Residents’ satisfaction with the selection of cultural events taking place in Tallinn has returned to a level as high as it was before Covid-19 but the opportunities to visit these events as much as wanted is in a downward trend. The most popular cultural events organised by the city are Tallinn Old Town Days and Tallinn Maritime Days.

According to the deputy mayor of Tallinn, Kaarel Oja, a survey shows two important trends, one of them being entirely positive, but the other a cause for concern. “Our event calendar in Tallinn is very diverse and it seems that there are enough events for every target group,” he explained. “At the same time, the problem of inaccessibility, i.e. the amount of people who would like to take part in events but cannot do so for various reasons, has grown significantly. On the one hand, it puts greater responsibility on the large cultural events organised by the city itself, such as the Old Town Days and the Maritime Days. On the other hand, it also urges to develop regular and daily cultural events and services, ensuring that they are as easily available and accessible as possible. Whether it’s our network of libraries and the services offered, free museum Sundays or free entrance for young people to the zoo on the second Saturday of every month.”

95 percent of surveyed Tallinn residents are satisfied with the selection of cultural events in Tallinn in general, 80 percent with the selection of cultural events in their district, and 81 percent with the selection of events in public urban spaces close to their homes (for example, on the streets, parks and town squares).
Compared to 2021, satisfaction with the selection of cultural events has increased: at that time, 84 percent of respondents were generally satisfied with the selection of cultural events in Tallinn and 72 percent of respondents with events in their district and in public urban spaces close to home.

The general level of satisfaction with the availability of information about cultural events has not changed compared to 2021 – 82 percent of the residents are satisfied with the availability of information about events in Tallinn in general, and 77 percent with the availability of information about events in their district. At the same time, the percentage of respondents who are very satisfied with the availability of information about cultural events has increased – 27 percent of the surveyed Tallinn residents.

Half of the citizens (52%) would like to visit Tallinn’s cultural events and institutions more than they do currently, and according to their own assessment, 44 percent of Tallinn residents can visit cultural events and institutions as much as they want. 57 percent of women and 45 percent of men expressed a desire to visit cultural events and institutions in the capital more than they do currently. Compared to other districts, the residents of Lasnamäe most often expressed the desire to visit cultural events and institutions more than they do now.

The main obstacle to visiting cultural events and institutions was the lack of time for 62 percent of the surveyed residents. 27 percent do not visit cultural events for financial reasons, and 16 percent due to a lack of information. The frequency of mentions of all these obstacles has increased compared to 2021, when Covid-19 was perceived as the main obstacle to visiting events. It not for financial obstacles, 74 percent of people would like to visit more theatre performances and 74 percent want to attend more concerts.

Residents of the city centre are more often than average satisfied with the selection of cultural events both in Tallinn in general (98%) and in their district (94%). Satisfaction with the selection of cultural events in their district is 91 percent among Mustamäe residents, but 62 percent in Haabersti. Satisfaction with the availability of information about cultural events in their district is highest in Mustamäe (93%), and satisfaction with the selection of events in public urban spaces close to home is highest in Kristiine (95%) and Mustamäe (90%).

Most residents have taken part in some of Tallinn’s events throughout the last year. The most popular were Tallinn Old Town Days (59%) and Tallinn Maritime Days (46%). The Night of Ancient Lights in Tallinn (30%), the lighting of the Advent candle on the Town Hall Square (27%) and Medieval Days (24%) were also very popular.

42 percent of Tallinn residents have visited libraries in the past year. 83 percent of the visitors most often used library services to borrow books, magazines or newspapers to take home, 30 percent used them at the library. More than a tenth of Tallinn residents who visited libraries also received information or reading advice from the library staff, borrowed audio or e-books from the e-library, or used a computer, internet, printer or scanning service in the library.

From February to March, a total of 803 residents of Tallinn from ages 15 and up answered the survey conducted by Turu-uuringute AS on behalf of the Tallinn Strategic Management Office.

The final report of the survey is available in Tallinn’s survey information system at https://uuringud.tallinn.ee/uuring/vaata/2023/Kultuur-liikumisharrastused-jaelukvaliteet-Tallinlaste-rahulolukusitlus2023.