What to Wear to Christmas Markets in Tallinn

Packing philosophy

Dress for an hour standing at −3°C in wind. The Estonian Weather Service's long-term averages for Tallinn-Harku give December 1.2°C by day and −3.1°C at night, with 59mm of precipitation across about 14 days, 21 hours of sunshine for the whole month, and the strongest mean wind of the year, 3.8 m/s. On the 15th the sun sets at about 3:20pm. The Christmas market holds Town Hall Square until 6 January, and you spend an hour at a time there without moving. So the coat reaches your ankles, the hat has flaps, the boots are lined and lugged for icy cobbles, and the knit is the thick kind the market itself sells.

What the dress code actually is

There is no dress code on Town Hall Square, but there is a local register, and the market sells it: wool mittens, patterned hats and heavy knitwear from Estonian makers. Buying a hat there is the obvious souvenir and the best one. Visit Tallinn dates the city's Christmas tree on the square to 1441, and the market has grown around it since. It runs from 20 November to 6 January. The 24th, 25th and 26th are public holidays in Estonia, so shops and many restaurants close; plan around them.

The capsule

1. 
   01

   Chocolate heavy wool wrap coat, ankle length, shawl collar

   An hour at −3.1°C without moving is where a short coat fails, and an ankle-length wrap covers your legs to the boot. Heavy wool blocks the 3.8 m/s wind, and the shawl collar turns up over the scarf line. Chocolate hides mulled-wine drips.

2. 
   02

   Oatmeal fine-rib merino crew

   The base that keeps the warmth in at −3°C / 27°F. Fine merino under an Aran knit adds warmth without bulk, and oatmeal sits between the mustard and the brown.

3. 
   03

   Mustard old-gold Aran cable crew

   Tallinn's market is a wool market, and a thick cable knit is the local answer to the year's windiest month. Mustard is the colour of the look under a chocolate coat, and bright enough to be found in a crowd at 3:20pm dusk.

4. 
   04

   Deep brown wool-flannel wide-leg trousers

   Wool flannel is warm at −3°C and blocks wind better than denim. A wide leg takes a thermal legging underneath and falls over boot tops. Brown on brown makes the coat and trousers one column.

5. 
   05

   Chocolate waterproof lace-up winter boots, shearling-lined

   About 14 wet days on Old Town cobbles, then a −3°C night, means ice. A deep lug sole grips it, shearling keeps your feet warm through an hour standing still, and waterproof leather takes the slush.

6. 
   06

   Dark brown thin leather gloves, lined

   Thin enough to hold a mulled-wine cup and pay at a stall, lined enough for −3°C. When the wind gets up, buy a pair of the wool mittens the market sells and wear them over.

7. 
   07

   Cognac suede trapper hat, shearling flaps

   The year's strongest mean wind takes the heat from your ears, and a trapper's flaps come down over them. Shearling is warmer than any knit at −3°C, and the suede outer sheds snow.

8. 
   08

   Chocolate pebbled leather zip crossbody

   A small crossbody worn in front with a full zip holds a phone and cards through a crowded market. Pebbled leather takes snow. Chocolate matches the coat.

A suggested look — chocolate ankle-length wool wrap coat, mustard cable-knit crew, deep brown wool trousers, chocolate shearling-lined lace-up boots, brown suede trapper hat.

What to avoid

• An umbrella — the windiest month
• Smooth soles — icy cobbles
• A bare head — an hour at −3°C
• Daylight plans after 3:20pm
• Errands on 24–26 December