Java Whiskers

Orebro, Örebro · 100 mi / 160 km

Örebro ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌⁠Katthem is a volunteer-run cat shelter and foster-home network on Sockengatan in Örebro that takes in homeless and abandoned cats and finds them new homes. Besides the cats placed in foster homes, a group of cats lives at the shelter's premises, where the public can drop in during open-house hours held every week, alternating between a Wednesday evening in even-numbered weeks and a Sunday afternoon in odd-numbered weeks. Visitors can meet the resident cats, talk to volunteers about them and ask about adoption. Cats are examined by a vet, neutered and vaccinated before they are rehomed, and an adoption fee applies. The shelter publishes profiles of its cats, including those in foster homes, and news of new arrivals and adoptions on its website. It is a shelter rather than a café, and visits centre on meeting cats that are looking for homes.

• Adoptable cats

Karlskoga, Örebro · 123 mi / 197 km

Karlskoga ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​​​​​⁠Kattcafé is a cat café in Bråten on the northern side of Karlskoga, on Noravägen beside the owners' cat hotel and cat-themed gift shop. It opened in June 2024 and is run by John and Maria, who breed Egyptian Maus and traditional Siamese under the cattery name SE*Broqvist and sell kittens from it. The café is home to their own cats, including Egyptian Mau, Siamese, Oriental and British Shorthair cats and a ginger domestic cat, and staff explain the breeds to visitors. All visits are booked in advance and last 90 minutes, with one drink and one cake included in the entry fee, which is higher at weekends. Children under 15 must come with an adult. Visitors are given shoe covers or slippers and may not wake, lift or chase the cats. Coffee, soft drinks, beer and wine are served, with sandwiches and sandwich cake to order.

• Booking required

Turku, Southwest Finland · 164 mi / 264 km

Kissakahvila ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​⁠Mirri is a cat café at Martinkatu 1 in the Martti district of Turku, with a view of the Aura River. Opened in early 2025 by Turku entrepreneur Iris Laineste, it is the city's only cat café. Four cats owned by the founder live in the café: Keiju, Tigr, Lumilill and Ninja. The cats have a private room that guests cannot enter, come into the café only when they choose, and must not be fed by visitors. There is no entrance fee and no booking is needed; visitors simply order at the counter. Pastries are baked on site, with vegan options, and drinks include filter coffee with refills, espresso drinks, matcha and hot chocolate. The high-ceilinged space has a covered terrace, and many visitors stay to study or work. It is open every day.

• Walk-ins welcome

Jönköping · 177 mi / 285 km

FinduZz ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Kattcafé is a cat café with an adoption programme on Nygatan in central Jönköping, in the Västra city district. Opened in 2023 by Alexandra Jackson as the first cat café in Småland, it houses homeless cats from the rescue association Djurens Vänner in Värnamo while they wait for new homes, and more than 200 cats have been adopted through it. The cats live in a separate cat room that visitors enter for a booked session of about an hour with an entry fee, while the plant-filled café area can be used without visiting the cats. Each visit starts with a short introduction to the rules: guests take off their shoes, sanitise their hands, keep noise down and do not carry the cats or wake sleeping ones. The minimum age is eight. The menu includes Swedish pastries, matcha and cat-themed lattes, and board games are available.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking required

Tallinn, Harjumaa · 236 mi / 379 km

Paws ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​⁠For A Moment is a cat café and co-working space on Roseni street in Tallinn's Rotermann Quarter, between the Old Town and the passenger port. Its lounge is home to about a dozen resident cats, among them several Maine Coons, with climbing places, hideaways and quiet corners where the cats can withdraw. Visits are booked online as timed sessions and paid by the hour, and coffee, tea and pastries are served. Guests sanitise their hands on arrival, let the cats come to them, do not pick them up or disturb sleeping cats, and keep noise low; a separate co-working area suits laptop work. The café holds regular evening events such as cat yoga, board game and movie nights, drawing contests and crochet sessions. A Cat Tinder page on its website lists rescue cats from partner shelters that are looking for homes. It is open daily.

• Booking required

Tallinn, Harjumaa · 236 mi / 380 km

Nurri ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌⁠Kassikohvik is a cat café on Tartu maantee in central Tallinn, a short walk from the Stockmann department store and the Old Town. Opened in October 2014 as Estonia's first cat café, it is home to about a dozen cats, most of them from the Viljandi animal shelter, and more than 120 of its cats have since found homes through the café. The kitchen serves soups, pasta, salads, pancakes, cakes, coffee and smoothies, and guests can order treats for the cats. A visitor fee for each adult goes towards the cats' care, with reduced rates for students and pensioners and free entry for children. House rules ask guests not to wake sleeping cats, carry them around or let them eat from plates. Booking a table is recommended, and the café runs occasional board game evenings, cat yoga and pancake buffets. It is open Thursday to Sunday.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended