This section is dedicated to take away all your "I wish someone had told me that before I went!" experiences. This way, you can spend less time settling in, and more time making new friends in your chosen hostel. We share our insider knowledge of tips, tricks and important things to look out for in Pärnu.
Pärnu was founded in the mid-thirteenth century, but it was devastated shortly after that. It became a member of the Hanseatic League and had great importance for Livonia as a non-freezing seaport. After the Livonian War, it was under the control of Sweden. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the city was annexed by the Russian Empire. In the early twentieth century, it was occupied by the Germans, but following that, it was part of Estonia for about twenty years, until the forties, when the Soviet Union took the city, only to lose it to Nazi Germany less than a year later. Later, it was part of the Soviet Union and today it is part of Estonia.
Pärnu is the leading Estonian summer resort. It is located near the river mouth of the river Pärnu. The town has a picturesque, sandy beach north in the Gulf of Riga. The location and the climate determined the beach resort status of Pärnu way back in the nineteenth century. Apart from sun and beach, you can also see the City Hall, the Catherine Church from the eighteenth century, the Tallinn Gate, the Red Tower, the Monument of Victory in the War of 1918-1920, and the monument of Lydia Koidula.
Although it has population of only forty thousand people, Pärnu is quite a big city by Estonian standards. In fact, Pärnu is the fourth-largest city in Estonia and as such, there's a pretty good number of hostels in Pärnu. Moreover, Pärnu hostels are pretty nice and do not have very high prices. Most hostels in Pärnu are centrally located between the Munamäe Park and the Lydia Koidula Park. The city can get very cold in the winter and you will appreciate the location very much because you will not have to freeze during your sightseeing tour. However, the summer is great and there are some Pärnu hostels that operate only in the summer.
Written by local enthusiast for Pärnu hostels
George Traveller
