Altja
Cute fishing village
Occupying a shoreside site towards the eastern end of Lahemaa National Park is Altja, a charming fishing village with traditional timber buildings.
Altja’s main landmark is an enormous wooden swing at the eastern end of the village. Before World War II, every Estonian village would have had one of these: they provided a summer-evening social focus where local youth would gather in the days before bus shelters were invented. Beyond the swing there’s a short stretch of sandy beach and a group of fishermen’s cottages and net sheds, many sporting restored thatched roofs.