Raekoja plats ( en, Town Hall Square) is a

town square A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true square, geometric square, used for community gathe ...

beside

Tallinn Town Hall The Tallinn Town Hall ( et, Tallinna raekoda) is a building in the ''Vanalinn'' ("Old town") of Tallinn (Reval), Estonia, next to the Town Hall Square. The building is located in the south side of the medieval market square and is long. The we ...

( et, Raekoda) in the center of the

Tallinn Old Town Tallinn Old Town ( et, Tallinna vanalinn) is the oldest part of Tallinn, Estonia. Old Town of Tallinn has managed to wholly preserve its structure of medieval and Hanseatic origin. Old Town represents an exceptionally intact 13th century city plan ...

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

. It is a venue for numerous small festivals or concerts like

Tallinn Old Town Days Tallinn Old Town Days ( et, Tallinna vanalinna päevad) is a cultural and entertainment festival in Tallinn Old Town, Tallinn, Estonia. The goal of the festival is to introduce Tallinn Old Town to the public. The festival takes place every year i ...

( et, Tallinna Vanalinna Päevad), and several bars and

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

s are located in the near vicinity. The square also hosts a market regularly, with many stalls selling traditional

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

items and

souvenir A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...

s ( et, Suveniirid). On the side of Town Hall, there is

Raeapteek The Raeapteek ( en, Town Hall Pharmacy; german: Ratsapotheke) is a pharmacy in the center of Tallinn, Estonia. Opposite the Town Hall, at 11 Raekoja plats, it is one of the oldest continuously running pharmacies in Europe, having always been in ...

(Town Hall Pharmacy), which is one of the oldest continuously running pharmacies in Europe, having always been in business in the same house since the early 15th century.

History

There has been a

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

since at least 1322 and a town square next to it ever since then. The hall was rebuilt from 1402 to 1404 into its current form, and a

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...

display has been held in the square since 1441, making the

Tallinn Christmas tree display Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ''m ...

over 580 years old.

External links

From Times Online, November 8, 2009, Europe's 20 best Christmas markets 2009
Squares in Tallinn Kesklinn, Tallinn {{Tallinn-geo-stub