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Pärnu City Guide
Pärnu is a historical beautiful resort seaside city with a small harbour in the South-Western part of Estonia.
It is famous for its spas, shallow white sandy beach and beautiful parks. It is also a popular place for conferences, theatre performances and concerts.
During the Great Northern War, the University of Tartu was relocated to Pärnu from 1699-1710. Tartu University still has a branch campus there today.
In 1838 the first spa was opened and nowadays Pärnu is a health resort of international stature. Being a member of European Spas Association, Pärnu welcomes its guests from around fifty countries.
Since 1996 Pärnu has been known as Estonia's Summer Capital. There’s a popular Estonian saying that if you haven’t seen your friends during the year, you’ll meet them all in the summer in Pärnu. Beach life, dozens of festivals, night clubs, big party crowds, concerts and funfairs - Pärnu has it all.
If you don’t like crowds, you might prefer the quietness of autumnal or wintry Pärnu and so why not spend your weekend walking on an empty beach, relaxing in a spa or a cosy villa. Many organisations organise conferences and seminars all year round.
Pärnu is the place for innumerable events - The Pärnu International Documentary and Anthropology Film Festival, David Oistrahh festival, Organ festival, Bacardi Feeling Beach festival, Hanseatic and Handicraft days - to name but a few.
Pärnu has something for everybody- families, backpackers, youngsters, romantic couples, sportsmen, people interested in culture and art- you name it! There’s always a reason to revisit Pärnu.
