Estonia - Lahemaa National Park

Cycle the Baltics 2026 - Estonia (Lahemaa National Park)

After our morning city tour, we headed back to the hotel, changed into our cycling gear, checked out, and loaded onto the bus with our bikes. Our destination was Lahemaa National Park, Estonia’s largest national park and one of Europe’s most important protected forest and coastal areas.

Once inside the park, we stopped in the tiny seaside village of Viinistu for a picnic lunch before finally mounting our bikes. After several days of travel, sightseeing, and my questionable digestive survival skills, it felt good to actually start the cycling portion of the trip.

Our ride took us toward Palmse Manor — a total of 37.7 km. Along the way we passed remnants of old Soviet military sites, including abandoned Russian army buildings and what had once been a Cold War-era submarine base. 

The route wound through peaceful little villages filled with tidy homes, flower gardens, and manicured lawns. The ride itself was lovely, although the wind occasionally reminded us that cycling beside the Baltic coast is really just nature’s version of resistance training.

We finished at Palmse Manor, one of Estonia’s best-preserved manor estates. Dating back to the 15th century, the estate once belonged to Baltic German nobility and now looks like the setting for a historical drama.

After the ride, we piled back onto the bus and headed to a lovely waterside restaurant for dinner — soup, chicken with salad, and rhubarb cake for dessert. 

Back on the bus once again, we travelled to Rakvere, where we checked into our hotel for the next two nights.

The next morning, we began our ride at Vihula Manor, another beautifully restored manor estate dating back to the 16th century. From there we cycled toward Altja, a 400-year-old fishing village known for its traditional wooden houses and coastal charm. We stopped for photos and sampled Estonian buckwheat cookies.

One of the day’s highlights was trying a traditional Estonian village swing. Imagine six adults standing on a giant wooden platform swinging back and forth while pretending this is completely safe and normal. It was fun — right up until we had to figure out how to stop the thing and dismount without injury or humiliation.

We continued along lilac-lined roads toward the coast and reached the seaside village of Võsu. If the wind hadn’t been blowing at approximately 50 km/hr, we probably would have stopped for a swim. Instead, we admired the water from a safe, non-hypothermic distance.

From there we leisurely cycled around the bay toward Käsmu, often called the “captains’ village” because of its long maritime history. We visited the local fisherman’s museum and enjoyed a delicious lunch of traditional fish soup.

After lunch, we backtracked toward Võsu before climbing into the forest and cycling onward to Sagadi Manor, another historic estate where our bus met us.

The bus returned us to Rakvere for supper, and afterward we wandered through town to see Rakvere Castle and the famous Tarvas Statue, believed to be one of the largest animal statues in Europe.

After 51 km on the bikes, we happily retired for the night.