Jonza

Jonza, thanks again for your help! Is there ticket machine at every stop?

Ah, I thought I wrote this but apparently not. Most stops do not have ticket machines.

On your route there should be a ticket machine at the tram stop closest to LMA. At Market Square you would have to make a slight detour to the other end of the market as there are ticket machines at the Suomenlinna ferry terminal there. In Kamppi there are no ticket machines at the tram stop but several at the metro station and bus terminals next door.

Thank you Jonza. I am a little confused about the tram situation. When I look at the maps of the two HOHO companies, it appears that they will stop at the cruise port. Are you saying the Getaway docks elsewhere? Or are you saying that where the HOHO bus picks up is not as close to the port as it appears on their maps and thus we need to take a tram? Thank you for your assistance!

No. The HoHos do stop at the cruise port. The tram is an alternative to the HoHos.

Thank you Jonza for the very helpful info on this thread. Our family of four will visit Helsinki on Aug 30 (Wed) from Celebrity Silhouette. Tentatively we are thinking of visiting Market Square and Rock Church. I would like to get some transportation advice from you.

 

Option 1: Take tram 7 from LMA to market square. Walk from there to Rock Church. Then take public transit (which one?) from there back to cruise. If we only take two public transits is it cheaper to buy two single tickets than day pass?

Option 2: Since we have 4 people is the cost of taxi or Uber for the above two trips comparable to the public transit?

 

Thanks very much for the help!

Sounds good. Tram 7 will leave you at Senate Square which is one block away from Market Square. The walk from the Market Square area to the Rock Church is about 2 km do you may also opt for tram 2 for that leg. From the church to the ship I would just walk to Kamppi (900m straight street) for tram 7 (or 9 that leaves you slightly further from the ship) back to the ship. Or you can take a bus for one stop there if you prefer not to walk.

Day ticket costs 9€, single 1h ticket from the driver 3.20€, single 1h tram only ticket from a ticket machine is 2.50€. If you make only two trips, single fares are cheaper. For three trips single fares are cheaper if you buy at least one of the trips from a machine.

Taxi rides would cost 10€-15€ per ride and more if stuck in traffic. Ends up being slightly more expensive than public transit. If you make at least three trips, I would go with the day ticket. If you are likely to walk the second leg and not add other legs to your journey, buy single fares or take a cab.

Hello, Thank you so much for this helpful thread. There are a group of us (32) on a NCL cruise with a port stop in Helsinki on Saturday, September 16th from 7 am to 4 pm. It is the last port on our tour and we feel we may just want to do the Hop On Hop Off Bus (red bus) which appears to pick up right at the port. We do have a few questions that I hope you will be able to answer. It seems at that time of year, the bus may only run once per hour. We are concerned that if we can't get on the first bus at the port, it may be a long wait until the next one. Do we have that information correctly? If we miss that first bus, it seems like there is a church we may be able to walk to which is actually the next stop. Is that a place that we could spend an hour touring while awaiting the next bus? Is there only one company that runs such a service or is there perhaps another similar bus for tourists? Lastly, do you think that this would give a good overview of the city or does it miss anything significant?

 

Thank you so much. We are all very excited to see your beautiful city!

Two Hop On Hop Off companies operate in Helsinki:

Strömma: https://www.stromma.fi/en/helsinki/sightseeing/sightseeing-by-bus/hop-on-hop-off/

Citytour: http://www.citytour.fi/Hop-On-Hop-Off-buses

Their websites say that the interval would be 20-30 minutes until end of September. Your ship will dock at quay LMA and there is no sights within nice walking distance. There is a tram stop close by where in September you will have a direct tram connection to Senate Square. See the first post of the thread for more info. Depending on what you want to see, just taking public transit could be cheaper and more time efficient.

We will be in Helsinki on Monday 8/28/17 and would like to purchase several Oiva Toikka glass birds. Is the Iittala store on Esplandi the best place to shop? We would like to look not only at current but past collections..

The Iittala store likely is the best place in Helsinki to shop the current collection of Toikka's birds. Quick googling in Finnish did not turn up any stores that would advertise having the past collection. At least from the quick google search it seems that most of the trade in second hand birds happens online. If you are not already aware, the Design Museum has an online photo collection of ~200 birds: http://toikka.kokoelma.fi/listaus.aspx?id=20382

My husband is a crazy F1 fan!! Any good places to buy some Bottas merchandise?:cool:

Thank you!

Sadly I cannot recall seeing any and a quick search only points towards the official Formula One online store.

We are in Helsinki port on Sunday August 20 from 7am - 4pm and we were just planning to do a walking tour on our own loosely following the Rick Steves guide. We didn't plan on doing the fortress Island area. However, when I research the openings of many of the things we want to see (Rock Church, Market place, stores in Esplanade, Stockmanns, Church of Silence etc.), it appears nothing open until 10am-12pm or not open at all. What would you recommend as a starting point if we get off the ship ~8am and need to be back on ship around ~3:30? Can we still get it all done in 4 hours if we started at noon?

I am afraid that very few places in Helsinki open before 10am on Sundays. The Lutheran cathedral on Senate Square opening at 9am is one of the exceptions. The Suomenlinna Sea Fortress, Seurasaari, Sibelius Monument, or some other outdoor attraction could of course be visited in the morning.

I would not see any point in delaying your start until noon as many of the places you mention open already at 10am or 11am. At least for the Rock Church you will have to wait until a bit closer to your visit to be able to check how it is open according to services. Starting at 10am, you should be able to cover everything you mention at a fairly leisurely pace and stops along the way.

More Helsinki info can be found in the Helsinki thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2445288

Great info in this thread - thank you! How long would you say it takes to go to Suomenlinna fortress via ferry from Market Square? Our ship will be docked at LMA, we were thinking of taking the tram into Market Square, and are trying to determine if we have time to visit Rock Church and the fortress...our ship will only be there for about 6 hours. Also how often does the tram come to the West Terminal stop?

About one hour from the ship to Suomenlinna. See example route from LMA to the southern end of Suomenlinna: https://www.reittiopas.fi/reitti/Selected%20location%3A%3A60.15276259350466%2C24.913537502288822/Selected%20location%3A%3A60.13825429919754%2C24.989626407623295?time=1497679200

Tram 9 runs every 10 minutes Mon-Sat and every 12 minutes on Sundays. Tram 6T also runs to the terminal every 10-12 minutes during afternoon and late evening. Tram trip from the terminal to downtown takes 10-15 minutes. The Suomenlinna Ferry runs every 20 minutes for most of the day and takes roughly 15 minutes.

In six hours you should be able to do everything you mention depending on how long you want to spend at each place.

Thank you Jonza for all the great information. My ship will be docked at the LMA port. Will I be able to walk from here to the Market Place and the Rock Church? Will I need local money or can I use euros? Thank you for your answers.

In addition to what Ultima Thule already answered, you can of course use public transportation. The closest tram stop is at the ferry terminal in West Harbor 300-400 meter walk from the ship. You can see routes to both the Rock Church and Market Square in the route planner:

LMA to Rock Church: https://www.reittiopas.fi/reitti/Selected%20location%3A%3A60.1526237629343%2C24.913129806518555/Temppeliaukion%20kirkko%2C%20Etu-T%C3%B6%C3%B6l%C3%B6%2C%20Helsinki%3A%3A60.172953%2C24.925227?time=1496037600

LMA to Market Square: https://www.reittiopas.fi/reitti/Selected%20location%3A%3A60.1526237629343%2C24.913129806518555/Kauppatori%2C%20Kaartinkaupunki%2C%20Helsinki%3A%3A60.167357%2C24.951698?time=1496037600

The early posts in this thread are 8 years old, so many things are better nowadays. Copenhagen is still one of the very best biking cities in the world. Stockholm and Helsinki have done a lot to make biking a more attractive form of transport over past years and are still working on this Stockholm being somewhat ahead. If you are comfortable riding a bike in traffic on smaller streets and on bike lanes or bike paths on busier ones, you will do fine. Tallinn's old town is on a hill and all cobble stone so it is not the best place for biking.

Bike rental and bike tours are offered by several companies in all ports. Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Helsinki also have city bike systems. The system in Helsinki is not the same as in the 2009 posts above but a new one launched in 2016. You can find the city bike system websites here: Copenhagen: https://bycyklen.dk/en/ ; Stockholm: http://www.citybikes.se/p/site/user-information ; Helsinki: https://www.hsl.fi/en/citybikes

Depending on your interests you might want to book a guided bike tour, rent a bike for the whole day, or use a city bike system for moving from place to place.

• Helsinki - anything fun to do with the kids? What is the best way to get to the city from the port (I believe we will be docked at the West Harbour/Hernesaari dock...
  

Norwegian Getaway will dock at LMA on the J?tk?saari side of West Harbour. Tram 9 has a stop about 400 meters from the berth. All day transit tickets cost 9 ? for adults and 4.50 ? for kids. There will likely also be a ships shuttle to downtown. There are likely taxis, but for six people you need either two or a van, which are not as widely available.

Kitkat343 gave a great overview and without more detail on what your kids are interested in I cannot recommend anything more specific. There is also a generic Helsinki info thread that covers some additional topics.

Hello! Thanks so much for all of this great Information! I was wondering if it is possible to see the main town , and also to do a small hike at Nuuksio Forest within the time constraints of the cruise stop... Would like to see some of the natural offerings if possible! We will be there on the Disney Magic the week of June 11.

Possible yes, but not too easy. Public transport connection to the national park is rather slow and infrequent. It takes some 90 minutes to get from the cruise port to Nuuksio. If you want to go to Nuuksio, I would suggest getting a guided tour with transportation or at least transportation as by car the trip takes 40-50 minutes.

If Nuuksio seems to be too time consuming, you can see some small forests closer to downtown also. At least the central park (practically a forest with footpaths) and the Seurasaari outdoor museum offer places where you can be surrounded by trees and both are within about 20 minutes of downtown. And naturally there are several islands and some archipelago cruises if you would enjoy that kind of nature.

I will also chime in here. Though being aHelsinki resident, my views may not be entirely unbiased. In comparing Tallinnand Helsinki: I would say that if you have a weekend go to Tallinn but if youhave a week go to Helsinki (and make a daytrip to Tallinn). For a one daycruise visit Tallinn’s old town is hard to beat. Seeing that your cruise alsoomits Stockholm, I would recommend leaving both Helsinki and Stockholm for alater trip. You could easily spend a week between the two.

If you are really determined to checkHelsinki off your list, your plan seems doable but very rushed. The scenery onthe train ride from St. Petersburg to Helsinki is mainly just forests with occasionallakes and fields. With the train, you would have the evening from 7pm onward inHelsinki, but if you wanted to see Tallinn also you would have to hop on anearly ferry from Helsinki. In effect, you would be swapping the morning inTallinn for the evening in Helsinki.

Sail in / sail out through the archipelago. Not sure exactly where it is but I think it at this location.

https://www.google.com/maps/@59.4705815,18.4321174,5622m/data=!3m1!1e3

The two cruise ships (Mein Schiff? and MSC Orchestra) and the Tallink cruise ferry (m/s Romantika ?) are heading out

while the two Viking Line cruise ferries (Amorella - left and Gabriella - right) are arriving.

 

Farleden genom skärgården by Stockholms Hamnar, on Flickr

The other cruise ship is HAL's Rotterdam. Name is clear enough in the original size image. Tallink's Romantika and Victoria I are very hard to tell apart from that angle, but I think you have it right. Of the Viking Line ferries Gabriella is actually heading out. You can see the trail left by the incoming Amorella to the left of the ship. I think the picture is actually taken slightly closer to Stockholm here: https://www.google.com/maps/@59.3608045,18.3760123,7792m/data=!3m1!1e3 with Kungsborg being the small island in the middle of the photo.

Thank you so much for your information. I have a question about saunas. Our group of 6 will be there on a Monday in May. Is there a Finn sauna you would recommend? We will be there from 9 - 4 and would enjoy trying one out for a couple of hours.

The city tourism info has an article on saunas: http://www.visithelsinki.fi/en/see-and-experience/activities-in-helsinki/enjoy-urban-sauna-culture-in-helsinki

Are you looking for a public sauna or to book a private sauna for your group? Most public saunas are gender separated.

The traditional public saunas seem to be closed on Mondays and typically do not open until afternoon on other weekdays either. For public saunas on around noon on a May Monday you might have to settle for one of the city swimming halls. Of the newer public sauna venues Löyly opens only at 4pm. Allas Sea Pool is currently closed for expansion construction, but should open sometime in the spring. If they reopen before you visit, their pools and saunas right by Market Square could be open in your time frame.

If you are looking for a private sauna for your group, there is a large selection in . However, in downtown areas it will likely cost 250+ euros for a couple of hours.

Photo ID will usually suffice for Countries within the Schengen Visa countries if you are requested to show ID for whatever reason (for example by the Police).

 

However, if you are visiting St. Petersburg you need to clear Russian Federation immigration so you'll obviously need to carry your passport. Also you might need a passport to enter the port of call after Russia since will be re-entering the EU.

 

Remember that your cruise card isn't "Government issued ID"

Clearing misunderstandings on the Schengen rules has become a bit of a pet peeve of mine as these come up at least yearly. The Schengen Area consists of European countries that have agreed to abolish regular internal border controls and harmonized the external border controls. All EU members are not Schengen members (E.g. UK, Ireland, Croatia) and some Schengen members are not EU members (E.g. Switzerland, Norway, Iceland).

The Schengen rules abolish internal border controls but not the need to carry valid travel documents when crossing national borders. Thus, the law requires you to carry your passport when traveling from one country to another. Spot checks and risk analysis based checks are still allowed. In practice this means that if you alert a detection dog or match a general description of someone the authorities have profiled for a spot check, you will be asked for ID, and as you are crossing a border the ID must be an official travel document, i.e. a passport or an EU National ID card. The establishment of temporary border checks on internal borders due to extraordinary circumstances is also allowed. Recently this has happened as result of the migration crisis and the Paris attacks.

On a Baltic cruise, there is also an interesting exception to the rule of external border controls. As Russia is typically the only non-Schengen country (unless the cruise originates in the UK), you will be exiting and then re-entering the Schengen zone before and after St. Petersburg. Most of these entries and exits take place in Helsinki and Tallinn. Normally you would have a passport control and an exit stamp from the first when returning to the ship in the port prior to St. Petersburg and a passport control and an entry stamp when getting off the ship in the port after St. Petersburg. However, the Schengen rules allow these border checks to be carried out only on the passenger manifest and not in person if risk is deemed low. If risk is not deemed low for your ship, there will be a passport check affecting every passenger at these ports.

In practice your passport will likely be checked only by Russian authorities in St. Petersburg and not at all by authorities of the Schengen countries after your first arrival into the zone. From the ship newsletters, I have seen here, most if not all have said you need your passport ashore for every port on a Baltic cruise. However, there was emphasis on the requirement only in case of St. Petersburg. I remember a few cruisers mentioning Schengen exit checks being performed in Tallinn prior to Russia and the ship giving advance notice of those.

Technically crossing a border without valid documents is a crime, but as you have your passport on the ship it falls into a gray area. If you left your passport on the ship and you were stopped in a spot check and asked for ID, you would likely be detained until the ship brings your passport and your identity and right to enter can be verified. I would guess that you would get off with just an inconvenient wait and maybe a warning. Spot checks on cruise ships are also quite rare and you are more likely to see those in airports and ferry terminals.

You may also need an ID ashore for a multitude for reasons. You may want to prove your age for a discount or you may be asked for an ID if making a large credit card purchase without a PIN. Your driver’s license is likely good enough for those situations, but as driver’s licenses are much easier to forge and not subject to same identity verifications as passports, your passport is the only legal ID that foreign officials must accept.

In the end the decision is of course up to the individual traveler, but in my view the risk of your passport being lost or stolen ashore is lower than the likelihood of you needing it.

Thank you for your thread! I have read about the village of Porvoo and it looks lovely. Is this someplace we can take public transport to? It does not seem necessary to take a "tour" once we are there. We have never been to

Finland before, and wonder if we would be better served going to

Soumenlinna Fortess with our limited time instead?

Porvoo is a good half day trip destination from Helsinki and easily explored on foot on your own once you are there. As Ultima Thule said, the trip to Porvoo takes an hour each way by bus and there are multiple departures each hour. In Helsinki buses depart from the central bus station in Kamppi. Both tram 9 from LMA and bus 14 from LHB/LHC run by the bus station. In Porvoo the bus station is within walking distance of the old town.

If you want to see just Porvoo that is easily doable within a typical cruise stop. If you try to squeeze in both Helsinki downtown and a visit to Porvoo, you need to watch your time and plan ahead in order not to lose time looking for your bus or getting lost. For example, with your ship being in port from 7am to 4pm, you could be in Porvoo around 9am, spend say three hours there and be back in Helsinki after 1pm.This would leave you at least an hour for a walk in the downtown before catching a tram back to the ship by 3pm, one hour before departure. Of course, you may not be able to disembark exactly at 7am and you will be required to be back on board before 4pm.

Porvoo and Suomenlinna are very different and in the end it comes down to your preferences. A visit to Suomenlinna is definitely less time consuming as the ferry ride from Market Square takes 15 minutes each way compared with the one hour bus ride to Porvoo.

I'll echo the appreciation for this thread. THANKS A LOT!

 

We'll be there on the Serenade on May 25.

 

Question:

Is it possible that you could provide ATM information at the cruise dock, specifically LHC?

 

My problem is that all the countries that I'm travelling in prior to Finland uses their own currencies and I don't have any Euros.

 

Perhaps if I go through the monster threads that you referenced, I'll find the information.

Almost all ATMs in Finland are branded OTTO and operated by a company owned together by the three largest banks operating in Finland. The network is quite sparse as most payments are handled by card. Locations of all ATMs can be seen on this map: https://otto.fi/missa-otto/ (Write an address or city in the search field or just zoom in. You may have to click on the “Näytä kaikki” (show all) selector at the top of the map if you zoomed in without searching to see the pins. The ATM location part of the site is only in Finnish and Swedish) Note that some ATMs are inside in lobbies of banks and grocery stores or station concourses. Click on the pin to get a more accurate description of the location (and throw it to google translate to understand).

There is no ATM at the Hernesaari side of West Harbor where LHB and LHC are located. The closest one is 1.3 km away at Perämiehenkatu 10. As there is no ticket machine in Hernesaari either, you cannot take public transport without either walking to the ATM or obtaining euros beforehand. If you head downtown by some other mean, you can probably pay everything with a credit card and do not need Euros at all or you could look up an ATM in the downtown area.

But in your case: If I am not mistaken, The Serenade does stop in Tallinn, Estonia before Helsinki. So, Finland will be the second euro country on your cruise.

We will be docked in Helsinki on June 24, which I've just learned is Midsummer day and a national holiday. So I'm at bit at a loss. Do you have any suggestions? Will there be any special festivals during the day? Will public transportation run? Will the markets be open?

 

Suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks again!

Midsummer

Midsummer consists of the midsummer eve on Friday 23 June and the midsummer day on Saturday 24 June. Many locals will head out of town for Midsummer so the city will be quieter than usual. It is also a very typical time for Finns to start their summer vacations. The celebrations concentrate on the evening of the 23rd.

Midsummer eve is not an official holiday but is a paid vacation day in most workplaces. Public transport will run on Saturday schedule. Stores may set their opening hours freely so you cannot tell this early beforehand how it will be as this is only the second Midsummer with completely free opening hours. Many specialty stores will likely be closed or close early around noon. Department stores will likely close in the afternoon. Grocery stores tend to operate normally. Market halls at noon and markets at 3pm. Many museums and restaurants are closed. Churches and some museums (in Suomenlinna for example) are open.

Midsummer day is an official holiday. Public transport will run on Sunday schedule. Most stores will be closed but many grocery stores will be open typically with limited hours. Market halls are closed. On previous years the Market Square market has been open and the other markets closed. Many museums and restaurants are closed. Churches and some museums (in Suomenlinna for example) have previously been open.

Specifically for your question: If your plan was shopping or you had as specific museum in mind, you might need to make new plans. Market Square should have a market also on Midsummer day. Suomenlinna is of course always accessible and even the museums there have been open on previous Midsummers. Also the churches have previously been open on Midsummer day, but there of course may be limitations due to church services. Public transport running on summer Sunday schedule is nearly indistinguishable from it running on summer Saturday schedule. For example, some tram lines will be running on 12 minute intervals instead of 10. The largest challenge might be finding a place to eat. The exact opening hours for restaurants, museums, and churches need to be checked closer to Midsummer.

So what I'm wondering is - what are particular items in Helsinki or popular local shops (not souvenir shops but easy for people to get to when in port) that locals would be keen on shopping in to pick up trendy items or practical, useful items that might remind someone of Finland every time they used it or saw it? I suspect there are shops/brands/items that might be as unique and interesting as Helsinki/Finland are and so would welcome your local insight to further help our travelers here. It's the kind of thing some of our travelers visit our message boards for - interesting shops, restaurants, crafts etc.

I would say that Design District Helsinki will have something for nearly everyone. The problem is that it is a collection of about 200 stores, galleries, museums, etc. So finding your thing might require advance planning. Many of the biggest Finnish design names have stores along the northern side of the Esplanade. For example, Iittala and Marimekko carry a lot of everyday design. You would find Marimekko’s striped towels or Iittala’s Aalto vase in many Finnish homes. I would say that a walking along the northern side of the Esplanade and looking at the stores that are not international fashion chains will give you a quick overview of the biggest Finnish design brands.

In this post, I try to answer the most frequently asked questions from couple of previous cruise seasons with up to date information. This is the second time we have a yearly thread for Helsinki. Last year’s thread and the older mammoth thread are probably too long to find relevant information quickly, but good resources if you want to read through everything. I invite everyone to ask and answer new or more specific questions here.

Where does my ship dock?

Port of Helsinki website has a list of expected cruise ships with berth information: http://www.portofhelsinki.fi/en/passengers/international-cruise-ships

They also have a map of the berths: http://www.portofhelsinki.fi/en/passengers/international-cruise-ships/cruise-quays

What is there to see?

That really depends on your interest. See old trip reports, a guide book, Tripadvisor, the official tourist site: http://www.visithelsinki.fi/en etc. Unlike some other cities on a Baltic Sea cruise, Helsinki does not have a single must see attraction. Some most often mentioned by cruise visitors are: The Market Square area (including the Senate Square, the Esplanade, The Lutheran Cathedral and The Orthodox Cathedral), Temppeliaukio Church (The Church in the Rock), and Suomenlinna sea fortress.

The downtown core is very compact and it is pretty easy to just go there and stroll around to what interests you. The Church in the Rock is slightly outside the core area and getting to Suomenlinna fortress requires taking a ferry from Market Square.

Money and credit cards?

The currency in Finland is the Euro with the slight oddity of 1 and 2 cent denominations not being used. Thus cash payments are always rounded to the closest 0.05 Euros. ATMs in Finland dispense only 20 and 50 Euro banknotes.

Credit cards are extremely widely accepted and used. It is perfectly normal for a Finn to pay for a 2 € cup of coffee with a card. The only significant place where you cannot pay with a credit card is in public transportation: bus and tram drivers accept cash only (and no banknotes greater than 20 €). Visa and MasterCard are the “standard” cards accepted virtually everywhere. American Express and Diners are accepted pretty widely, but not everywhere, so you should have either a Visa, MasterCard, or cash available or ask beforehand.

Language?

Finland has two official languages Finnish and Swedish. In the Helsinki region all street signs etc. are in both Finnish and Swedish. Unlike Finnish, Swedish is a relative of English so looking at the second line of signs might give you a better clue of what a sign says. However pretty much everyone understands and speaks English on an adequate level for helping with directions etc.

Tour or DIY?

This depends on your personal preference on how you like to see a city. Helsinki does not have spread out must see attractions like St. Petersburg or Berlin so you really do not need a tour for logistics. Public transportation is excellent and HoHos are available. Most tours offered by cruise lines or the St. Petersburg tour agencies tend to omit the Suomenlinna sea fortress, which is a UNESCO world heritage site.

How do I get to downtown? / How do I get around?

Depends on where you dock and how you like to move. I will first list the alternatives and then specifics for each berth.

Public transportation

Public transportation in Helsinki is very good. Route planner and ticket information are available on the transit authority HSL website: https://www.hsl.fi/en and their route planner http://www.reittiopas.fi/en/ Also Google Maps transit directions are available in Helsinki. Current timetables are mostly in effect until June 18th.

Nearly all vehicles have monitors showing the name of the next stop to ease following transit directions.

Note that major changes to the tram network will take effect on 14 August. The directions in this post use the current network and I will explain the changes further down in this post. The journey planner should be able to search for trips in the new network closer to the actual change.

Day ticket for Helsinki costs 9 € for travelers 17 years or older and 4.50 € for 7-16 year-olds. Children under 7 travel for free. You can buy day tickets from ticket machines (coins or chipped credit card), sales points such as kiosks and grocery stores (all payment options), or tram and bus drivers (cash only, no banknotes greater than 20€). You can locate all ticket sales points on this map: https://www.hsl.fi/en/tickets-and-fares/sales-points

Walking

The downtown core is perfectly walkable and compact. Especially if you arrive in the South Harbor you could get by just walking. For further away West Harbor berths you need to be into walking to do only it.

HoHo

Two HoHo companies operate in Helsinki. Both stop by ships berthed in the West Harbor. Routes and pricing are similar with adult pricing in the range of 27-30 € and children for roughly half price. The interval of buses depends on demand, but is typically around 30 minutes. The two companies are Strömma and City Tour

Ship’s shuttle

Port of Helsinki does not offer shuttle service so shuttles are arranged by cruise lines or their port agents. Shuttles have been almost always available for further away berths. Depending on your cruise line they may be free or priced around 10 €. Typical drop off point is at the Western end of the Esplanade about 500 meters from Market Square at the other end of the Esplanade.

Taxi

Taxis in Helsinki are reliable but expensive. There will likely be some waiting by your ship. All taxis accept at least Visa and MasterCard in addition to cash. Pricing depends on distance traveled (or time taken in slow traffic) and number of passengers. Starting price is 5.90 € during daytime Mon-Sat and 9 € at night and on Sundays. A trip from your ship to any destination in downtown should end up costing about 15 €. You can estimate the cost of a ride here: http://www.taksihelsinki.net/hintalaskuri/index.html?lang=en

City bikes

A new bike share system was rolled out last summer by the transit authority, and is due to expand for the 2017 season. The bikes will be on the street from 2 May onward. If you are comfortable riding a bike in a city and would like to see the city that way the city bikes may be a good way to see the city by bike. A membership for a day costs 5 € and includes unlimited amount of 30 minute rides from station to station. Additional time is charged in 30 minute blocks with increasing price as you hold the bike longer. The maximum allowed use at a time is 5 hours costing you 14.50 €. There are city bike stations fairly close to most berths. You can register in advance and pick up a bike from any station or register with your credit card at some select stations for example at Market Square. More info from: https://www.hsl.fi/en/citybikes and the map of stations for 2017: https://www.hsl.fi/sites/default/files/uploads/kaupunkipyoraasemat_2017.pdf

Berth by berth:

LMA

Walking distance to Market Square: 3.5 km

Public transport: Tram 6T or 9 from West Terminal about 400 meters from the berth. There has been a green line on the ground from the berth to the tram stop. The tram line in the area is currently (January 2017) being extended closer to a new ferry terminal slightly closer to the cruise berth and the new route section should be open by the start of cruise season. In this map you can see how the cruise berth at the top of the picture relates to the tram stops. See the trip to Market Square in Journey planner

City bikes: 800 meters

HoHo: stops by the ship

Ship’s shuttle: Almost always offered

LJ4

Only one ship so far scheduled here. Like LMA but 600 meters closer to town and pretty much next to a tram stop.

LHB and LHC

Walking distance to market square: 3 km (LHC about a ship’s length more)

Public transport: Bus 14 runs on the other side of Hernesaari peninsula about 300 meters from the ships. Getting to market square requires either a transfer to tram 1A or 3 (which turns into tram 2 before reaching Market Square. See in Journey planner

City bikes: 600 meters

HoHo: stops by the ships

Ship’s shuttle: Almost always offered

EPL, EMA, and EM3

Walking distance to Market Square: 400-600 meters

Public transport: Trams 1A and 2 run by the berth.

City bikes: 400 meters

HoHo: Closest stop at Market Square

Ship’s Shuttle: Highly unlikely

EKL

Walking distance to Market Square: 400 m

Public transport: Trams 4 and 5 about 200 meters inland from berth

City bikes: at Market Square

HoHo: Closest stop likely at Market Square

Ship’s Shuttle: Highly unlikely

ERA

Walking distance to Market Square: 1.5 km

Public transport: Tram 5 about 200 m and tram 4 about 400 m See in Journey planner

City bikes: 200 m

HoHo: Strömma runs to ERA when ship’s in port

Ship’s Shuttle: Likely offered

What has changed i.e. what to watch out for in old trip reports and guide books?

Since January 2017: The Temppeliaukio Church (Church in the Rock) nowadays charges a 3 euro fee from visitors.

Since fall 2016: tram line 4T has been replaced by tram line 5.

Since fall 2013: tram lines 3T and 3B renamed into 2 and 3. There was also a previous change in routes of 3T and 3B as well as their numbering logic in 2009.

Since fall 2012: tram 9 extended to West Harbor (LMA), complete overhaul of bus lines in southern Helsinki removing bus 16 which offered a direct but infrequent link from LHB and LHC to Market Square.

What are the differences between Market Square, Hakaniemi and Hietalahti markets and market halls?

The Market Square and the Old Market Hall are the most tourist oriented and Hakaniemi caters mainly to locals. The market hall in Hakaniemi is the largest of the three. Hietalahti is the smallest and probably least interesting, but there is a large flea market at the Hietalahti market especially on summer weekends.

How to get from Market Square to Church in the Rock (or vice versa) using public transit or walking?

It is about 2 km by walking. Directions in Google Maps You can easily vary the walk a couple of blocks in either direction and you will be going through the area considered to be the downtown core by locals.

Tram line 2 runs also between Market Square (Kauppatori) and the Church in the Rock (Temppeliaukion kirkko). See in Journey planner

Food

If you are looking for typically Finnish foods to try you have to pick a place that focuses on that as the food culture is pretty international.

For a quick bite Market Square and the Old Market Hall right next to the square (http://vanhakauppahalli.fi/en/) might be the best bets. It should be easy to find good fish dishes such as salmon soup, sauteed reindeer (traditional in Lapland), or Karelian Stew.

If you are in for a longer sit down lunch, see for example TripAdvisor or Michelin and look for places serving either traditional Finnish food or those offering modern Finnish cuisine. At the other end of the spectrum from Market Square stalls are the Michelin-start restaurants offering modern Finnish cuisine.

On the sweet side, Finns are one of the top coffee consumers in the world so you could very well stop for a cup of coffee and a korvapuusti (cinnamon roll) in a market or café. Or you could treat yourself to some salmiakki (salted liquorice) sold at every grocery store or kiosk.

Souvenirs

I am not an expert on souvenirs by any means. The city tourism site however has a listing of souvenir and handicraft places: http://www.visithelsinki.fi/en/see-and-experience/shopping/handicrafts-and-souvenirs-from-helsinki as well as a blog posting about souvenirs in the under 30 € price range: http://blog.visithelsinki.fi/en/best-souvenirs-from-helsinki-price-range-e10-30/

Opening hours

Opening hours for stores are not regulated. Typical grocery stores are open 7-21/22/23 Mon-Sat and 10-23 on Sundays. Some grocery stores are always open. Department stores are typically open Mon-Fri 9-21, Sat 9-19, and Sun 11-18. Specialty stores have typically more limited hours with 10-18/19/20 being typical during the week, 10-15/16/17/18 on Saturdays, 12-17/18 or closed on Sundays. Small stores may have more limited hours.

As in most of the world, many museums are closed on Mondays.

Temppeliaukio Church (Rock Church) is open according to services. If not limited by church services typically 10-17 Mon-Sat and 12-17 on Sundays. They post the opening hours for the coming week on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Temppeliaukion-kirkko-Temppeliaukio-Church-237137636410720/ and there is a phone recording of opening hours for the day at +358 9 2340 5940 More information: http://www.helsinginseurakunnat.fi/seurakunnat/toolo/touristinformation.html Note that from January 2017 onward there is a 3 € admission charge to the church.

The Lutheran Cathedral is open daily 9-18 September-May and 9-24 June-August except during services. More information: http://www.helsinginseurakunnat.fi/seurakunnat/tuomiokirkkoseurakunta/touristinformation.html

The Orthodox Cathedral is closed on Mondays and open Tue-Fri 9-16, Sat 10-15, and Sun 12-15

The Suomenlinna sea fortress is mainly outside and hence always open. The museums on the island are open daily 10-18. More information: http://www.suomenlinna.fi/en/

Transit changes on 14 August

Major changes in the tram line network take effect on August 14th as well as couple of smaller changes in downtown area bus lines. The changes of note to typical cruise visitors are:

From LHB or LHC to Market Square:

Old: first bus 14 to Tehtaanpuisto and then tram 1A or 2/3 onward.

New: first bus 14 to Tehtaanpuisto and then tram 2/3 or bus 17 onward.

LMA:

Tram line 9 at West Harbor will be replaced by tram line 7. The new line 7 will go to Senate Square one block from Market Square.

Temppeliaukio church:

A portion of the route of tram 2 between Market Square and the church changes. Travel time should be slightly faster than before. In addition, a new connection on tram line 1 between the church and the eastern end of the Esplanade is opened.

General:

The closed loop of tram lines 2 and 3 will be broken in the northern end. The lines still overlap there allowing for easy transfers. There is no change at the southern end with trams still continuing immediately on from line 2 to line 3 and vice versa.

The berths for 2017 have not yet been published, but quite certainly Celebrity ships will dock at West Harbor. However, whether your ship docks in Hernesaari or Jätkäsaari is not yet known. Transportation info in the 2016 thread is generally current for the 2017 season. Walking routes and tram stop locations will be different on the Jätkäsaari side as construction work there is progressing. I will likely be creating a new thread for the 2017 season once the berth schedules are out.

Do you know how far the Raddison Blu Plaza is from the Raddisin Blue Royal? We want to walk around where the Royal is . Thank you.

A bit over a kilometer: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Radisson+Blu+Plaza+Hotelli,+Helsinki,+Mikonkatu+23,+00100+Helsinki,+Suomi/Radisson+Blu+Royal+Hotel+,+Helsinki,+Runeberginkatu+2,+00100+Helsinki,+Suomi/@60.1699394,24.9330207,16z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x46920bcd8f99e901:0x76b423a9869d5e44!2m2!1d24.945556!2d60.172473!1m5!1m1!1s0x46920a34c2736a23:0x1cc3adaab06a5251!2m2!1d24.9295557!2d60.167831!3e2

Just a quick warning: We were in Helsinki on Tuesday it was about a 15 minute walk from where we docked to the tram stop because of major construction at the port. The ship (Silhouette) did run a shuttle to market square for $12pp.

When returning to the ship with the tram you could nowadays get off already at Bunkkeri stop which is just opposite to the terminus (and slightly closer to the ship) before the tram goes for the U-turn.

Hi Jonza,

Thanks for all the information you are providing on this thread!

 

Our ship is in port on a Thursday in July, docking in Hernesaari. Our family of six are very keen to visit Ainola because we love Sibelius. We had booked a 5-hour private guide back in November last year who would take us there and back to the city. Unfortunately he just cancelled on us!!

 

It appears that we could catch public transport to Ainola, but it would take too long when we only have 8am-5pm in port. So the plan is to book a car + driver (without a guide, we will just have to do our own research). We will get picked up from the port, and be returned to the Senate Square where we will catch public transport back to the port. But to make the most of the vehicle and to minimize walking for my mother, we thought we may ask for stops at Sibelius Monument en route to Ainola, and The Rock Church on the way back to the city. Does that sound like an efficient route, and would you suggest other stops/another route?

 

Thank you in advance.

Ainola is indeed quite far (approx. 40km from downtown Helsinki) and it is about 1.5 km walk from the nearest train station also called Ainola. Trains to there run every 30-60 minutes and take 26 minutes between Helsinki and Ainola. But as walking is an issue, transport by car is more convenient. Without trafic the drive from downtown Helsinki to Ainola is about 30 minutes and form Hernesaari about 10 minutes more.

As the Rock Church and Sibelius monument are on the same side of downtown Helsinki I would probably do them after each other. Of course the monument is "always open" and the church may not be if you start off early in the morning. The distances between the monument, Rock Church, and Senate Square area are minimal compared to the distance to Ainola.

To give you a ballpark of what transportation alone could cost: A one-way pre-ordered taxi from Hernesaari to Ainola would cost about 100 € for six passengers. The train from Helsinki to Ainola would cost 7.20 € pp. for adults and 3.60 € for kids one-way. As Ainola is outside the Helsinki Regional Transport Area you would need separate tickets for transport in Helsinki.

The map looked good. Now, I'm glad we can walk to so many great places. Any recommendations on where to eat in that area?

For food recommendations there is some discussion in posts #3 and #7. Also depending on your interests regarding food, Tripadvisor and Michelin Guide could be good resources to find recommendations of a larger audience.