Home to almost 26 050 residents, Saue rural municipality was created in its current form on 24 October 2017, following the merger of the city of Saue and the rural municipalities of Kernu, Nissi and Saue.
We are the most populous rural municipality in mainland Estonia, with an area of approximately 630 square kilometres. In one direction, Saue rural municipality stretches to the border of Tallinn, while in other directions the small villages around Turba reach halfway to Haapsalu and the area around Haiba-Kernu drops down towards Rapla County.
We are home to the city of Saue, the small towns of Laagri, Riisipere and Turba, and some fifty unique and interesting villages. It is well worth coming here to find authentic village life and beautiful nature just a few dozen kilometres from the capital, providing a contrast to the fastgrowing residential and commercial sprawl near the city.
The city of Saue can also be defined as the ‘capital’ of our rural municipality. In addition to a cosy garden suburb and a growing business district, you will find a new town hall completed in 2020. The solid timber building has received a lot of attention and was named the best wooden building in the year of its completion in Estonia. Saue Town Hall was also named the most beautiful building in Harju County in 2024 in the category of public wooden buildings.Saue is home to Europe’s northernmost natural oak forest.
Saue rural municipality in numbers
11 kindergartens. 7 basic schools. 1 state upper-secondary school. 26 036 people1. 309 444 729 square metres of forest. 320 kilometres of national road. 790 kilometres of local roads. 135,7 kilometres of cycle and pedestrian tracks.
54 settlement units. 70% of the population of the rural municipality live less than 20 kilometres from Tallinn, with about half of them living in urban areas. The municipality has seen rapid population growth in recent years, with an average of 700 new residents moving to Saue rural municipality every year since 2018.
1 As of 1 January 2024
Great events all year round
The vibrant cultural life in Saue rural municipality brings enjoyment to the local community and visitors alike.
Café days are popular here. The Laagri Café Day takes place in July; over the years it has developed into a wonderful community gathering. In August, you can stroll along the food street and visit home cafés serving homecooked delicacies in Saue as part of the grand celebrations in honour of the birthday of the city of Saue.
October is a great time to drop by and take part in fun events throughout the municipality to celebrate the birthday of Saue rural municipality.
You can always find upto-date information on all the goings-on on the events calendar on the municipality’s website kalender.sauevald.ee
What we have
Valgejärve hiking trail with its magnificent little lakes is a must for all nature lovers. We have several major nature reserves that offer something for everyone to discover: Alema, Orkjärve, Linnuraba, Ruila, SuureAru and Tagametsa nature reserves. Landscape protection areas include Lümandu and Valgejärve. The parks of Haiba, Kernu, Laitse, Munalaskme, Riisipere and Saue Manor all have conservation status, as do the oak forests in Saue and Valingu.
Turba is home to Momu, an incredibly cool Estonian motorsport museum in the Ellamaa power station building, a unique combination of a historic building and rare racing machinery.
In the village of Mõnuste, we have the lovely little Ristema Farm Museum, which is dedicated to increasing the community’s knowledge of farm architecture and preserving artefacts that belonged to our ancestors. If you value heritage culture, this is the museum to visit.
If you are interested in trout fishing, come to Jõgisoo and Hüüru. There is even a restaurant in Hüüru built in an old water mill.
Laitse features the LaitseRallyPark - experience-packed theme park that guarantees an adrenaline rush regardless of age or gender.
While machinery is bound to museums in Laitse and Turba, the Vanamõisa caravan park is a comfortable and safe stopover for motor tourists close to the city, where you can wind down and enjoy nature, wake up to birdsong in the morning and spend the evening admiring the sunset.
Remember to take a moment to relax – Kernu Manor and Keller SPA situated on the shore of a beautiful lake bring you a taste of nobility in the café as well as the hotel rooms. In the middle of the Kernu dammed lake is Kotzebue Island, about half a hectare in size, where the family members of the former landowners are buried. Whooper swans, which are quite rare in Estonia, have become annual spring heralds on the lake.
Laitse castle exudes romance and centuries of dignity. Laitse Graniitvilla is another building with character in Laitse. This is a place for creating art and artistic living.
Beautiful manors can also be found in Ääsmäe and Saue. Though they are not open to the public, they still make for a beautiful view. Riisipere Manor, which has been undergoing renovation by its owners for years, is also becoming a sight to behold.
We have the Church of Blessed Virgin Mary in Nissi and the Nissi Church Music Festival. Nissi Maarja Church is located in the village of Riisipere. The steepled church features stylish pseudo-Gothic furnishings and fine paintings of artistic value. The churchyard is the burial place of members of the Stackelberg family, the Bistram family and many other famous families. The church has also given rise to the saying “nose like the tower of Nissi church”. The Nissi Church Music Festival brings high-quality classical music to our rural municipality.
Never a dull moment in Laagri – there are plenty of exciting activities for families to make your visit a memorable one. You can enjoy fun adventure sports at the Laagri skate park and the Alliku pumptrack.
The banks of the beautiful Pääsküla River, which runs through the small town of Laagri, are a great place to relax and perhaps have a lovely picnic in Jõekääru Park.
If you still have some energy left after all this, you can admire the beautiful promenade of Teemant Park, named after Jaan Teemant, four-time State Elder of Estonia, founder of the Estonian Prosecutor’s Office, head of the Farmers’ Assembly, honorary doctor of the University of Tartu and lawyer. Jaan Teemant is an important man for Saue rural municipality. While not local by birth, he ran the Veski-Möldre farm on the border of present-day Saue rural municipality and Tallinn from 1920. The Veskimöldre residential area is also named after this farm.
How to get to us?
Come by train! The train between the city of Saue, Laagri small town and the city of Tallinn runs about 40 times a day in both directions. Come to Turba from Tallinn, Keila, Saue or Riisipere – the train ride is an experience!
We have park & ride car parks at Saue, Urda, Valingu, Laitse, Turba and Padula railway stops and at the Riisipere railway station. Park your car and discover our rural municipality on foot. We have 135.7 kilometres of cycle and pedestrian tracks. You can also use rental scooters in the Laagri and Saue area
Last updated: 21.04.2025
