March 4, 2019

Short trip to Pärnu

Last week my father-in-law turned 80 and decided to ”escape the country” so that he did not have to arrange a party. The solution was to gather his five siblings and their significant others and travel to a spa in Pärnu, Estonia for six days. Pärnu is a resort city in southwestern Estonia with some 40,000 inhabitants. The city overlooks Pärnu Bay and is bisected by the Pärnu River. The city is known for its 19th-century timber villas and for sandy Pärnu Beach, with its shallow waters and promenade. The city has several spas and is a popular vacation destination, especially in summer.

The birthday celebration was planned for Friday, so me and hubby joined the sibling gang on Thursday evening. We took the 4.30 pm Tallink Megastar ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn. We decided to splurge on the comfort lounge (EUR 20 or 24 per person depending on vessel) and on a priority position for the car (another EUR 20). The comfort lounge is a separate area with extra services, including a selection of snacks and non-alcoholic drinks, newspapers, TV, wifi, power outlets, toilets and a bar. We really enjoyed the lounge, it was quiet and calm and you didn’t have to suffer the usual drunks, long queues and less than fresh toilets. The priority car service means that you are among the first to leave the ship once you arrive in port. This means you beat the traffic. So after relaxing in the lounge for a couple of hours we drove out to Tallinn and headed towards Pärnu.

The drive to Pärnu took around two hours and once we arrived at Tervis Medical Spa Hotel and checked in we caught up with hubby’s relatives. I must say this was not a hotel I would’ve personally chosen but since this was where the rest of the birthday party was staying, we decided it was easiest to stay at the same place. We had booked a standard suite, which turned out to be quite run down and in need of some upgrading. Turns out the standard rooms the rest of the party were staying in had been renovated more recently. The plus side of the suite was that it offered free bathrobes and a hairdryer, which the standard rooms did not. Once we had unpacked we headed to Muuli bar for a small nightcap and then it was time for bed. The next morning we visited the water center after breakfast. I had booked some salon treatments at Helmi Beauty Salon for the afternoon (a pedicure and facial) and before this we had a small lunch at the Book café Purje.

On Friday evening it was time for the actual birthday celebration which was in the form of dinner at a restaurant called Trahter Postipoiss. As we were a group of 10 people the restaurant had asked us to preorder our food. This was actually quite handy as we only had to contemplate what to drink once we arrived at the restaurant. The food was good for the most part (there seemed to be some variation between the different foods as most were delicious but a couple of portions were a disappointment). Based on my meal, I would eat here again. Once we returned to the hotel we had a nightcap at the lobby bar before heading to bed. The next morning we had breakfast, packed our stuff, and checked out. Before we drove back to Tallinn we took a stroll in the small old town of Pärnu.