This northernmost and smallest of the Baltic states Estonia borders with both Russia and Latvia. Its coastline lies on both the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic sea and offers glorious beaches and more than 1, 500 islands and islets to visit.

It is similar in geography to Latvia and Lithuania, with extensive marshy bogs and forests and have and abundance of wildlife including bears, wolves, lynx, deer and elks.

Culturally similar to Finland, 50 years of Soviet rule has added its own mark. The country has charming old towns, such as Tallinn with a history going back to the German Hanseatic League.