Year-round
Dates
5-6 h
Duration
2+
Min group size

Estonia’s Bogs and Sauna Tour

  • Hike for two hours in a unique Estonian bog, a wetland with pristine nature
  • Experience an authentic Estonian sauna for 1 hour
  • Learn about Estonian folklore, stories and legends
  • Enjoy a traditional Estonian lunch at a local tavern (lunch not included in the price)

During the tour we take a bog walk in the bog and forest trail and experience a traditional Estonian sauna. On the way to the bog we tell stories about Estonia’s nature and history. In the bog your tour guide will tell you more about the bog flora, fauna and folklore tales while you have a refreshing 2 hour hike. Going to sauna, is something that Estonians still do very often, the real experience would be to try it in the Estonian way –  jumping into the snow or a pond after heating yourself up in in a typical small wooden sauna.  Find out more about Estonian sauna culture and different saunas. On the tour you will also have the opportunity to enjoy a traditional Estonian lunch at a local tavern.

PRICE INCLUDES: personal pick-up and drop-off at your hotel in Tallinn, guide service, transport, walk in a bog, 1-hour sauna.

For families with children we usually offer discounted price. Please ask more information.

FOR EXTRA CHARGE: lunch.

PICK UP PLACE AND TIME: hotel, Tallinn Tourist Info Centre 

LANGUAGES: English.

1

Explore the bog to capture the best pictures of this mystical landscape

It takes about 1 hour to drive to the   forest trails and bog (we are choosing the area according to your sauna requests). If something goes wrong, Estonians say: ‘it has gone to the bog’. Old tales and some real stories have given birth to scary stories about the bogs. People were afraid of losing their way in a foggy bog and being led into the quagmire by will-o’-the-wisp. Don’t worry, we will guide you on absolutely safe trails through this mystical landscape showing the beauty of its specific fauna, extremely clean bog pools and hollows to capture the best pictures. A walk in the bog lasts from 1-2 hours depending on what route we choose.  
2

Experience an Estonian sauna

Going to the sauna is something that Estonians still do very often. In the countryside, a sauna is usually a small cozy separate log-house and you have a chance to go to exactly this style of the sauna.  There is a saying that a sauna for Estonians and Finns is the same as going to church is for Christians. The sauna is not just about getting clean but it also has a restorative action on the body. Sometimes it can seem quite a sadomasochistic activity to some tourists to shut in a hot room until total sweating, to strike themselves with whisks (birch or juniper branches) until the skin is red, and then to jump into the snow or a lake, but you have to experience it, in order to have your own opinion about this practice.
3

Enjoy a traditional Estonian dinner at a local tavern

Depending on the bog chosen to hike and the starting time of the tour.
!

Optional tips to enhance your experience:

  • swim in the bog-lakes;
  • read more about what is a bog;
  • jump in the snow after a sauna;
  • ask us to bring you some Estonian hand-crafted beer for you to taste after sauna (extra prices apply);
  • read the short introduction to Estonian sauna culture and customs.
  • it is possible to do the bog walk with bog-shoes, you can book it with additional charges

Prices for Estonia’s Bogs and Sauna Tour

For families with children we usually offer discounted price. Please ask more information.

Number of participants: Price per person:
2 142 euros
3-4 99 euros
5-7 82 euros
8 and more on request

Tour Reviews

11. Jul 2022

Thank you for organizing a very interesting bog-shoe walk with Helen and her charming son, Orm. We really enjoyed all of it – including the bath in a bog pool and Helens tasty lunch snacks 😀

19. Jan 2022

Great tour through the bogs and a sauna, to relax afterward.
We were even given a little birthday surprise. Very highly recommended!

23. Dec 2019

Wonderful experience
We had a wonderful day with Andreas doing the bog and sauna tour. Andreas was extremely nice and friendly. He taught us how to enjoy the sauna as Estonians do. Everything was really perfect. Highly recommended.

30. Nov 2019

Bog and sauna tour
We booked the bog and sauna tour with Prangli Travel and it was fantastic! Our very knowledgeable and pleasant guide picked us up direct from our hotel, we were driven out to the bog and it was lovely to walk across it. The weather was cold and crisp which made it even more enjoyable. We were then driven to our private sauna where we had two hours to relax and a lovely home made lunch. Well worth it! Thoroughly recommend 🙂

30. Apr 2019

Our day started with our marvellous guide Helen picking us up and taking us out to her hometown to grab some pastries and beer. Then we headed to the woods and bog for a hike, with Helen providing us with a lot of info about the Estonian forests, history and way of life. The smoke sauna at Helen’s place was great, really fun and her family and gorgeous huskies were very welcoming. We had a great day, and would definitely recommend that if you want to experience either the Estonian bogs or the sauna, this tour is an awesome option

19. Feb 2019

Today we did the bog hike and sauna tour! It was amazing. A beautiful hike in the woods and bog! We tried lichen, cowberries and cranberries and saw a beautiful snowy winter landscape! And it was no one but my daughter, the guide and I! Super peaceful. Then we were received at our lovely guide Helen’s amazing property with husky’s and a smoke sauna! It was a wonderful way to experience the peace and calm of the countryside! And amazing door to door service! I highly recommend it!!

25. Sep 2018

My husband and I booked a private bog and sauna tour in June – a day trip from Tallinn. Kristiina, our guide (who I emailed back and forth for a couple of months while planning this trip) organized everything very well, was very easy to communicate with and very knowledgeable guide. She picked us up from our Airbnb in Tallinn and drove us to a beautiful bog where we spent couple of hours walking, taking pictures and enjoying our conversation with her. Afterward we drove to the sauna, where we were warmly greeted by Ljudmilla the owner of the cosy family run sauna retreat. We were the only guests there – it was really private, everything was clean and comfortable. Ljudmilla was a wonderful host – she brought us some kwas ( drink made with sauerd flour) and seeing how much we liked it, she gave us some to take home with us. After relaxing in a sauna for a couple of hours we had lunch, prepared by Ljudmilla, on the porch with a beautiful view of her garden and a little fish pond. She gave us a tour of her garden and introduced us to a couple of her pets: potbelly pig and a pony. I also got to practice my Russian with Ljudmilla, as I don’t speak Estonian ( she could speak English, too, but it was fun to brush up on my Russian). Kristiina of course was speaking English fluently.
We had a wonderful, relaxing day in Estonian countryside and we definitely recommend Kristiina and Prangli.

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