Pärnu

The pedestrian spine of the old town, lined with pastel wooden houses, baroque merchant manors and cafes. A perfect leash stroll, with water bowls on many terraces in summer.

The moat of the 17th-century Swedish bastions, now a curving park of lawns, footbridges and Estonia's tallest fountain. A classic leash loop between the old town and the sea.

The 17th-century Tallinn Gate is the only surviving Swedish-era town gate in the Baltic states. Its vaulted passage links the old town to the park and is freely walkable with a leashed dog.

The award-winning timber beach promenade links historic bathhouses, art-deco cabins and wave benches along the bay. Open to leashed dogs year-round, even when the central sand is off-limits in season.

A 600 m boardwalk with a viewing platform crosses the 341-hectare protected coastal meadow, grazed by the famous city cows. Dogs on a short leash welcome; nesting birds in spring.

The stone mole at the river mouth gives a salty walk facing the bay, and its left bank is one of the city's four official dog swimming spots. Skip it on rough-sea days.