By Karl Cushing
While Tallinn and its picture-perfect old town hog the tourism limelight it’s in the outlying rural areas where Estonia’s enduring appeal can be found, contends Karl Cushing.
With everything from onion soup and onion pie to onion vodka making it onto my menu by midday, I could only be in one place – touring Estonia’s epic Onion Route. Better still, I’m here to enjoy the route’s popular annual ‘Buffet Day’ event, held each September, which sends the region’s reverence of its sought-after onions, that give the route its name, into overdrive.
Set in southeast Estonia, the Onion Route is a stone-cold Estonian classic, centred on a 15-mile-long string of traditional villages, stretching from Varnja to Kallaste, that cling to the shores of Lake Peipus, or Peipsi, Europe’s fourth largest lake.
This editorial reflects experiences you can enjoy on Sustainable Journeys 11 day Estonia Exploration by EV trip. Find out more here.
A mere half an hour’s drive from Tartu, Estonia’s southernly second city, or 2.5 hours from the capital Tallinn, the Onion Route feels a world away. For, in many ways, this is a journey into the past, showcasing the rich traditions and timeless nature of rural Estonian life.
This fascinating area is known for its population of tradition-loving Old Believers who fled here to avoid persecution in nearby Russia in the late 17th century. Here, their tell-tale colourful wooden houses seem little changed over the years, much like the green fingers of the Old Believers who grow tonnes of their prized Lake Peipus onions, or ‘Peipsi sibul’, each year, people coming from far and wide to buy them.
My first taste comes courtesy of Gallery Voronja in Varnja, where I find the Old Believers village jam-packed with punters snapping up strings of prized onions from locals’ stalls, which groan under piles of smoked fish and pickles. The gallery proves a revelation with its kooky, playful exhibits and enticing garden café. More homespun traditional hospitality awaits me in Varnja’s Samovar House – part café, part museum of antique samovars, the traditional Russian tea dispenser.
More than a great day out, it’s slow travel at its finest, as we unhurried, insatiable revellers venture from stall to stall, making the most of the popup eateries lining the entire route, serving up specially made snacks. This as local chefs vie for glory in coveted contests such as Best Onion Pie.
Old Believers aside, the area’s other chief cultural determiners are traditional Estonian peasant culture and the prosperous, long since departed Baltic Germans whose ‘manor house culture’ can be experienced at Alatskivi Loss, or ‘castle’, in the regional centre of Alatskivi, located just inland.
Keen to experience the Onion Route for yourself? On this 11-night EV trip, you’ll explore the must-see attractions of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. You’ll stay in responsible accommodations and discover the unique Setooma heritage, enjoy a farmers market tour in Riga, and experience the fantastic Anykščiai Treetop path.
“You can stay with the ghosts!” notes my companion Liis Lainemae, who claims to have seen one in the castle. With its four guestrooms, grand interior and enticing restaurant, plus an interesting exhibition on famous Estonian composer (and local lad) Eduard Tubin, it makes an excellent base, its former icehouse featuring great value wine tastings and degustation courses. With its forests, trails and cute lanes and buildings, Alatskavi village is similarly easy on the eye, and I can heartily recommend the food and drink offering in the village’s cosy tavern.
If you’re pressed for time, Estonia’s Onion Route is certainly doable in a day, possibly as a day trip from Tartu, or even Tallinn. Equally, it makes a fascinating addition to wider country tours such as Sustainable Journeys’ 11 Day Estonia self-drive trip, which uses electric-powered hire cars and features small, locally owned hotels and guesthouses. By the same token, it pays to take even more time, allowing for a deeper dive into the local culture.
“There are many workshops in our region connected to handicrafts,” notes Liis, who heads up the Sibulatee organisation that was set up 14 years ago to promote the Onion Route and the immediate area as a viable, sustainable tourism destination.
This before stringing off a list of recommendations for crafty visitors, from Turgi Handicraft Farm, near Kallaste, and Kodavere Heritage Centre, in Pala, to Kolkja’s Peipsima Visitor Centre, where travellers can make souvenirs such as woodblock-printed fabric bags.
Cosy boltholes include the 18th century, 19-guestroom Kadrina Manor and Nina Kordon guesthouse, which can both arrange bike and boat hire, while Mesi Tare, in Varnja, sees visitors bed down in an authentic Old Believers’ home.
Estonia sure scores highly for its sustainable tourism offering, with tourism analyst Euromonitor ranking the country fifth in its 2023 list of the world’s most sustainable destinations. Community-based tourism offerings such as the Onion Route are a case in point, fusing food and fun with an educational and cultural element.
Come the warmer months, the lakeside region truly comes alive, with biking and hiking trails among the other great ways to explore the area while kayaking and sailing feature among the activities on Lake Peipus, bookable in villages such as Nina. Even in winter, there’s stuff to do on the lake, a local classic being the Karakat Safaris that take visitors out onto the frozen lake in modified, large tyred vehicles, backed by activities such as ice fishing and cook-ups.
Next year’s Buffet Day is set for September 7, 2024, with an additional Buffet Day on May 11, 2024, this time featuring a strong focus on local fish dishes. But with eateries such as Alatskivi’s Kivi Tavern offering a great year-round introduction to the regional cuisine and culture, there’s never a bad time for travellers to peel away the layers of this fascinating, rewarding region.
Feeling inspired? Experience the magic for yourself by booking Sustainable Journeys 11 day Estonia Exploration by EV trip.
