Saaremaa Holiday

The Estonian island of Saaremaa in the Baltic Sea is an untouched rural idyll, covered in trees and surrounded by beaches.

One of the least populated parts of Europe, the island is home to small villages, forests and farmsteads and more than 40 per cent of it is covered in trees. The pace of life is slow and relaxed, with settlements a reminder of an earlier way of life.

Estonia's largest island, it is located just to the south of the island of Hiiumaa, with a population of just under 40,000 in an area of around 2,671 sq km (1,031 sq miles).

Saaremaa has some excellent beaches and was once a leading holiday destination, though Soviet rule had a dampening effect on the tourist industry. Resorts are now springing up around the coastline and it is becoming popular with European tourists.

Inhabited for at least five thousand years, Saaremaa was the wealthiest county of ancient Estonia and experienced regular skirmishes with vikings and pirates as a result. Held by the Livonian Order during the 13th century, the island was eventually sold to Denmark.

Ceded to Sweden in 1645, Saaremaa then formed part of Imperial Russia from 1721 onwards, becoming part of the Russian governate-general of Estonia. Estonia gained independence in 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union and joined the European Union in 2004.

Kuressaare, the capital of Saaremaa, is home to just 16,000 inhabitants and is a lively town with a pretty central square. Located on the south coast of the island, the town has an impressive 14th century medieval castle, a delightful harbour and the Saaremaa regional museum.

Elsewhere on the island, the Sorve Peninsula on the south west coast is picturesque, with imposing cliffs, an old lighthouse and views over some of the island's least populated areas. The Kaali Meteorite Craters near Kuressaare have become a charming lake setting and the area was once used as a site of pre-Christian worship.

Vilsandi National Park off the west coast of Saaremaa is a wooded island with some interesting wildlife and its own working ostrich farm and can be reached by daily ferry.

Estonian cuisine and drink tends to be heady and quirky, with blood sausages a particular national delicacy. Other local dishes include black bread, boiled pork, marinated eels and excellent local beer.

Accommodation and nightlife on Estonia is rustic and tends to be relatively basic, though some luxury hotels have sprung up along the beaches in recent years. There are bars and restaurants dotted around the island, with the liveliest places in Kuressaare.

Flights to Saaremaa are available from Tallinn, Parnu and Stockholm, and the island is connected by ferry from Virtsu on the Estonian mainland, as well as Helsinki and Tallinn.

Weather in Saaremaa tends to be warm in summer, rainy in spring and autumn and cold in winter, with May to August popular tourist months.