The 10 Best Things to Do in Viljandi, Estonia

The stone castle started to appear on the place of the former Estonian stronghold in 1224. The fortress got its final shape and size in the beginning of the 16th century and was one of the distinguished fortresses in Estonia and Latvia. Due to wars between Sweden, Poland and Russia all that is left from the entire order castle today are just a few stone walls.Already in the beginning of the last century the ruins of the fortress and the park around it turned into a recreational area for the residents of Viljandi. In order to access the castle hills from town a rope bridge was build from the Kaeuvumagi hill over the 13 meters deep trench in 1931. From the ruins you have the most beautiful view over the lake of Viljandi.

The bridge made by the Riga company Felser & Co in 1879 was erected amid the castle hills in Viljandi in 1931. It was a present by the lord of the Tarvastu Manor Karl von Mensenkampf.Interesting to know:*The bridge is over 50 m long.* It was erected over a valley which is 15 m deep.* At first, the bridge was located over the moat in Tarvastu to make it easier for the family of the lord to visit the chapel in the ruins. The rope bridge has become a favourite object of both citizens and visitors of Viljandi and one of the town’s important symbols. It was reconstructed in 1995.

The park is located on the slope of the ancient valley and is named after the ruins of the order castle. When the town started to grow in the second half of the 19th century the need for a recreational zone arose. In 1863 the right to use the castle hills was received from the manor. The works were initiated in 1893.In 1925 the Varese sild (Crow bridge) was finished and connected the town with the park.Interesting to know:· the works where initially carried out by convicts. These were people who were bearing liability in the house of detention for whatever reason and were thereby able to shorten their sentence.A main component of the landscape of the park is the relief, the proximity of a body of water is also important.Take a look at the aerial Panorama (picture by Joel Tammet).

Lake Viljandi is in a primeval valley, which is 11 m deep, 450 m wide and 4600 metres long. The lake is well-known in Estonia thanks to the song about the boatman of VIljandi, who day-dreams about the beautiful blue eyes of a girl he once saw when he was young. The trail that goes around the lake will take hikers to the observation platform on the other shore where you will see a charming and unique silhouette of the town.

Kondas Center primarily focuses on naive and "outsider" art. The museum was opened in 2003 in a late 19th century rectory building. We have a permanent exhibition of Estonia's most famous naive painter Paul Kondas - who lived in Viljandi most of his life. Kondas' most well-known painting is "Strawberry Eaters", hence one may find large concrete strawberries allover the streets of Viljandi. We do some 30 temporary Exhibitions yearly, half of them are by self-taught artists and the other half by professional artists.

The church devoted to John the Baptist was erected in the 17thC upon the ruins of a Franciscan abbey. The church was destroyed several times in various wars and then invariably rebuilt. Still functioning after the Second World War, it was closed in 1950 and turned into a warehouse.It was consecrated again in 1992 and is now often used as a concert venue. Interesting to know:*This place of worship contains the communion table by Aivar Oja and stained-glass windows by Renee Aua.*Wall carpets have been made by the local textile artist Prof. Anu Raud, whose work "Mother Tree” is displayed in the UN's main building in New York.

Museum of Viljandi is located in an old pharmacy with an exhibition on two floors presenting the history of Viljandi up to the middle of 20th century. There are many stuffed animals and birds in the exhibition stand introducing nature. A varied collection of archaeological finds gives an overview of the prehistory. A model of the Viljandi Order Castle with items from that period represent the Middle Ages and a model of a threshing room together with an exhibition of national garments and jewelry introduces folk culture. There's also an overview of local life and events during the 19th and 20th century and you can also watch a film. Different Exhibitions are held in the room of temporary Exhibitions.

When the town of Viljandi started to grow in the middle of the 19th century the only church in town became too small for the people. The Viljandi estate owner baron Ungern-Stenberg gave the community a part of his estate as building ground for the church.Interesting to know:· The architect of the sanctuary that was consecrated in 1866 was Matthias von Holst.· During the construction of the building so called Tudor Gothic elements were used as they were fashionable at that time. · The author of the altar painting "Christ on the Cross" is Karl Christian Andreae.· Since 1866 a G. Knauf organ fills the church with music, the biggest still functional organ of its kind in Estonia.

This centre, which was completed next to the ruins of the old castle in Viljandi in 2008, is a contemporary concert hall and cultural centre. The first floor is home to two concert halls, one large and one small, Seating 407 and 80 people respectively. There is also a shop selling a wide range of traditional music CDs, books and instruments. In the basement, beneath majestic arches, musicians practise their art, the August Pulst music school holds classes and the traditional music archives operate.

This monument was erected to mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of the founder of Estonian nationalist painting.Johann Koler was born in the parish of Suure-Jaani in Viljandi County.Did you know…?*Having studied painting at the Academy of Art, Koler went on to further studies in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Italy.*He was employed in the court of the Russian emperor as the drawing teacher of the tsar’s daughter. *He corresponded with forward-thinking Estonian intellectuals and took part in events as part of the nationalist movement.The monument was sculpted by Edgar Viies, having been designed by Rein Luup.