If you know someone in Finland who already has everything, there is one thing they are probably missing: a free weekend. Tallinn is about two hours from Helsinki by ferry, so gifting a trip does not mean counting holiday days or queueing at airports. Ferry on Friday evening, Saturday in the spa and the Old Town, home on Sunday.
In our family we give trips. Usually away from Estonia, not to Tallinn, but the idea is the same: a present nobody has to find shelf space for.
Below is everything you need: how to package a trip as a gift, which spa hotels are worth it, where to buy restaurant and experience vouchers, and what to do on different budgets. All prices were checked in early November 2026.
First: gift a date or gift freedom?
This is the big decision. A package with fixed dates (ferry and hotel for a set weekend) makes a lovely surprise, but if the person has a birthday party or a work shift that day, the gift becomes a problem. A gift card gives freedom to choose, but it expires and it can easily be forgotten in a drawer.
My advice: give a gift card and add a written plan. Something like “last weekend of January, Kalev Spa, dinner at Olde Hansa”. Then they get both the freedom and the idea.
Ferry gift cards and packages
The ferry is the backbone of this gift. You do not need a plane here: flying from Helsinki to Tallinn with both airports takes longer than the ferry from port to port. Coming from further away? Search flights to Helsinki or Tallinn on Kiwi.com.
Tallink Silja gift card
You can buy a Tallink gift card online for 10, 50 or 100 euros, and at customer service and harbour terminals also for 5 and 20 euros. It covers ferry tickets, cabins, meal packages, a car and also hotel packages that include the crossing. The expiry date is printed on the card and the whole trip has to be completed by that date, not just booked.
An important detail: the Tallink ferry gift card cannot be used to book directly on the Tallink Hotels website or to pay on board. If you want to gift a night in a Tallink hotel, buy either a ferry and hotel package or a separate Tallink Hotels gift card (see below).
Viking Line-gift card
You choose the amount of a Viking Line-gift card yourself and it is valid for 24 months from purchase. That is twice as long as the one year on an Eckerö Line card, which makes it a good pick for someone who plans slowly. You can order and pay for it online or buy it at Viking Line sales points, and it works at the harbours, travel agencies and on board. No refunds and no extensions.
Eckerö Line-gift card
Eckerö Line sells gift cards worth 50, 100, 150 and 200 euros. The card arrives by email, so you can print it yourself and put it in an envelope. It is valid for one year from the purchase date and cannot be used on board or swapped for cash.
Ferry and hotel as a package
All three companies sell Tallinn hotel packages. On 4 November 2026 the Eckerö Line site listed, for example, Hestia Hotel Seaport from 62 €, Metropol Spa from 97 €, Kalev Spa from 108 € and Hotel Telegraaf from 288 €. The price is for a double room and ferry tickets can be added more cheaply through the package. Whether breakfast is included shows up when you pick a specific hotel. Viking Line also has Tallinn hotel packages with separate member prices for Viking Club members; check the current price on the vikingline.fi hotel package page.
If you just want to compare prices and buy tickets yourself, see Helsinki and Tallinn ferries here.
4 spa hotels to gift in Tallinn
For Finns, a spa weekend in Tallinn is almost a tradition. These four are close to the harbour or the Old Town, so no car is needed.
Tallink Spa & Conference Hotel: closest to the harbour
Sadama 11a, literally next to the harbour. The Aqua Spa has a Finnish sauna, steam sauna, salt sauna and hammam, a jacuzzi, an indoor pool and a seasonal outdoor pool. Open daily from 8 to 22.
The Tallink Hotels online shop sells ready-made-gift cards. The romance package at Tallink City Hotel costs from 264 € (Deluxe room) and 314 € (suite) and includes sparkling wine, a three-course dinner, breakfast and the spa. A two-night Spa Mini-Break with massages costs from 440 €. The Tallink Hotels money gift card is 50 €. All of these are valid for only 6 months, so a Christmas gift has to be used by early June.
See Tallink Spa & Conference Hotel on Booking.com
Kalev Spa Hotel & Waterpark: for someone who loves to swim
Aia 18, on the edge of the Old Town. Kalev has a 50-metre pool, four water slides, several saunas and an adults-only Sauna Oasis. It suits someone who actually wants to swim, not just sit in a hot tub.
If a full hotel night is over budget, you can gift just the water park: 3 hours costs 23 €, 44 € for two and a day pass 26 €. Kalev Spa gift cards are valid for up to 6 months.
See Kalev Spa Hotel on Booking.com
Metropol Spa Hotel: in the Rotermann Quarter
Roseni 9, Rotermann Quarter, a short walk from the harbour. All hotel guests get free use of the spa: a pool, four jacuzzis and saunas. A good choice for a couple who want a spa but not a water park full of kids.
See Metropol Spa Hotel on Booking.com
Hotel Telegraaf: when you really want to spoil someone
Vene 9, a five-star hotel in an 1878 building, 70 metres from Town Hall Square. The spa has a 3 × 10 metre pool, a jacuzzi, a sauna and a steam room. Outside guests can only get into the spa by booking a treatment.
A cheaper way to gift Telegraaf is the Day Spa “Heavenly Moment”: 2 hours of sauna and pool, a welcome drink and a 30-minute treatment for 69 € per person or 138 € for two.
See Hotel Telegraaf on Booking.com
If the spa does not matter and you are simply gifting the ferry and a bed, Hestia Hotel Seaport is right next to Terminal D. See Hestia Seaport on Booking.com
A gourmet evening: restaurant gift cards
Olde Hansa
Vana turg 1, the medieval restaurant Finns have known for years. The Olde Hansa online shop sells e-gift cards worth 25, 50, 100, 150 or 200 euros, sent by email. There are also ready-made feasts for two: the “Master Chef’s Grand Feast” at 136 € and the “Royal Court Feast” at 240 €. The card works in both the restaurant and the shop. The validity is not stated on the shop page, so ask info@shoppe.ee before you buy.
Lore, UMA and Lee
The LP Hospitality gift card works in three Tallinn restaurants: Lore Bistro, UMA and Lee Brasserie. It comes in 50 € or 100 €, plus a 130 € experience card with a six-course tasting menu for two. Valid for one year, the digital card arrives by email straight away. Note that it has to be used in one go; any balance is not carried over.
Rataskaevu 16
The hardest table to book in the Old Town. Mains cost 16.40 to 31.80 €. The restaurant website does not mention a gift card, so email info@rataskaevu16.ee first and ask whether they sell one. If not, a booked table and a promise that the bill is yours is a fine gift too.
I have eaten there. Very good food and the meat is always excellent.
Fotografiska
Telliskivi 60a-8. The Fotografiska gift card (25, 50 or 100 €) works on site at the exhibitions, the café and the restaurant, but not in the online shop. A good gift for someone who wants photography and a proper meal in one day.
Experiences and museums
Guided Old Town tour
If the person has only ever been to Tallinn for the liquor stores, a guided Old Town tour is a good start. This one goes past the Town Hall, St Nicholas’ Church and Kiek in de Kök and is very well rated on GetYourGuide.
Food tour
A three-hour food and history tour through the Old Town, the Balti Jaam Market and Telliskivi, about seven stops with local food and drinks. It suits someone who wants to eat well but does not want to pick just one restaurant.
TV Tower
A TV Tower ticket costs 18 € online, a family ticket 36 €. For the adventurous there is the Edgewalk, a walk on the outer ledge at 175 metres, 41 to 45 €.
Museum Card
If the person visits Estonia often, the Estonian Museum Card is the smartest gift. It costs 75 €, is valid for 12 months and opens the door to more than 130 museums. You can send it by email or buy a physical gift envelope. The year starts from the first museum visit (at the latest on day 180 after purchase). The Finnish Museokortti does not work in Estonia; we wrote about that separately in Finnish: Museokortti Tallinnassa.
For comparison: a single adult ticket to the Seaplane Harbour is 22 €, so the card pays for itself after four visits like that.
If the Museum Card is too big a gift, give just the Seaplane Harbour: Seaplane Harbour tickets on Tiqets. The TV Tower ticket is in the same place: TV Tower on Tiqets.
When a Finn comes to Tallinn for the first time, I send them to the Seaplane Harbour.
A day trip as a gift
The simplest and cheapest option: a return day ticket on a Tallink ferry, which gives up to 9.5 hours in Tallinn.
Christmas market: if you gift the trip before Christmas
In 2026 the Tallinn Christmas market on Town Hall Square is open from 20 November to 6 January 2027, daily from 10 to 20. Hot drinks are sold until 22, on Fridays and Saturdays until 23. The market opens and the tree is lit on Friday 20 November at 18. Since the market stays open after Christmas, it also works if the gift is opened on 24 December and the trip happens over New Year. All dates and prices are in our Christmas market guide.
My tip is to go to the Christmas market at the weekend.
Gifts by budget
Up to 30 €
- TV Tower ticket 18 €
- Kalev Spa water park 3 hours 23 €
- Olde Hansa e-gift card 25 €
- Tallink ferry gift card 10 to 100 €
30 to 100 €
- Kalev Spa water park for two 44 €
- Telegraaf Day Spa 69 €
- Estonian Museum Card 75 €
- Eckerö Line-gift card 50 or 100 €
- Lore, UMA and Lee-gift card 50 or 100 €
100 to 300 €
- Six-course tasting menu for two 130 €
- Olde Hansa feast for two 136 € or 240 €
- Telegraaf Day Spa for two 138 €
- Tallink City Hotel romance package from 264 €
- Ferry and spa hotel as an Eckerö package, hotel part from 97 €
Over 300 €
- Romance package in a suite 314 €
- Spa Mini-Break for two-nights from 440 €
- Hotel Telegraaf double room as an Eckerö package from 288 €
Practical: validity, weekends and changing tickets
Validity varies a lot. Viking Line 24 months, Eckerö Line 1 year, Lore, UMA and Lee 1 year, Tallink Hotels and Kalev Spa only 6 months. The expiry date of the Tallink ferry gift card is printed on the card itself. Write the validity on the card or envelope yourself, in big letters.
When to go. January to March is the quiet season in Tallinn and the spas are at their best. Over Christmas (24 to 26 December) many museums are closed, so check our Christmas in Tallinn guide first.
Changing ferry tickets. On Tallink’s Helsinki and Tallinn route, changing a ticket is free if you do it at least 7 days before departure. After that a change costs 10 € without extra cover. Without cover, a cancellation costs 10 €, from six days to 48 hours before departure another 20 % of the fare, and in the last 48 hours there is no refund. FleksiBron cover costs 6 € per adult and can only be bought at the time of booking. With it, changes are free even in the last week and a cancellation refunds the full fare. Eckerö Line lets you move a ferry ticket booked directly with Eckerö for free up to 24 hours before departure; package trips and special offers have stricter terms. Viking Line terms depend on the ticket type, so read them before you confirm the booking.
Travel insurance. If the person has no annual travel insurance, you can buy one from Heymondo, with 5 % off for our readers.
How to hand it over. Most cards arrive by email. Print them and put them in an envelope with a small plan: ferry, hotel, one restaurant, one museum.
My own trick: once I found an old map at a flea market for a couple of euros and wrapped the gift in it. Another time I printed a vintage map myself and tucked the-gift cards inside.
No flea market nearby? Vintage map wrapping paper does the same job: see map wrapping paper on Amazon.
Frequently asked questions
Only if the hotel is part of a package that includes the crossing. It cannot be used when booking directly on the Tallink Hotels website.
Of the officially stated validity periods, Viking Line has the longest: 24 months from purchase. The Eckerö Line card is valid for one year. Tallink does not publish the length on its site; the expiry date is on the card.
No. Estonia has its own Museum Card, which costs 75 € and is valid for 12 months.
Yes, Tallink Hotels and Kalev Spa cards are valid for 6 months. A card received in December has to be used by June.
Yes, in 2026 the Tallinn Christmas market is open until 6 January 2027.
No. The ferry takes about two hours and leaves from the city centre harbour; with a flight you lose more time at the airports.
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