Estonia·August 9 - 16 2023

Enticing Estonian Retreat

Wait, where is Estonia and why do I want to go there?

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PolliTaluTable

Overview

Join us for a special experience in Estonia, an undiscovered gem on the Baltic Sea. We'll explore Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, and perhaps the best-preserved medieval capital in Northern Europe. Tallinn feels quite unlike anywhere else, unlike Scandinavia and unlike Europe. It's a beautifully eclectic city with a unique atmosphere that's both endearingly shabby and amazingly pretty. The old town is stunning and there's a very hip entrepreneurial tech area that you'll also get to see and experience. After time in Tallinn, we'll decamp to Polli Talu, a traditional Estonian farm complex now converted into a rustic country retreat and center for the arts by Marika Blossfeldt. Marika is a health coach, yoga teacher, and award-winning cookbook author. She loves guiding her clients to eat healthfully and lead an energized life. Marika teaches and practices Kundalini Yoga, a dynamic form of yoga that combines postures, stretching, movement, meditation, breathing, and chanting. Our time in Polli Talu will give you the opportunity to explore your passions and connect to your purpose while enjoying a pleasurable time together with blissful easy yoga, delicious wholesome meals, luxurious massages, breath walks, and soothing meditations.

Highlights

Yoga, Meditation and Mindfulness classes

Yoga, Meditation and Mindfulness classes

Enjoy a day at the Woman’s Island

Enjoy a day at the Woman’s Island

Experience a traditional Estonian spa and mud wrap experience

Experience a traditional Estonian spa and mud wrap experience

Healthy Estonian Cooking Class

Healthy Estonian Cooking Class

Picnic in Matsalu National Park

Picnic in Matsalu National Park

Swim at the Women’s Beach in Pärnu

Swim at the Women’s Beach in Pärnu

Explore Catherine the Great’s Kadriorg Palace

Explore Catherine the Great’s Kadriorg Palace

Stroll through the avant-guard Kumu Art Museum

Stroll through the avant-guard Kumu Art Museum

Bath in the Baltic

Bath in the Baltic

Stay at a traditional rustic Estonian Farm and experience a real wood-fired Sauna

Stay at a traditional rustic Estonian Farm and experience a real wood-fired Sauna

Itinerary

Here's a day-by-day itinerary of the trip.

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oldtown

Tallinn

Day 1: Wednesday, August 9th, 2023

On your arrival in Tallinn, Estonia's capital city, we’ll transfer you to your elegant hotel, Hotel Schloessle, in the Old Town. In the 13th century. Tallinn was a thriving trade center attracting traders from across Europe. 

Tallinn is a fortified medieval city, one of the most famous port towns in Eastern Europe both then and now. Our luxury hotel in the Old Town is surrounded by quaint cobbled streets. It's a reconstructed warehouse dating back to medieval times and restored in 1758 in the Baroque Gothic style.

After checking in, we’ll take a late afternoon guided tour of Tallinn’s Old Town, followed by a welcome dinner at our historic 5-star hotel. If the weather agrees we’ll take dinner outside in the beautiful garden.

Stay at the Hotel Schloessle

Included

Dinner

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Tallinn

Day 2: Thursday, August 10th, 2023

Breakfast at the hotel.

Today we’ll tour the town with an expert guide. Our first stop is the magnificent Kadriorg Palace

The Kadriorg Palace was built by Russian Tsar Peter I in 1718. He named it Kadriorg (Katharinenthal in German) in honor of his wife Catherine I. Designed by the Italian architect Nicola Michetti its magnificent main hall is one of the most stunning examples of Baroque architecture in Estonia. The lovely palace is surrounded by gardens filled with fountains, hedges, and flowerbeds, modeled after Versailles.

The Kumu Art Museum is just a short walk away from the palace so we'll there next. Opened in 2006, the Kumu Art Museum’s goal is to preserve and interpret Estonian art from the 18th century to the current day. Lunch is near the palace grounds at the charming Mantel Café.

This afternoon, we’ll take a tour of the Loomelinnak neighborhood, the Old Town go-to area for creatives. You’ll have some free time here for shopping and a bite on your own or with your new friends.

Stay tonight at the Schloessle Hotel.

Included

Breakfast

Lunch

Not Included

Dinner

wellness

Polli Talu

Day 3: Friday, August 11th, 2023

Breakfast at the hotel.

We've set this morning aside for individual exploration and last-minute shopping in the Old Town. You'll also have lunch on your own and at your leisure. We’ll meet back at our hotel by 3 pm t transfer to Polli Talu, a traditional Estonian Farm complex and country retreat. It will be our home for the remainder of the trip. The farm rooms are both simple and welcoming. 

You'll have time to rest, unpack and take a tour of Marika's lovely farm. Soon you’ll realize how restful this rustic farmhouse compound truly is. Here we share bathrooms and live a simple lifestyle with wholesome fresh air and exercise. It's the ideal place to soak in the beauty of nature.

At 6 pm we'll meet for a healthy vegetarian dinner in Polli Talu’s dining room, or al fresco when the weather permits.

We’ll take a 20-minute walk to the seaside after dinner. You may want a dip in the cool salty water.

Included

Breakfast

Dinner

Not Included

Lunch

meadow

Polli Talu

Day 4: Saturday, August 12th, 2023

9 am breakfast at Polli Talu.

Today we’re off to the Matsalu National Park. We'll have a picnic lunch in this stunning park. Boasting more than 8000 acres of Kasari meadow, this is Europe’s largest preserved flat meadow. The meadow is an important nesting site for a myriad of birds and waterfowl, so bring your binoculars. We'll also take a boat trip through the reed fields and visit the local museum to learn more about this gorgeous park.

After our exploration and picnic lunch, we’ll head back “home” for a little rest. For those who want, a meditative walk led by Marika throughout the surrounding area will be your exercise for the day,

Tonight, we’ll enjoy a healthy dinner at Polli Talu.

This evening we’ll have time to visit the sauna on the property to wind down and prepare for a lovely night’s rest.

Included

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

yoga1

Polli Talu

Day 5: Sunday, August 13th, 2023

Today is a day for journal writing, reading, and walking on your own in our beautiful surroundings. It's a practice of mindfulness. A masseuse will be on hand throughout the day to give everyone a 60-minute massage.

The day starts at 8:30 am with yoga and guided meditation with Marika

We'll meet for breakfast at 9.30 am

Today we have a treat, we’ll work together as Marika shows us how to cook a wholesome vegetarian meal. We’ll help chop and stir and then feast on our vegetable-centric meal. Every participant will receive as a gift a signed copy of Marika’s cookbook.

At 4 pm, we’ll try a movement class with Marika, a former dancer. Free movement allows you to let go and simply enjoy moving freely, with no one judging you.

We'll have dinner at 9.30 pm after which we’ll enjoy a lesson in Estonian folk music and dance taught by a local music teacher.

Included

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

IMG_9919

Kihnu Island

Day 6: Monday, August 14th, 2023

We'll rise early for breakfast at 6:30 am.

Today we're taking a bus and ferry trip to Kihnu Island, the matriarch island in the Baltic Sea aka ‘Women’s Island’.

The guided tour of this unique island will include the Kihnu Museum, the Orthodox Church, and the lighthouse.

We’ll follow our guide’s recommendations to find a simple little place on the island for lunch.

As we explore more of Kihnu Island, we’ll experience a traditional folkloric concert led by women. You'll also have time to explore the souvenir shops to find your choice of beautiful handiwork created by the craftswomen of the island.

For those who are game, a sidecar motorcycle ride around the island is a typical way to enjoy Kihnu.

At 4:15 pm, we take the ferry back to the mainland for dinner at Polli Talu

If you haven't yet enjoyed a massage, there is time after dinner.

Included

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

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Pärnu

Day 7: Tuesday, August 15th, 2023

We'll have a late breakfast at 9:00 am.

We're departing at 10 am for a day trip by bus to Parnu on the coast of Pärnu Bay on the Baltic Sea.

Pärnu is a resort town that dates back to 1838. For many years Pärnu’s spas have offered visitors healing mud baths and other helpful water-focused procedures.

At the Hedon Spa, you’ll have a choice of steam and dry saunas, a salt room, a large jacuzzi, and a salt scrub foot bath. This surely will relax our bodies and open our minds. Then, we’ll experience a selection of cures, from a massage using organic local hemp and carrot oil to an exfoliating mud wrap or a facial. You'll have more time to enjoy all the hot and cold pools after the treatment. We’ll relish a superb lunch at the Pastorat Cafe after our restorative spa experience.

This afternoon, you’re free to stroll around town to shop and explore on your own. Then we’ll meet up to take a refreshing swim in the Baltic Sea at the Women’s Beach. Don’t forget your bathing suit!

After our vigorous swim, we’ll sip a cocktail back at the beachfront outdoor restaurant at the Hedon Hotel where we began the day. It's our last night, and our farewell meal is at the stunning Art Nouveau mansion, which is both a hotel and a restaurant, the Villa Ammende.

Back at the farm, we’ll take a moment to reflect on the past seven days of restoration and discovery in enticing Estonia. A new country discovered, wellness restored, and new friends made. What could be better?

Included

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

talu

Homeward Bound

Day 8: Wednesday, August 16th, 2023

We'll transfer you back to the airport for your flight home after breakfast.

Included

Breakfast

You'll Be Staying Here

Hotel Schloessle

Hotel Schloessle

Hotel Schloessle is situated in Tallinn’s Old Town which mean food, culture and so much more. 

Polli Talu

Polli Talu

Polli Talu is a traditional Estonian farm complex situated near the Baltic Sea. Here we will live a simple lifestyle with wholesome fresh air, exercise  and time to soak in the beauty of nature. 

Hosts

Leigh Rhoads

Leigh Rhoads

Your host for this trip is L. Leigh Rhoads (“Linda Leigh” to her friends, of which you will assuredly be one after your travels). Leigh calls the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia home and is a true Southerner, replete with the warmth, manners, and charm for which that region is known. A Civil Rights attorney by trade and a yogi at heart, Leigh has taken every gift of time available to her, between practicing law and being mother to an extremely fun and mischievous set of twins, to seek out adventurous and meaningful travel experiences like this one. She is so looking forward to sharing it with you! 

Price

Private Room

Private Room

Everyone gets their own fabulous room!

FROM$5,495.00/pp

Estonia is a place for independent minds

Estonia

Estonia is a small country in the north of Europe, bordering Russia to the east, Latvia to the south, and the Baltic Sea to the north and west. Aside from its picturesque medieval capital Tallinn, Estonia boasts a number of interesting sights. Large forests, mystical bog landscape, and caves, castles, and cliffs make Estonia a must-see destination. 

Estonia

What's Included

What's Included

All lodging in Tallinn & in the countryside at the farmhouse

All meals except one dinner and one lunch which are mentioned on day 2 & 3

Yoga, meditation & cooking classes with Marika

Outings to various islands and spa towns

A restorative massage by an expert at the farmhouse

All guides, concerts and a sidecar-motorcycle ride

All transfers to/from airport and down to Farmhouse

A spa day which will including one spa treatment (a massage or a facial) as well as plenty of time in the modern spa with it sauna, steam, jacuzzi and much more!

International Airfare

Extra spa treatments

Extra wine beyond what is ordered

Souvenirs

Travel and Medical Insurance (required)

FAQs

Tallinn experiences temperatures from the high 50's into the high 60's and low 70's. It might be ever so slightly cooler at the farmhouse, but it is summertime so bring a light sweater or coat for the early mornings or evenings.

This trip is set up for total beginners in all areas. You do not have to be a yogi to join this trip or to do yoga. If you are breathing and on your mat, you are doing yoga perfectly well. Marika is very kind and will introduce us to a lot of new things. All you need is an open mind and a willingness to try.

As this is a retreat, you'll be served wine on the first night at the hotel in Tallinn, and on the last. However, at Marika's farmhouse we will be abstaining in general. You are free to bring something if you really need it but it's really nice for our livers to take a few days off!

You'll want to fly into Tallinn International Airport. 

The trip officially starts on the afternoon of August 9th, but if you are traveling across an ocean to get to Estonia, you may want to consider arriving a day early so you have time to relax and get acclimated to the local time zone. If you do decide to arrive early, please let us know and we will take care of booking your room for you and make sure that you are kept in the same room until the trip starts. 

Inquire about this trip

Enticing Estonian Retreat

Estonia· August 9 - 16 2023· 7 nights

FROM$5495/pp