Estonia's seasons are pronounced, and the difference between June and December is not a matter of a few degrees — it changes the daylight by around thirteen hours and changes what the country is for.
Summer — June to August
The peak, and with reason. Temperatures of twenty to twenty-five degrees, everything open, and the white nights around midsummer, when it never gets properly dark in the north of the country. Jaanipäev, midsummer on 23–24 June, is the biggest holiday of the year: bonfires, all-night parties, and cities that empty as everyone goes to the countryside.
July is the warmest and busiest month. The sea is swimmable — just — from late June. This is also mosquito season in the bogs and forests, which is not a minor detail.
Autumn — September to October
Arguably the best time. September holds warm days and cool nights, forests turn gold and red, mushroom and cranberry season peaks, and the crowds have gone. The bogs at this time of year, with the cotton grass turned and mist in the morning, are at their most striking.
By late October the light is fading fast and rain is frequent.
Winter — November to March
Dark. In December there are around six hours of daylight, and the grey period from November to January is genuinely heavy — Estonians are open about it. What redeems it is snow, which usually arrives properly in January, and the transformation it brings: skiing at Otepää, ice roads to the islands, frozen sea, sauna followed by snow, and Tallinn's Christmas market on the town hall square, which is one of the best in Europe and far less crowded than the German ones.
Spring — April to May
The fifth season flood in Soomaa falls in March or April. April itself is muddy and unattractive across most of the country. May, on the other hand, is superb: the forests come into leaf almost overnight, birdsong is extraordinary — Estonia sits on a major migration flyway — and everything is empty and cheap before the season begins.
Events worth planning around
The Song and Dance Celebration, held every five years in Tallinn, gathers tens of thousands of singers and is the single most important cultural event in the country — it is the tradition that gave the Singing Revolution its name. Jaanipäev in June. The Tallinn Black Nights film festival in November. The Viljandi folk festival in July.
The short version
For long days and festivals, come in July. For colour, quiet and comfort, come in September. For snow and Christmas markets, come in January. Avoid April.