The laid-back, unindustrialized town of Rakvere lies just outside the southeastern border of the Lahemaa National Park, just off the Tallinn–Narva highway.

The town’s dominant feature is a long, grassy ridge topped by the sombre grey ruins of Rakvere Castle (Rakvere linnus), built by the Danes in 1220 and expanded by the Livonian Order when they took over in 1346. A restored tower contains a display of archeological oddments, and recreations of medieval life including a torture chamber, an alchemist’s laboratory and a “red lantern street” featuring houses of ill repute. You can also walk a section of the battlements.

Just north of the castle is an enormous, golden-horned statue of an aurochs (a now-extinct bison-like creature) placed here in 2002 in honour of the beasts that long ago roamed the plains below.

Downhill from the castle, Pikk is the most atmospheric of Rakvere’s streets, with a largely low-rise jumble of pre-World War I buildings. It is here that the Rakvere Citizens’ House Museum (Rakvere linnakodaniku majamuuseum) preserves a neat nineteenth-century interior, complete with a welcoming samovar on the sideboard, and all sorts of charming period crockery.

Practical Info

Getting there: Rakvere is 100km east of Tallinn, just off the main road to Narva. There are regular buses from Tallinn bus station.

Rakvere Castle: January – February & November Saturday – Sunday 10:00 - 16:00; March Friday – Sunday 10:00 - 16:00; April, May, September & October Wednesday – Sunday: 10:00 - 16:00; June - August Tuesday – Sunday 10:00 - 18:00. Tickets: €11

Rakvere Citizens’ House Museum: Pikk 50; Tuesday - Sunday 10:00 - 16:00; Tickets: €4.