Sillamae

Sillamae was built from 1946 around a plant processing uranium ore, which made it a closed town absent from maps until 1991, and because it was designed and constructed as a single project in a short period it is an unusually intact example of Stalin-era town planning: a symmetrical axis of neoclassical apartment blocks with pilasters and pediments running from the culture house down a monumental stairway to the sea, with a square, a town hall in the same manner and planted boulevards. The scale is modest but the ensemble is complete in a way that few such schemes are. A small museum covers the town's history. The plant continues in other chemical production.

What you actually see

• The main axis - the neoclassical blocks along the central street.
• The sea stairway - the monumental flight from the town down to the shore.
• The culture house - the columned building at the head of the axis.
• The town museum - the display on the town's closed history.

When to go

May to September for walking the town and the shore. The museum keeps limited hours and closes on some days. The ensemble photographs best in low morning or evening light.

Honest expectations

Much of the housing stock is in poor repair. The town is a working industrial place with little tourism provision. The museum is small with limited English. Beyond the central ensemble there is not much to see.

Nearby

Toila lies west; Narva is east.