in addition to telling exciting stories, introduce visitors to the work and activities on the farm. The museum truly is a brilliant way to experience the life and traditions of different parts of Estonia.

Web: www.evm.ee/en
Facebook: Eesti Vabaõhumuuseum / Estonian Open Air Museum
Instagram: @eestivabaohumuuseum