We spent the previous weekend in Tallinn with our extended family: our family + my younger sister’s family + my parents. Total ten people – you can probably guess the amount of hassles on the way.

Tallinn is usually visited by ship from Helsinki (you can also fly there by plane or helicopter); this time our ferry was Tallink Star. Quite big and fast (two hours) ship that has been built recently. Due to some miscommunications, I ended up staying in cafeteria on 9th floor for the whole journey, so I cannot say much about the shops or anything else.

We had booked rooms in Viru Hotel that is centrally located, and inexpensive due to staff discounts. Grandparents had a suite with sauna, and we ended up in tiny tiny rooms — they were so small, that the extra beds for the boys wouldn’t fit it. At the end, we got family level rooms that were much more spacious and had bunk beds for the children.

When hotel gives you too small room and then later corrects the situation, one would expect that the luggage would be automagically transferred to the new rooms. Not in Viru hotel. There were no service to speak of; we had to queue to check in (twice), to request crib for babies, and to check out. The service was not swift.

I also heard some echoes from the soviet past: nobody got any rooms before 14.00, and then there were huge queues, as everyone raided the front desk to claim their rooms.

After finally getting the rooms, we spent some time shopping in Viru Keskus, and then went to Pegasus restaurant in the old town. My dad has his 70th birthday in these days, and the trip was the celebration. The food was excellent, and the service really nice in the restaurant. The bill was decent. Much recommended!

Next day, ladies went to spa for treatments, and men and boys went to Sikupilli Prisma to shop some Legos. There are, of course, Legos available in any store, but once again some of us got staff discounts from Prismas. We first tried walking, but nobody knew where to go and then we walked back to the hotel…

There should have been a free bus from Viru Hotel to Prisma, but it was nowhere to be seen. We decided to take a tram instead. As the hotel map sucked golfballs through a garden hose, we hopped off the tram two stops too late, and walked another kilometer for the mall. Then, we spent about 20 minutes there, buying small boxes of Legos (and bigger ones as Christmas presents, but don’t tell the boys), and then drove the bus (that was now available) back to the hotel. Spent two hours for a five euro Lego box and a juice for Aapo. Time well spent, eh?

Back in the hotel, we checked out (and queued) and had a lunch in Amarillo restaurant. It is sort-of Tex-Mex, but blanded down — almost every portion has their (in)famous BBQ sauce, so it doesn’t matter that much what you eat.

After lunch, we visited a few stores, including Stockmann and Kaubamaja, founding nothing. Then we took a taxi back to the harbour to board the ferry. This time we travelled with Tallink Superstar; it is a newer version of Tallink Star, and a bit more luxurious in every aspect.

This time I made sure that I could visit the store, and bought a load of candies, chocolate and champagne. People were hauling cartons of beer or cider — I don’t really get the point, as those are not that much cheaper anymore.

We had to wait about fifteen minutes in pretty packed deck before the doors were opened in Helsinki harbour. Niilo threw up, and the atmosphere was getting tiresome pretty fast. After walking almost a kilometer from the ship to the terminal, we got out of the masses — just to wait a bus that never arrived and to end up walking to our car that was parked about 2.5 kilometers away in Exove’s parking lot.

I have seldom been so happy to be at home.

Viru Hotel is one of the most centrally located hotels in Tallinn. It is also one of the biggest, 22 floors tower next to the old town. The hotel is operated by Finnish Sokos Hotels chain, and it is mostly filled with Finns — the atmosphere can be a bit chaotic during weekends, when people come there to party and booze.

The basic rooms are not very big, and they serve as a base for exploring the town — don’t plan to spend too much time in the room. The rooms are recently renovated, but very plain. The bed is good, though. There are also bigger rooms, some with saunas, and family rooms are a good choice if you are travelling with a child or two; there is an extra bunk bed for them. Amenities include a potty chair and children shampoo. A playing room can be found at the ground floor, too.

The service is from an older era – not very friendly or swift. You might end up queuing to the front desk when you check in, need some information and check out. There was always a queue except on early Sunday morning. The check-in is at 14.00, and you cannot have the room before that time — even if the room would be ready. Fortunately, the luggage check is spacious and free.

The hotel is connected to Viru Keskus shopping center, so you can enjoy indoor shopping and dining experience. There is a good grocery store in the basement of Viru Keskus to replenish your hotel room supplies.

The breakfast is usually included in the room price, and it is pretty good. Don’t expect fresh fruits, but everything else is there.

Viru Hotel, Viru Valjak 4, Tallinn, Estonia

Turks and Caicos Islands are mostly exempt of taxes of any kind. Thus, there are plenty of duty free shops selling jewelry, fragrances, sunglasses and other similar stuff. We visited Jai’s on Regent Village, a new and upscale shopping center in Grace Bay area on Providenciales.

The big and airy shop was empty except the clerks. Maybe it was due to low season, but I cannot really fathom how they run their business to keep profitable. The amount of jewelry was pretty good, and there were both known brands and some more obscure designers. Most of the items were a bit too glitterish for my taste, but might be a perfect fit for people coming from cultures that value showing off more than we Finns do.

There was a good selection of fragrances and sunglasses, too. These were more affordable than jewelry (that was not too expensive, either), and are easier to buy — especially as gifts.

Jai’s, Regent Village, Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands