In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Telliskivi Creative City (Telliskivi Loomelinnak) is a former railway workshop and factory site, now holding design studios, bars, restaurants and the Fotografiska Tallinn photography museum (€14 to €17). Next door is the Balti Jaama Turg market hall, and the Saturday flea market runs in the Green Hall. The open courtyards are free to walk at any hour. Or book a tour: the Old Town and Telliskivi walking tourad links the Old Town with Telliskivi on foot.
⚠️ Shop hours are short: the shopping streets are open Monday to Friday 11:00 to 19:00 and Saturday 11:00 to 17:00. On Sundays only the A2 and A3 streets open, 11:00 to 17:00. Restaurants and bars stay open later.
From locomotive workshops to creative district
In the 19th century locomotives were repaired here; later the site made transformers in the Soviet era. Building work to turn the empty factory into Telliskivi Creative City began in 2007. The first long-term tenant was the headquarters of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in 2009, and the restaurant F-hoone opened in 2010. Today the site covers ten buildings and holds more than 800 cultural events a year.
The Old Town and Telliskivi walking tour
From €35 · 2 hours · guided walk
The Tallinn: Old Town and Telliskivi Walking Tourad is a two-hour guided walk from the Old Town to Telliskivi.
Fotografiska Tallinn
Fotografiska Tallinn at Telliskivi 60a/8 is a branch of the photography museum that began in Stockholm in 2010. It opened in Tallinn in 2019 and shows several changing exhibitions at once.
Fotografiska Tallinn. Photo: Sinikka Halme, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Opening hours and admission
- Galleries: Monday to Thursday 09:00 to 20:00; Friday 09:00 to midnight; Saturday 10:00 to 20:00; Sunday 10:00 to 18:00.
- Adults: €14 to €17, depending on peak and off-peak times.
- Reduced: €11 to €14 for seniors, teachers and students aged 16 and over.
- Night Shift: €10 on Fridays from 20:00 to midnight.
- Free: members and children up to 15.
- Free guided tour: public tours run regularly, including every first Sunday of the month at 15:00.
- Events: the museum also hosts concerts, talks and club nights; the programme is on tallinn.fotografiska.com.
The restaurant
On the sixth floor are the Fotografiska restaurant, a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant, and a rooftop bar. The café and bakery are on the first floor. The restaurant and café hold the Green Key environmental label.
Design studios and shops
The shopping streets are in buildings 60a/1, 60a/2, 60a/3 and 60a/5.
- Stella Soomlais studio (60a/5): Estonian design, from a designer’s own studio.
- Kelpman Textile Arts (60a/1): textiles on the first floor.
- Karl Korsar (60a/3): fashion design on the first-floor shopping street.
- Chocokoo (60a/5): chocolate, in the B-building.
- World Clinic record shop (60a/3): records and music.
- More studios and shops: Gwubi and TALI concept (60a/2), Koa Concept Store and TOKU and OmaKing (60a/3), Mondo Crafts, Reet Aus studio, KÄT Studio and Kopli Couture (60a/5), TEKE Studio and Shop and Kaktus flowers (60a/1), and Mabrik, a gaming boutique (60a/2).
Telliskivi courtyard. Photo: Sinikka Halme, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Eating and drinking
F-hoone (60a/4)
The first restaurant to open in the quarter, in a former workshop hall with brick walls and steel beams. Meat dumplings in a creamy mushroom sauce cost €8 (15 pieces), pizzas start at €10.50 and a Thai coconut and curry soup is €7.50. It is open Monday to Thursday 10:00 to 23:00, Friday and Saturday 10:00 to midnight and Sunday 10:00 to 22:00; the kitchen closes an hour earlier. Book for Friday and Saturday evenings.
Kivi Paber Käärid (60a/7)
The name means “Rock Paper Scissors”. By day it serves gluten-free food; later in the evening it is a lively bar.
Other places to eat
The quarter’s own list also includes Lendav Taldrik (Asian fusion, 60a/6), Frenchy (a French-style bistro café, 60a/5), Von Krahl bar (60a/9), Nihe cafe (60a/2) and FoodStudio Telliskivi (60a/7). Several of them, along with F-hoone and the Fotografiska café, post weekday lunch offers.
Bakeries, ice cream and beer
- Fika – Leib ja Kohv and Aarde Bakery Bread Bar (both 60a/1): two bakeries in building 1.
- La Muu (60a/5): an ice cream shop.
- Põhja Konn (60a/5): 20 Estonian beers on tap, run by Põhjala brewery. Open Sunday to Thursday 14:00 to midnight and Friday and Saturday 14:00 to 02:00.
Balti Jaama Turg: the market hall
Balti Jaama Turg at Kopli 1, between Telliskivi and Balti jaam station, is a market hall with fresh produce, meat and fish halls, antiques, clothing and a street food area.
Balti Jaama Turg. Photo: VargaA, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Street food (first floor): Baojaam, VegMachine, Samsa Family Bakers, Pelmen and a Georgian food and wine stall are among the stalls.
- Humalakoda (second floor): a brewpub that makes its own beer.
- Opening hours: the market is open Monday to Saturday 09:00 to 19:00 and Sunday 09:00 to 17:00. The street food area is open Monday to Saturday 09:00 to 20:00 and Sunday 09:00 to 18:00.
To eat your way through the area with a guide, try the Food and History Walking Tourad (from €119, 3 hours) or the Estonian Food, Drinks and History Tourad (from €68, 2 hours).
The Saturday flea market
The flea market takes place on Saturdays from 10:00 to 15:00 in the Roheline Saal (Green Hall) at Telliskivi 60a. Entry is free. Private sellers offer things they no longer use, plus handcraft, jewellery, books, records and clothes.
Getting to Telliskivi
- On foot from the Old Town: walk out past Toompark and the railway at Balti jaam and along Kopli street.
- By tram: trams towards Kopli stop at Balti jaam, next to the market. Fares are on the public transport page.
- By train: Elron trains stop at Balti jaam, a short walk from Telliskivi.
Connecting sights nearby
- Noblessner seafront and Kalamaja: the wooden streets of Kalamaja lead on to the former submarine shipyard at Noblessner.
- Seaplane Harbour (Lennusadam): the submarine Lembit and the historic seaplane hangars, on the coast to the north-east.
- Toompea Castle and Alexander Nevsky Cathedral: climb from Toompark into the Upper Town.
- Tallinn craft beer and bars: taprooms and pubs in Kalamaja and the centre.
Common questions
What is Telliskivi Creative City?
Telliskivi Creative City (Telliskivi Loomelinnak) is a group of former railway workshop and factory buildings at Telliskivi 60a, on the border of Kalamaja and Pelgulinn. It holds design studios, galleries, restaurants, bars, the Fotografiska photography museum and a Saturday flea market. Walking through the courtyards is free.
What are the shop opening hours in Telliskivi?
The shopping streets are open Monday to Friday 11:00 to 19:00 and Saturday 11:00 to 17:00, with some shops open until 19:00 on summer Saturdays. On Sundays the A1 street is partly closed and the A2 and A3 streets are open 11:00 to 17:00. Restaurants and studios keep their own hours.
How much are tickets to Fotografiska Tallinn?
An adult ticket costs €14 to €17, depending on peak or off-peak times. Reduced tickets for seniors, teachers and students aged 16 and over cost €11 to €14. The Night Shift ticket is €10 on Fridays from 20:00 to midnight. Children up to 15 and members enter free.
When does the Telliskivi flea market take place?
On Saturdays from 10:00 to 15:00 in the Roheline Saal (Green Hall) at Telliskivi 60a. Entry is free for visitors.
How do you reach Telliskivi from Tallinn Old Town?
Walk out of the Old Town past the Balti jaam railway station and along Kopli street, or take a tram towards Kopli to the Balti jaam stop. The market and the Creative City are next to each other.
