Free with Tallinn Card!
NB! The KGB Prison Cells are open from 1 December 2025 to 5 January 2026 every day (except on Christmas holidays and 1 January) from 11:00 to 18:00.
KGB prison cells
The basement of the building at 1 Pagari Street was home to one of the most notorious and feared pre-trial detention centers during the Soviet occupation. Previously closed to the public, the KGB prison cells are now open to visitors.
Estonian politicians, civil servants, intellectuals, veterans of the War of Independence, as well as ordinary people, were tortured and sentenced to death or imprisonment here. The cells built in the basement remain a symbol of communist terror to this day.
Visitors will see a basement with two corridors and six cells, including one for solitary confinement. Temporary exhibitions are held in the corridor. You can book a guided tour to walk you through the cells if desired.
TripAdvisor® Traveler Reviews
tripadvisor rating 3.9 of 5
based on 250 reviews
KGB prison visit
tripadvisor rating 5 of 5A harrowing yet powerful museum, if you want to call it that. It was very moving and noting that it really is recent history, it gives an insight into the suffering these brave people went through. A... Read more comments
Essential for understanding Estonian history
tripadvisor rating 3 of 5The prison cells are, as you might expect, cramped, small and horrifying. There is a cell with a chair that was used to restrain prisoners alongside a written description of torture methods such as... Read more comments
Interesting
tripadvisor rating 5 of 5Worth a visit . It's very informative and makes things seem very real. Worth getting the joint ticket to do the cells and the freedom museum. How do people do this to another human being is beyond... Read more comments
