Tartu Shopping and Districts

(Tartu, Tartumaa, Estonia)

The shopping opportunities available to those visiting Tartu are really rather good and plenty of shops lie in the very heart of the city and in particular, around the Town Hall Square (Raekoja Plats) and its adjacent streets. There are also a number of rather large and impressive department stores present in Tartu, such as Eeden, Kaubamaja and Selver, along with shopping centres. These modern Western-style malls are filled with shops, restaurants and good facilities.

The majority of the shops in Tartu tend to operate between 10:00 until 18:00 from Monday to Friday, opening once more on Saturday, when the shopping hours are shorter and run from 10:00 to 15:00. Most of the malls and largest supermarkets, such as the Tarbijate Kooperatiiv, close later and also open on Sundays.

Where to Shop

The main shopping streets in Tartu are the centrally located Rüütli Tänav and also the Ulikooli Tänav, both of which are extremely close to the Raekoja Plats, the Poe and the riverfront. One of the best places to shop in Tartu is at the Kaubamaja department store, which opened as recently as 2006 and is a mere stone's throw from the bus station, along the Riia.

The very first shopping centre to open in Tartu was the Lounakeskus and here you will find the anchor store of the Maksimarket, along with many other shops offering everything from high fashion to books. The Lounakeskus is close to the city centre and on the Ringtee, being connected by either bus number 1 or 8.

Also deserving a mention is Tartu's Kesklinna Shopping Centre, which lies on the Küüni and just a short walk from the Ulikooli Tänav. Located in the suburb on Annelinn, the Annelinna Keskus is a further shopping centre, where the Selver department store resides, along with many popular boutiques, cafes and newsagents. The Annelinna Keskus is linked by bus numbers 1, 3A and also 15.