Tuesday's visit to Tallinn by world-famous YouTuber Darren Jason Watkins Jr., aka IShowSpeed, was organized by the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Foundation (EISA) and cost Visit Estonia, which is part of the EISA, €30,000.
Kaarel Kõvatu, tourism marketing project manager at the EISA, told ERR that the only financial costs incurred by Visit Estonia were those related to transport and security for IShowSpeed's Tallinn visit. Together with Latvian and Lithuanian organizations, a private plane was hired to transport the YouTuber.
"Speed visited Estonia and the other Baltic countries as part of his European tour, which he announced to the public on July 5. His aim is to travel to different countries and introduce them to his millions of followers. In the middle of last week, his team contacted Baltic tourism development organizations, including the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Foundation in Estonia, for help in organizing the visit," said Kõvatu.
Visit Estonia then helped to organize the program in Tallinn, Kõvatu said.
"First, guides were chosen for Speed: Andrei Zevakin, who is a very well-known content creator in Estonia, and Grete Griffin, who has a very large U.S. following for an Estonian. We planned the activities with Grete and Andrei. From the country's point of view, we wanted to show cool places, exciting activities and introduce our technology – Prime Minister Kristen Michal talked about that, and in the meantime, we brought food by Starship robot courier. Throughout the visit, Speed wore the blue shirt of the Estonian football team," said Kõvatu.
According to the project manager, one of the main reasons for the EISA's decision was that IShowSpeed's main audience is in the U.S., which is a growing market for Estonia's tourism industry.
Youtuber Darren Jason Watkins Jr., known as IShowSpeed, trying out Kaera-Jaan folk dance before meeting the prime minister on July 15, 2025.
Source: Jürgen Randma/riigikantselei
"Of course, when planning such a short visit, we had to consider both accessibility and security. Due to the latter, the visit to Tallinn Old Town was canceled at the last minute and replaced by going for a sauna in Noblessner, going drifting in a fenced area and meeting American football legend Robert Griffin III," said Kõvatu.
Kõvatu stressed that the police were also present during the visit and helped provide extra security. The entire security team was very professional and of a high standard, he added.
However, there was also an unexpected incident during the visit when a crowd of fans, who had gathered to watch the YouTube star at the Noblessner Iglupark climbed onto a floating platform, causing it to break and temporarily trapping themselves.
According to a spokesman for the Police and Border Guard Board, (PPA) police officers on the scene were quick to help people out of the water and no one was injured.
Any media coverage is important and necessary to raise Estonia's global profile.
Kõvatu said that, in a broader sense, every pieced of media coverage, interview or stream may be small on its own, but taken together they shape public attitudes and increase awareness about the country.
"Estonia's success as a travel destination is not only based on having beautiful views or flight connections, but also on how visible and attractive we are in the international media. This is why one of Visit Estonia's key tasks is to ensure that Estonia is presented in an inspiring and memorable way. Every destination is fighting for the attention of the same travelers, and it is important to be visible, especially during the current peak travel season. If you're not in the picture, you're not among the options. We always take the opportunity when Estonia is featured in the plans of an influencer with a very large following or an influential international publication," said Kõvatu.
He pointed out that IShowSpeed has more than 79 million followers on various social media platforms, 70 percent of whom are from the U.S. "Today's live broadcast in Estonia was watched by over 1.9 million unique viewers. The value is also added by the social media follow up: hundreds of clips from the stream are already circulating with hundreds of thousands of views," he said.
"Our mission is to show what can be done here, what can be seen here, and why Estonia is a valuable place to go in the world. This is how Estonia's image is strengthened – awareness of us and interest in us grows. This kind of awareness can also be described as a way of building security by soft power means," Kõvatu said.
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