Dedicated to the early Christian martyr Catherine but named in honour of Tsarina Catherine the Great (whose largesse paid for it), Võru's main Lutheran church was completed in 1793, only nine years after the town was founded. The pyramid over the lintel is a symbol of the Holy Trinity. On the neighbouring square there's a granite monument to 17 locals who lost their lives in the 1994 Estonia ferry disaster.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
15.86 MILES
Strikingly set on a bluff above the Piusa River in western Setomaa, the photogenic ruins of one of Estonia's greatest medieval strongholds and places of…
-
20.91 MILES
Fairies, ghosts and witches abound in the 123 sq km of wooded hills, small lakes and ancient stone burial mounds that form Karula National Park, at least…
-
15.03 MILES
Set in untouched swampland straddling the border with Latvia (just outside the boundaries of Haanja Nature Park), this 800-hectare reserve encompasses…
-
17.41 MILES
Sitting on a band of sandstone nearly 500m thick, Piusa was the site of a major quarry from 1922 to 1966 when it was discovered that the stone contained…
-
23.05 MILES
Founded in 1473, this monastery sits in a ravine full of hermits’ grottoes. With all the high ground outside, it’s an improbable stronghold, but several…
-
23.71 MILES
According to legend, 3.5km-long, 8.5m-deep Pühajärv (Holy Lake) was formed from the tears of the mothers who lost their sons in a battle of the Kalevipoeg…
-
Dr F R Kreutzwald Memorial Museum
0.34 MILES
Võru’s most interesting museum is the house where Dr Kreutzwald, the physician and scholar who compiled Estonia's national epic Kalevipoeg, lived and…
-
23.27 MILES
Otepää’s Gothic hilltop church dates from 1671, although it was largely reconstructed in 1890. Inside there’s intricate woodwork, low-hanging chandeliers…
Nearby attractions
1. St Catherine’s Orthodox Church
0.1 MILES
Like its nearby Lutheran contemporary, Võru's main Orthodox church is dedicated to St Catherine as a nod to the town's founder, Russian Empress Catherine…
0.2 MILES
Don't be put off by this museum's ugly exterior – its exhibits on regional history and culture from the Stone Age to the present day are definitely worth…
3. Dr F R Kreutzwald Memorial Museum
0.34 MILES
Võru’s most interesting museum is the house where Dr Kreutzwald, the physician and scholar who compiled Estonia's national epic Kalevipoeg, lived and…
8.48 MILES
Rõuge’s whitewashed stone church dates from 1730, replacing a 16th-century church destroyed in the Great Northern War. Inside, the focal point is the…
9.62 MILES
Mentioned in the Estonian creation epic Kalevipoeg, the modest 318m-high Suur Munamägi ('Great Egg Hill') is the highest peak in the Baltics (although the…
15.03 MILES
Set in untouched swampland straddling the border with Latvia (just outside the boundaries of Haanja Nature Park), this 800-hectare reserve encompasses…
7. Vastseliina Episcopal Castle
15.86 MILES
Strikingly set on a bluff above the Piusa River in western Setomaa, the photogenic ruins of one of Estonia's greatest medieval strongholds and places of…
16.75 MILES
With locally woven textiles in traditional patterns, everyday artefacts from Seto households, presentations on Seto music and folklore, and interesting…