Essential Information
VISAS For your holidays to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland or Poland, you will not need a visa if you have a valid passport from any EU country, Australia, Canada, USA, Japan (there are more, so check with us to make sure). Please note that your passport should be valid for at least six month after the date of your return. However, if you plan to travel to Russia, you will need a visa, which we can organise for you.
INSURANCE Travel insurance is required. If you do not have a valid policy, please click on the following link for our recommended partner, JS Insurance, authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
CAR RENTAL You can rent a car as long as you have a valid EU or international driver's license. Most cars will have manual transmission.
CURRENCY You can get local currency from ATMs at the airport where you land or in the major cities. Be aware that your bank will charge you a service fee and exchange rate fee for the transaction, but this is likely to be less than exchanging money in the UK before you depart.
Most restaurants and shops will take credit cards, however, many places will not accept AMEX.
LANGUAGE You will be able to communicate quite well with the locals, as most people in the service industry are quite adept at speaking English. If English doesn't work, then try Russian (if you can), or German. The further you go from the major cities, the less English you will hear. However, do not let the language barrier keep you from exploring the beauty of the country side. We can always arrange English speaking guides to accompany you wherever you wish to go.
The Estonian language is similar to Finnish and is unrelated to Latvian, Lithuanian or Russian. Latvian and Lithuanian are two of the oldest languages, with roots traceable to Sanskrit. This makes them quite challenging to learn, but attempting a few words will put a smile on the local faces. Russians use the Cyrillic alphabet, so reading street signs and tube maps will be a challenge in St Petersburg .
RESTAURANTS Dining opportunities are plenty, from ethnic to exotic. We would suggest you to try some national dishes and get a real taste of the region. Note that most traditional dishes contain meat and are fairly heavy, but very tasty.
Reservations in advance are recommended for up-market restaurants, especially for Friday and Saturday evenings.
Tipping - Many of the up-market establishments will let you know how good their service is by including it on the bill. Rounding up the bill is usually sufficient, unless you feel your server deserves an extra bit of recognition.
TRANSPORTATION Railway mostly serves domestic routes and is used as an easy and quick way to get from the capital to major cities of the country. There are some international routes, like to Moscow and St. Petersburg, but time spent on the way will be quite long.
Buses are one of the most convenient ways to travel between the Baltic States. Eurolines will get you between Riga, Vilnius and Tallinn. One way tickets will cost £ 108 - £ 12 and approximate travel time is 5 hours between the cities. Ticket reservations in advance are recommended.
Taxis are the quickest and most convenient way of travelling round the city. You'll find them located close to the main hotels. Usually it's quite easy to catch a taxi on the street, however, it's much better and safer to order one by phone. Taxi costs in all of the Baltic countries and Poland are approximately the same and a ride in the centre of the city will cost you approx £ 3 - £ 5. Taxis in Finland and Russia are considerably more expensive. It is always a good idea to get your hotel to book a taxi for you and ask approximately how much the trip will cost before you get in.
We would not recommend you to take public transportation within the city, as it's usually crowded and it may cause you unnecessary anxiety about where to stop.
MOBILE PHONES There are several mobile operators in each Baltic country, as well as Poland, Russia and Finland. If you have an international connection, there shouldn't be any problems with your incoming and outgoing calls.
Internet access is available at Internet Cafés, which mostly are located in the central part of the city. Most hotels have internet access.
Postal Services Stamps are available in the post offices and in most newspaper kiosks. Approximate price for a stamp to European Union countries will be £ 0.30. You'll see post boxes on the streets or you can ask hotel representative to send your post card, they'll gladly help you.
Emergency Numbers Emergency telephone number for the police, ambulance services or fire department in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia. Poland and Finland is the same - 112.