An endlessly fascinating world revolves around us, whose preserved elements are pleasant to explore, for example, when the Lahemaa weather isn’t cooperating. The Lahemaa museums and galleries located in the National Park offer an overview of the life and customs of North Estonians, as well as a rich insight into the works of Estonian artists since the National Awakening.
Kolga Museum
Palmse Manor Museum
Sagadi Manor Museum
Sagadi Forest Museum
Viinistu Art Museum
Viinistu Village Museum
Käsmu Maritime Museum
Vihula Vodka Museum
Lobi Museum
Be sure to add museums and galleries to your Lahemaa Tour!
The annual highlight in the museum landscape is undoubtedly Museum Night. Museum Night takes place on a Saturday in mid-May, and museums across Estonia are open until late in the evening on that day. Visiting museums is mostly free on this evening. Museum Night 2023 takes place on May 20th, and this time the theme is “There is movement in the night”.
Museum Night 2022 | 2022-05-21 | There are dreams in the night
Kolga Museum
“ALTERNATIVE FIFTIES” is an exhibition of miniatures and replica models that introduces what life in Estonia would have been like after the 1940s if statehood had continued and there had been no occupation. The models and figures take us back to the 1940s – 1950s.
Viinistu Art Museum
At 7:00 PM, a father-son art tour begins, where art collection owner Jaan Manitski and his son Arthur share their knowledge, stories, and dreams.
The tour culminates with a performance by Ketlin Oja, ballet soloist of the Estonian National Opera, which brings one of the dream roles of many young ballerinas into the midst of the sea view and art.
After the tour, there is an opportunity to converse with the performers and locals about the origin of dreams, their necessity, and where dreams are born.
In good weather, a pre-sunset bonfire will be lit to welcome the upcoming summer and the birthday of Kunstisadam. An acoustic guitar concert will set the mood for the evening.
Come and explore the messages from millennia ago, conveyed through the copy drawings and photos made from the sites of ancient art in Scandinavia and Karelia!
The museum located in the main building of Jäneda Manor takes you on a journey through time, starting from 5000 years ago. Here you will get a comprehensive overview of the development of Jäneda village, the story of the last manor owners – the von Benckendorfs – and the significance of Estonia’s first agricultural vocational school.
Guided tours are available in Estonian, Russian, Finnish, English, and German – whether your interest is in history, manor life, or local legends, you will definitely find something exciting here. The rooms themselves are full of discoveries and fascinating details that help to understand the rich past of the place.
Good to know: The manor also houses Urmas Sisask’s Star Tower – the opportunity to book a star tower concert makes the visit a truly unique experience.
Come and discover the story of Jäneda!
Käsmu Maritime Museum has been located since 1993 in a tsarist-era guardhouse on the Käsmu beach at a small promontory and showcases the legendary Käsmu village of shipowners and captains.
The outdoor area features a 15 m high Soviet-era observation tower, a tracking training area, a stone marking the shipbuilding site, a boat shed, historical boats, a smoke sauna, a fish smoking oven, a campfire site, an old boat adapted for seating, an outdoor kitchen, and a gazebo.
Käsmu Maritime Museum is suitable for seminars, meetings, or special occasions. The sea-view veranda can accommodate 20 people, and the conference hall can hold 60 people. The famous Käsmu grilled salmon can be ordered for a minimum group of 10 people.
The Kolga Museum is the local history museum of the Kuusalu municipality, located in one of Estonia’s largest and oldest manor complexes – Kolga Manor. We take visitors on a journey through time, exploring the manor and the life of the peasantry up to the present day.
The museum features 17 diverse permanent exhibitions, including rooms on topics such as – the manor, school, peasant tools, forest, fishing, sports, nostalgic 60s-70s, and many other exciting themes. There is a separate play area created for children.
For those interested, we also offer legend and history tours in the main building of the manor. Near the museum, you can also find the famous Viru bog and several other beautiful natural sites in Lahemaa National Park.
The Kõnnu Viinaköögi Art Studio is the studio and gallery of painters Katrin Saag and Sven Saag. The Art Studio is open to all art enthusiasts by appointment.
In the gallery, we sell paintings by Katrin and Sven Saag, which we are happy to showcase, share stories about, and if desired, they can be purchased. We organize painting workshops in the art studio for both children and adults. Visiting the gallery is free.
See you at the Kõnnu Viinaköögi Art Studio!
A visit to the Lobi Museum is a discovery event that takes you on a journey through the unique history of the Lobi Peninsula. The rich collection of exhibits tells the story of the lives of the people in the Lobi fishing village. The Lobi castle, tavern, and more. The personal belongings and fascinating tools of the fishing village people are mostly made by the locals themselves or brought from distant seas. The stories told by the guide enhance the experience, connecting it into a whole and creating a positive emotion.
For an additional fee, the museum can arrange guided tours in the beautiful nature of the Lobi Peninsula, enjoyable workshops, and meaningful day activities along with an (educational) program.
Moe has been producing alcohol for over 300 years and is still in operation today!
Moe features a museum, a factory shop, a beer room called Krog, a magnificent Kurberg hall for concerts and conferences. You can stay at the newly completed Moe hotel.
In our museum, you can get an overview of the secrets of spirits production, see authentic historical equipment, and taste the Muddise beer and fine spirits produced in Moe. All of this is in a recently renovated and newly contented wonderful 19th-century distillery.
Perfect for tourist groups, corporate outings, and culture enthusiasts! We offer guided tours and tasting experiences!
In Kadrina, there is a wonderful museum-nostalgia center where you can literally travel back in time and reminisce over 1000 square meters. Here you will find almost all items from the Soviet era, from thread to tractor.
In addition to the emotional journey back in time, it is also possible to purchase old items for yourself. We also provide services for groups, so be sure to book a time. The house full of items allows for organizing concerts and other events.
We are a private museum. Entrance is 5 euros.
Porkuni Limestone Museum is located in a striking building with a history related to the bishop’s castle gate tower. The tower’s five floors provide an overview of Estonia’s national stone – limestone. The exhibition introduces the origin of limestone, fossils, its distribution, and use. You will also learn why this unique museum in Europe was established here and see a stone primer showcasing Estonia’s rock types. Limestone souvenirs are available for sale.
At the top of the tower is a viewing platform from which you can gaze over Porkuni Lake, the manor complex, and the surrounding area.
Note! The Limestone Museum conducts tours, workshops, and educational programs also at Tamsalu Lime Park – a heritage landscape of the lime industry.
In the Sagadi manor complex, there is the Sagadi Forest Museum, which introduces the forests of Estonia and heritage culture, including hunting, woodcraft, and environmental matters.
The permanent exhibition “Forest Journey” allows you to test your knowledge of Estonian forests and get acquainted with forest life. The role of forests as a mitigator of climate change and wood as a creator of a cozy living environment will be discussed. Thanks to virtual reality glasses, you can take a journey through wooden houses from different eras with actor Tõnis Niinemets.
In the museum shop, products made of wood and other natural materials are for sale. Anyone interested can try their hand at the harvester simulator.
The farm museum itself is a sight to behold – for centuries it was the residence of the fisherman of Selja Manor. At the end of the 19th century, it became the residence of the well-known marine painter Richard Sagritsa’s father. The museum is open during the summer season.
At the fishing museum, you can see buildings constructed in the 19th century and a typical northern coastal barn. Among the most unique buildings is the 19th-century stone-built smoke kitchen, which is still in use today, and there you can explore an exhibition of historical fishing gear.
In the summer, you can see an exhibition of Richard Sagritsa’s paintings and temporary exhibitions at the farm museum. Behind the house is the restored rock garden of Alice Sagritsa.
The Viinistu Art Museum is a unique place where the sea and art intertwine. Established in a former fishing collective’s cold storage, the museum opened in 2002 and has since become Estonia’s only private art museum. In this picturesque fishing village, you can discover over 400 works from Jaan Manitski’s private collection, offering a cross-section of Estonian art history from the 19th century to the present day. The exhibition takes you from Baltic German art and the legendary Pallas school’s creations to contemporary creators. The Pallas Art School was the modernist art center of Tartu in the early 20th century, where artists with European experience nurtured a new generation of creative individuals, providing a significant boost to the development of Estonian art.
The museum visit is complemented by barrel galleries – exhibition spaces created from old water tanks, where guest exhibitions change every summer. Additionally, the Viinistu Art Museum has seminar rooms that offer an inspiring environment for organizing events and gatherings right in the midst of art.
Explore the art collection also with a guide!
Viinistu Village Museum is located in the Viinistu village square under one roof with the Viinistu Community Center. The museum’s assets were obtained as donations from local villagers in the early 1960s.
At the museum, visitors can explore historical tools and household items, fishing gear for fish and seals. There are old photographs of the local people and buildings, as well as a selection of family marks from Viinistu farms.
There are many exhibits, and not all of them fit into the small space adapted for the museum, which is why items were also placed for viewing in the community center, which is open at the same time as the museum.