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ESTONIA is the northernmost of the three Baltic States. It is situated on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea and is bordered by the Gulf of Finland in the north, Russia in the east and Latvia in the south.

LANDSCAPE
Nearly 10% Estonian territory consists of islands, the biggest of which are Saaremaa and Hiiumaa in the west. Northern Estonia faces the Gulf of Finland, the narrow eastern arm of the Baltics, which leads into St. Petersburg. Estonia has the biggest lakes in the Baltic region; Lake Pepsi is the fourth biggest in Europe.

LANGUAGE
Estonia's official language is Estonian. It belongs to Ugro-Finnish group of languages. Russian, Finnish, English and German are also understood and widely spoken.

POPULATION
The population of Estonia totals 1.5 million. Estonians comprise 61%, Russians 30%, others 9%.

RELIGION
The largest religious confession is Evangelic Lutheran (30%) followed by Orthodox (28%) and Catholic (3%).

NATIONAL HOLIDAYS
January 1 - New Year
February 24 - Independence Day
March/April - Good Friday and Easter
May 1 - May Day
Sunday in May/June - Whit Sunday
June 23 - Victory Day
June 24 - Midsummer's Day
August 20 - Restoration of Independence
December 25/26 - Christmas

CURRENCY
The national currency of Estonia is the Kroon (EEK), 1 Kroon = 100 sents. The Kroon is pegged to the Euro at 1 EUR = approx. 15.65 EEK. Foreign currencies can be easily exchanged in banks and exchange offices.

GETTING THERE

By air. Tallinn can be reached by air from all major cities in Europe.
By sea. You can reach Tallinn via Helsinki and Stockholm due to numerous ferry and catamaran services.
By rail. Tallinn has direct rail links with Riga, Minsk, Moscow and St. Petersburg as well as other connecting lines within the Baltic Region.
By road. There is a choice of international bus lines connecting Tallinn with Riga, Vilnius, St. Petersburg and numerous German and Scandinavian cities.

CLIMATE
The climate is temperate, characterised by warm summers and fairly severe winters. The weather is often breezy and humid due to the proximity of the Baltic Sea. Average temperatures range from +160C in summer to -90C in winter.