Nordic Hotel Forum, Tallinn
Estonia is one of my favourite countries in the world, and I like it so much that I decided to move to Tallinn with my wife to live. There are many reasons why Estonia is one of the best countries in the world. I have visited every country in the world, so I am comparing Estonia with all the world’s other countries when writing this.
Although it might not officially be a Nordic country, for me, Estonia feels Nordic in a lot of ways, and I feel at home there. I feel Estonia is entirely different from the two other Baltic countries, Latvia and Lithuania, and is similar to Nordic countries such as Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Especially Finland, which capital is just a cheap ferry ride away from Tallinn, the capital of Estonia.
I like the culture, sights, the food and the excellent value for money. Excellent because the other (in my opinion) Nordic countries are very expensive, while Estonia is a lot cheaper. You can compare the prices of accommodation and restaurants in Copenhagen and Tallinn, and you get an idea. You might also compare the rent prices of Helsinki with Tallinn and be surprised to see such a massive difference. Hotels are another thing with excellent value in Estonia. In 2010 I experienced three hotels in Old Town and was very impressed with the hotel standard. Not only that, the hotel also felt unique and charming. I liked Estonia from the start, and went back in for a second visit, before coming to Estonia in 2020 with the intention to live there. Due to concern about having enough time to do the paperwork for my wife in time, we decided to leave the EU for some months before coming back in February 2021, and have since this period lived in Estonia until we finally got to travel in November.
After moving to Tallinn, I have experienced a lot, including some hotels I had not experienced in my travels to the country. One of them is Nordic Hotel Forum, with a central location close to the Old Town of Tallinn, which is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Nordic Hotel Forum has an impressive 8.9 score on Booking.com as I’m writing this article, while it scored an overall ranking of 4.5 on Tripadvisor. There are more than 2,000 Google reviews of the hotel, where they have an overall score of 4,5.
My experience with Nordic Hotel Forum started with a quick check-in before I took the elevator up to my room. I stayed in a stunning room with an attractive design. The room had a comfortable bed, air-conditioning, an LCD TV, Wi-Fi, a safe deposit box, a minibar (with free drinks) and a hairdryer. The bathroom had a nice shower and a lovely separate bathtub.
In my travels, it’s been important for me to feel comfortable, but sometimes you stay at hotels that are just extraordinary comfortable, and Nordic Hotel Forum was one such hotel. The hotel was fully renovated in 2020 and re-opened in August of 2021.
One of my favourite attractions of Europe is the Old Town of Tallinn with beautiful, well-preserved buildings, located just a few minutes walk from the hotel. The hotel has an excellent location for exploring Tallinn on foot, including many nice restaurants. Within walking distance, I can highly recommend Rataskaevu 16, Nok Nok, Vegan Restoran V, Tchaikovsky, and Stenhus. If you are on a budget and like Italian food, all of the Vapiano restaurants are great, in my opinion, but the setting and concept might not be for everyone. Back to Nordic Hotel Forum. The hotel has two restaurants, Restaurant Noho and Restaurant Nomel as well as a lobby bar. All have an attractive design and a beautiful setting. Nordic Hotel Forum might be the very best hotel for you to stay in Tallinn, but it comes down to personal preference. In my opinion, it is the best-designed hotel I have seen in, not only Tallinn but in all of Estonia. The hotel is a member of World Hotels, a collection of 350 independent and unique hotels. That said, the hotel could easily qualify for becoming a member of Design Hotels in my opinion. I would also give compliments to the housekeeping for their excellent cleaning of the room. It was a great pleasure for my wife and me to stay at this hotel.
The hotel offers a buffet breakfast with a big selection of food. The highlight of the stay was beside the beautifully designed room, the spa. It had a heated swimming pool, jacuzzi tub and a sauna in the men’s shower area. I liked that the spa was very quiet, and at a time, I was the only person at the spa. I don’t enjoy a crowded spa in the same way as one can truly relax without the noise of other people. They have done a great job, and when you consider everything they offer, the value of this hotel is excellent, especially when you compare it to hotels of similar quality in other European countries. I can highly recommend Nordic Hotel Forum for both a business trip or a relaxing holiday in one of the best cities in the world. At least that is my opinion after visiting every country in the world and more than 1,000 destinations. If you haven’t been to Estonia before and this article has inspired you to visit the country, I can recommend the following in addition to visiting Tallinn:
Short trip: Tallinn, Saaremaa and Hiiumaa.
Medium trip: Tallinn, Saaremaa, Hiiumaa, and Pärnu.
Longer trip: Tallinn, Saaremaa, Hiiumaa, Pärnu, Viljandi, Prangli and Vormsi.
If you are planning a long visit to Estonia, there are several other islands to visit, as well as Tartu, the second biggest city of Estonia, which is also very nice. Especially the people of this town, but for sights, Pärnu and Viljandi are more interesting in my opinion. Estonia is a fantastic country to visit and I feel it’s overlooked as one of the best travel destinations in the world.
