Tartu

Besides being the second biggest city in Estonia, Tartu is also one of the oldest cities in Baltic states with a history that dates back as far as 10th century. Thanks to the 400 year old Tartu University, which is one of the oldest universities in Northern Europe, Tartu today claims to be the cultural and intellectual capital of the country. Needless to say, it is the country´s premier university town with a student population of almost 25.000. 
Tartu managed to minimize the Soviet influence to a lower degree than Tallinn so the essence of authentic Estonian living can be seen more clearly on the streets of this small but historic city. Being a student town, there is a live and relatively cheap social scene with bars,cafes and night clubs.