4 January 2012.
Train times valid from 11 December 2011 to 9 June 2012.
UK to Finland without flying...
Helsinki bound! Sailing out of Stockholm past all the
islands on the cruise ferry to Helsinki... Courtesy of Michael Herbert & Bernadette Hyland
It's easy to travel from London to Helsinki by train and ferry, a
wonderful journey across Scandinavia with a lot to see on
the way. A great alternative to an unnecessary flight.
On this page you'll find a step-by-step guide to planning,
booking & making a journey from the UK to Finland by train or ferry, with train & ferry
timetables, approximate fares, and the best way to buy
tickets.
London to Helsinki by
train to Stockholm for ferry to Finland:
This is the fastest option, with daily departures taking
less than 48 hours from London to Helsinki. It also
involves minimal sea travel if that's important to you. Take
a lunchtime Eurostar to Brussels, a connecting train to
Cologne and the City Night Line sleeper train overnight to
Copenhagen. Then take a fast train to Stockholm and the overnight Viking Line
cruise ferry to Turku and connecting train to Helsinki.
By all means stop off for a day or two in Copenhagen or
Stockholm if you like, it would be a shame not to!
This route is shown in red on the route
map below.
Details are
shown below.
London to Helsinki by
train to Germany then ferry to Finland: This is a
more leisurely option, taking 2 days & 3 nights and
involving a 2-night cruise through the Baltic. It also gives you
time to explore
Berlin on the way and is a bit simpler to book. Take
an afternoon Eurostar to Paris, the overnight City Night Line sleeper
train to Berlin, a train to Rostock and the Tallink cruise ferry from Rostock to Helsinki. The
Rostock to Helsinki ferry runs 4 times a week,
year-round. This route is shown in dark blue on the
route map below. Details
are shown below
London to Helsinki by
ferry to Denmark, train to Stockholm, ferry to Finland:
This is a variation on the first option, with more cruise
ferries
and fewer trains. Take DFDS Seaways overnight cruise ferry from Harwich to
Esbjerg in Denmark, a train from Esbjerg to Copenhagen and
the sleeper train to Stockholm, then a magnificent overnight
cruise ferry run by Silja Line
or
Viking Line
from Stockholm to Helsinki. This takes 3 nights and
gives you a free day in Stockholm. Don't miss the
amazing Vaasa Museum. Sailing out of Stockholm past
the small islands as night falls is one of the most scenic
and romantic parts of the journey. Departures 3 or 4
times a week, year-round. This route is shown in
yellow on the route map below.
Details are shown below.
Sponsored links...
Route map: London to Helsinki
& Scandinavia by train & ferry...
This is the fastest overland
option between the UK and Finland, with daily departures
taking less than 48 hours (2 nights) from London to
Helsinki. Though it would be a shame not to allow an
extra day or two and see Stockholm (or Copenhagen) on the
way! This route is shown in red on the map above.
London ► Helsinki
Day 1: Travel
from London to Brussels by
Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras
daily except Saturdays at 15:04, arriving
Brussels
Midi at 18:05. On Saturdays, depart London
at 12:57 arriving Brussels Midi at 16:08.
Day 1: Travel from Brussels to
Cologne by ICE
high-speed train leaving
Brussels
Midi at 18:25 and arriving Cologne at 20:15. On Saturdays you can
also take the earlier 17:28 Thalys
train arriving Cologne at 19:15. You've time
for a meal in Cologne.
Day 1: Travel overnight
from Cologne to Copenhagen on the City Night Line
sleeper train
'Borealis', leaving
Cologne at 22:28 and arriving next morning in Copenhagen at
10:07. This train has a sleeping-car
(1, 2 & 3 bed compartments, standard with washbasin or
deluxe with private shower & toilet),
couchettes (4-berth & 6-berth) & seats.
More pictures &
information about City Night Line sleeper trains.
The arrival time in Copenhagen can vary, so check when
you book. A bistro car is available in the
morning, between Hamburg and Copenhagen.
Day 2: Travel
from Copenhagen to Stockholm by
X2000 high-speed
tilting train, leaving Copenhagen at 11:37 and
arriving in Stockholm at 16:50. Check times for
your date of travel at
www.sj.se
as this train runs an hour later on certain dates in
summer.
Day 2: On arrival at
Stockholm Central station, transfer to the Viking Line terminal.
Sail from Stockholm to Turku on Viking Line's luxurious
overnight cruise ferry, departing Stockholm at 20:10 and
arriving Turku at 07:35 next morning. A range of
comfortable cabins is available, or you can party till
dawn in the nightclub, your choice!
Day 3: A connecting
Finnish InterCity train leaves Turku Harbour station
(Turku Satama) at 08:15, arriving Helsinki main station
at 10:58.
Alternatively, why not spend a
night and day seeing Stockholm, and reach Helsinki a day
later, in the morning of day 4? You can use the
ferry+train service via Turku mentioned above, or there
are direct ferries from Stockholm to Helsinki run by
both Viking Line and Silja Line - I'd suggest Silja. The
Silja terminal
is about 2.5km from Stockholm city centre, 500m from Gärdet metro station. A shuttle bus links the Cityterminal (the bus terminal next to the central railway station) with the
Silja terminal. Silja Line's ferries sail
daily at 17:00 arriving in Helsinki at about 09:30 next
morning. It's a very scenic
voyage, as the liner sails out of Stockholm past all the
islands,
see the video.
Map of Helsinki showing Silja terminal.
Helsinki ►
London
Day 1:
Travel from Helsinki to Turku by train, leaving Helsinki
main station at 17:02 by InterCity train,
arriving Turku Harbour (Satama) at 19:12.
Day 1:
Sail from Turku to Stockholm on the Viking Line cruise
ferry, leaving Turku Harbour at 21:00 and arriving
Stockholm Viking Line terminal at 06:30 next morning
(day 2). A range of comfortable cabins is
available, or you can party till dawn in the nightclub,
your choice! Transfer to Stockholm central
station.
Alternatively, why not leave a day earlier, using the
luxurious Silja Line or Viking Line overnight cruise
ferries direct from Helsinki to Stockholm, then spend a
day and night seeing Stockholm? The Silja ferry
sails from Helsinki at 17:00 arriving in Stockholm at
about 09:30 next morning. Departures are daily,
and a range of cabins is available.
Day 2:
Travel overnight from Copenhagen to Cologne by City
Night Line sleeper train 'Borealis', leaving Copenhagen daily at
18:10 and arriving Cologne at 06:14 next morning. This
train has couchettes (4-berth & 6-berth) and a
modern sleeping-car (1, 2 & 3 bed compartments, standard
with washbasin or deluxe with private shower & toilet).
More pictures &
information about City Night Line sleeper trains.
The departure times from Copenhagen has been known to
vary on some dates, for example leaving Copenhagen at
17:41 on certain days, so please check when
booking. A bistro car is available in the evening,
from Copenhagen as far as Hamburg.
Day 3: Travel from Brussels to
London by Eurostar. Daily except Saturdays, a
Eurostar
leaves Brussels
Midi at 12:56 and arrives London St Pancras at 14:03.
On Saturdays and also Mondays & Tuesdays from 18
February onwards, also Wed, Thurs & Fri from 2 April
onwards, a Eurostar leaves Brussels
Midi at 10:56
and arrives London St Pancras at 11:57.
Take Eurostar to Brussels, then
an ICE high-speed train
to Cologne...
An ICE to Cologne & Frankfurt waiting to leave
Brussels Midi.
More ICE information.
ICE3
2nd class. ICEs are perhaps the most comfortable daytime trains
in Europe...
ICE3 1st class, with real leather seats. All seats in
both classes have power sockets.
Introducing the City Night Line sleeper
train 'Borealis' from Cologne to Copenhagen...
The
Cologne-Copenhagen overnight train is one of the German
Railway's excellent City Night Line sleeper trains. It
has a modern sleeping-car (1, 2 & 3-berth deluxe rooms with
private shower and toilet, 1, 2 & 3-berth standard rooms
with washbasin, there's a shower at the end of the corridor
and all rooms have power-points for laptop computers), modern
air-conditioned couchettes (choose between a berth in a 4
or 6-berth compartment), and ordinary seats (not
recommended). A bistro car is attached between
Hamburg and Copenhagen in both directions. Inclusive fares are charged covering travel
plus sleeping accommodation. More pictures
& information about this City Night Line train.
1, 2 or 3 bed sleeper:
The most comfortable & civilised option, standard with
washbasin or deluxe with shower & toilet.
4-berth couchettes:
Ideal for families, much more space per person than
6-berth couchettes.
6-berth couchettes:
A very economical option, far better than a seat for
just a few euros more...
Above: One
of the new 'Comfortline' sleeping-cars on the
Cologne-Copenhagen City Night Line sleeper train.
... and
the 125mph X2000 trains from Copenhagen to Stockholm...
A 125 mph X2000 train at Copenhagen, about to leave
for Stockholm...
2nd class seating on the X2000. All seats have
power sockets for laptops & mobiles...
Self-service buffet car on the X2000...
Across the
Baltic with Viking
Line or Silja Line from Stockholm to Turku & Helsinki...
Viking Line
& Silja Line both operate an overnight cruise ferry from Stockholm
to Turku and another from Stockholm direct to Helsinki.
The ferries are more like floating
hotels, with luxurious en suite cabins, nightclubs,
bars, restaurants, cafés, shopping centres & cinemas.
The direct ferries to Helsinki are more expensive, and leave
in the early evening, too early for same-day connections
when travelling from London. The Stockholm-Turku
ferries are cheaper and leave later in the evening, allowing
same-day connections when using the sleeper train from
Cologne to Copenhagen & X2000 onwards to Stockholm. A
'boat train' links Turku Harbour station with Helsinki soon
after the ship's arrival.
The Viking
Line ferry from Stockholm to Turku. Silja line
operate a similar competing ferry, but as it leaves half
an hour earlier it's a tighter connection...
Photo courtesy of Matthew Philips
A 2-berth
cabin on board the ferry to Finland... Photo courtesy of Matthew
Philips
The 08:15 'boat train' from Turku
Harbour to Helsinki is a double-deck InterCity train.
Note the children's play area!
Photo courtesy of Matthew Philips
Turku-Helsinki train fares can be checked at
www.vr.fi.
Buy tickets
online...
You will need
to use several websites, but it's not difficult.
First, jot down each specific train and ferry you want to
book and the date on which you want to book it, using the
outward & return journey details above. Then follow
the booking steps below to book each stage of the trip.
It's best to do a dry run on each website first to check
availability and prices, before booking for real. You
should also double-check all the train & ferry times to make
sure there have been no changes and all the connections work
as per the journey details above. Remember you can't
book the trains until 90 days before departure. Here's
how to book online using two possible methods, either Rail
Europe or Eurostar & the German Railways website:
Above:
Helsinki's beautiful art deco station, by famous Finnish
architect Eliel Saarinen.
If you live in the UK, the easiest way to book train tickets from London to
Stockholm is at
www.raileurope.co.uk,
because all the trains can be booked as a single
transaction on one UK-based website. If you live
outside the UK, or want to book 4-berth couchettes (which
for some reason raileurope.co.uk currently won't do) then
use
www.b-europe.com &
www.bahn.de
instead, see the next section. In any case, it's a
good idea to check prices by both methods
as one is often cheaper than the other.
Step 1, go to
www.raileurope.co.uk,
but resist the temptation to enter 'London' & 'Stockholm'
(let alone Helsinki!) all in one go as this won't work, or
even if it does it won't find the
cheapest fares.
First, enter 'Cologne' &
'Copenhagen' and book the overnight train from Cologne to
Copenhagen & back. Obviously, in the search results simply
look for the direct train with no changes. For some
reason it won't book 4-berth couchettes, and may struggle
with 2-berth sleepers with shower, but if you have any
difficulties like this simply book this train using
www.bahn.de
instead, as described in the next section. Add this
ticket to your basket and click 'continue shopping'.
Step 2, still at
www.raileurope.co.uk,
now book the train from Brussels to Cologne & back, using
the train times above as your guide. Add this ticket
to your basket and click 'continue shopping'.
Step 3, still at
www.raileurope.co.uk,
now book the Eurostar from London to Brussels & back, using
the train times above as a guide. By all means take an
earlier Eurostar outwards, or a later one back, if it has
cheaper seats available or if you'd like to stop off in
Brussels. Add this to your basket.
Step 4, book the Copenhagen-Stockholm train.
The easy way is to stay with
www.raileurope.co.uk,
click 'continue shopping' and book a ticket from Copenhagen
to Stockholm & back. The second way, which is often cheaper, is to book the
Copenhagen-Stockholm train online direct from Swedish Railways
at www.sj.se (no booking fee,
see my advice on using
it here. If you can't get the SJ site to
work for any reason, try
www.bokatag.se instead (though they add a small fee)
or simply call SJ telesales on +46 771 75 75 75 (touch
tone 6 for English). The price you'll pay using
www.sj.se or SJ telesales is the actual Swedish Railways
price, which varies like budget airline fares. The cheap
deals start 90 days before departure. If you
book several months in advance you can find really cheap
fares available,
rising to much higher levels closer
to departure. You simply print out your own ticket
or collect your tickets
from the Swedish Railways (SJ) ticket machines which are
installed at Copenhagen main station.
Step 5,
book the Stockholm-Turku ferry: You can book the
Viking Line Stockholm-Turku ferry at
www.vikingline.fi or the Seat61 Ferry
Shop. If you're staying a day or two in Stockholm
and taking the direct Silja Line Stockholm-Helsinki ferry,
you can book this at
www.silja.com.
Step 6,
book the Turku-Helsinki train: You can do this
online at
www.vr.fi. It's Turku Harbour (Satama) station
that you should select.
www.raileurope.co.uk
can send tickets to any UK address and they normally arrive
within a couple of days. Only UK credit cards are
accepted.
Anyone from any country can book a London-Helsinki journey
in either direction using
a combination of the Belgian Railways website
www.b-europe.com, the German Railways
website
www.bahn.de
and the Swedish website
www.sj.se,
plus the relevant ferry website. Booking opens 90 days
before departure.
This method involves several websites, so do a dry run on both
sites to check prices and availability before booking for
real.
Step 1, book
your London-Cologne ticket: First, check to see if
there's a cheap 'London spezial' available from German
Railways, using these special links for the outward trip:
leaving London
for Cologne at 15:04 any day except Saturdays or
leaving London
for Cologne at 12:57 on Saturdays. And these
special links for the inward journey:
leaving Cologne
for London at 07:43 any day except Saturdays or
leaving Cologne at 07:43 on Saturdays.
Fares start at 49 euros each way,. If you find some
cheap fares this way, great, if not, try this. Go to
the Belgian Railways international website
www.b-europe.com and book a ticket from London to Cologne
and back using the
train times on this page as a guide.
You print off your own tickets. B-europe.com can book
both Eurostar+Thalys and Eurostar+ICE, and their booking
system handles this two-leg journey well, usually seeming to
find the cheapest prices.
Make sure you allow plenty of time for the connection in
Cologne, preferably at least an hour when connecting with a sleeper train.
It's obvious, but remember that your return departure date from Cologne will
be the day after your departure date from Copenhagen!
By all means take an earlier train from London to Cologne,
or a later train returning from Cologne to London, if this
has cheaper fares available or if you'd like some time in
Cologne.
Step
2, book the Cologne-Copenhagen sleeper train: Go to the German
Railways website
www.bahn.de and book a sleeper or couchette from Cologne (Köln Hbf)
to Copenhagen (Koebenhvn H) and
back on the direct CNL sleeper train, looking for the cheap 'Spezial' fares. You pay online and print out your own ticket
in .PDF format on your own PC printer. Easy!
Step 3,
book the Copenhagen-Stockholm X2000 train: Now book the
Copenhagen-Stockholm train online direct with Swedish Railways
at
www.sj.se (no booking fee,
see my advice on using
it here). If you can't get the SJ site to
work for any reason, try
www.bokatag.se instead (though they add a small fee)
or simply call SJ telesales on +46 771 75 75 75 (touch
tone 6 for English). The price you'll pay using
www.sj.se or SJ telesales is the actual Swedish Railways
price, which varies like budget airline fares. The cheap
deals start 90 days before departure. If you
book a month or two in advance you can find really cheap
fares available, rising to much higher prices closer to
departure. You simply print out your own ticket or
collect your tickets from the Swedish Railways (SJ)
ticket machines which are installed at Copenhagen main
station (see
photo).
Step 4,
book the Stockholm-Turku ferry: You can book the
Viking Line Stockholm-Turku ferry at
www.vikingline.fi or the Seat61 Ferry
Shop. If you're staying a day or two in Stockholm
and taking the direct Silja Line Stockholm-Helsinki ferry,
you can book this at
www.silja.com or the Seat61 Ferry
Shop.
Step 5,
book the Turku-Helsinki train: You can do this
online at
www.vr.fi. It's Turku Harbour (Satama) station
that you should select.
How to
buy tickets by phone...
Step 1:
Buy your train tickets from London to Stockholm. You
can buy all these tickets through a number of UK agencies, but the best
for this trip is probably Deutsche
Bahn's UK office on 08718 80 80 66
(lines open 09:00-20:00 Mon-Fri, 09:00-13:00 Sat &
Sun, no booking fee, 2% credit card charge, no charge for
debit cards), or
European Rail
on 020 7619 1083 (lines open 09:00-17:30
Monday-Friday, 09:00-13:00 Saturday, £25 booking fee per transaction).
Click
here for a list
of agencies and more info on how to
book.
Step 2: Silja Line
tickets can be bought online at
www.silja.com
or through their UK agents, DFDS Seaways, on
0871 522 9955. Viking Line can be booked
online at either the Seat61 Ferry
Shop or
www.vikingline.fi or by phone though its UK agent, Emagine Ltd, on 01942 262662.
Tailor-made train travel + hotel arrangements...
If you want a compete tailor-made
trip with all your rail travel expertly booked for you and
good quality hotels arranged, UK residents can call
www.railbookers.com on 020 3327 0761. US
residents can call them on (646) 770 2894 (please
quote seat61) and Canadian residents on (416) 800 0732
(please quote 'seat61'). Australian residents can call
their Australian office,
www.railbookers.com.au on 02 8096 0550.
Just tell them what you want, and they'll advise you on the
best trains, routes & hotels and sort it all out for you,
hassle-free. They get very positive reviews and take
good care of their guests.
This leisurely option runs every day and takes 3 nights
outward to Helsinki, just 2 nights inward back to London.
In the outward direction it includes a day at leisure
exploring Hamburg, too. Take an afternoon Eurostar to
Paris and the City Night Line overnight sleeper to Hamburg.
After a day exploring Hamburg, transfer by local train to
Travemünde on Germany's Baltic coast, then take the daily
Finnlines ferry from Travemünde to Helsinki, a 2-night
cruise. This route is the one via Hamburg shown in dark blue on
the route map above, although in
the return direction you'll follow the red route between
Hamburg and London.
London ► Helsinki
Day 1, travel from London to
Paris by Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras at
16:01 (15:31 at weekends), arriving Paris 19:17 (18:47
weekends).
By all means take an earlier Eurostar if
this has cheaper seats available of if you'd like to stop
off in Paris for a while. It's a
10-minute walk
from Paris Nord to Paris Gare de l'Est.
Day 1 evening, travel from Paris to Hamburg by City Night
Line sleeper train 'Andromeda', leaving Paris Gare de l'Est
daily at 20:05 (20:20 at weekends) and arriving at Hamburg Hauptbahnhof at 08:37
next morning. The Paris-Hamburg overnight train is one
of the German Railway's excellent City Night Line sleeper
trains. It has modern sleeping-cars (1, 2 & 3-berth
deluxe rooms with private shower and toilet, 1, 2 & 3-berth
standard rooms with washbasin, shower at the end of the
corridor, all rooms with power points for mobiles & laptop
computers), modern air-conditioned couchettes (choose
between a berth in a 4 or 6-berth compartment), and ordinary
seats (not recommended). The sleeping-car fare
includes a light breakfast.
More
pictures & information about this train.
Alternatively, travel from London to Hamburg by daytime
trains leaving London on day 1 at 08:27 Mondays-Fridays,
08:57 weekends, and spend the night in a hotel in Hamburg.
See the
London
to Germany page for details of all options.
Spend the day in Hamburg, left luggage lockers are
available.
Day 2 evening, transfer from Hamburg to 'Lübeck Travemünde
Skandinavienkai Terminal' by local train. You take a
local train from Hamburg Hauptbahnhof to Lübeck which runs
every 30 minutes throughout the day, hourly in the evening,
journey time 42-43 minutes. At Lübeck, leave the
station and follow the signs to the 'ZOB' bus station, and
take a bus to 'Travemünde Skandinavienkai Terminal' (note
that this is not the same stop as 'Travemünde
Skandinavienkai'). You can check journey times from
Hamburg to Travemünde Skandinavienkai Terminal at the German
Railways website,
just use this link to bahn.de as it has the bus times in
its database as well as the trains. At the terminal,
walk into the unassuming building next to the stop for check
in.
Day 2-3, sail from Travemünde to Helsinki on the daily
Finnlines ferry, see
www.finnlines.com. The ship boards from 23:00 to
24:00 (day 2) and sails at 03:00 (day 3), arriving at
Helsinki Vuosaari ferry terminal outside Helsinki at 07:30
on day 4. The ship may not be quite as glamorous as
some other cruise ferries on the Baltic, but it has all the
essentials: Comfortable cabins with private shower &
toilet and free internet access (but not WiFi, so bring a
network cable), restaurant, shop, bar, sundeck, and
(naturally, being Finnish) a sauna. It's a very
civilised way to travel.
Day 4, transfer from the Vuosaari terminal to central
Helsinki. Helsinki's new Hansa Ferry Terminal in the
Vuosaari Harbour is 16km east of central Helsinki.
There is a bus connection (bus 90B) between Vuosaari harbour
and Vuosaari metro station. Take the metro from
Vuosaari into central Helsinki.
Map of Helsinki showing Vuosaari.
Helsinki ►
London
Day 1,
transfer from Helsinki to the Vuosaari ferry terminal,
some 16 km east of Helsinki. You can take the
metro from anywhere in central Helsinki to Vuosaari
station, then bus 90B from Vuosaari metro station to the
Vuosaari's Hansa ferry terminal.
Map of Helsinki showing Vuosaari.
Day 1, sail
from Helsinki to Travemünde on the daily Finnlines
ferry, see
www.finnlines.com. Check in is between 13:30
and 16:30. The ship sails at 17:30 and arrives at
Travemünde at 20:30 the next day (day 2). The ship
is has all the essentials: Comfortable cabins with
private shower & toilet and free internet access (but
not WiFi, so bring a network cable), restaurant, shop,
bar, sundeck, and sauna.
Day 2,
transfer by bus and local train to Hamburg Hauptbahnhof.
Buses link the ferry terminal (Travemünde
Skandinavienkai Terminal) with Lübeck ZOB bus station,
it's a short walk to Lübeck station, then local trains
run every 30-60 minutes to Hamburg Hbf.
Spend the
night in a hotel in Hamburg. Alternatively, you
could spend the night in Travemünde or Lübeck if you
prefer, and transfer into Hamburg next morning.
Day 3,
travel from Hamburg to London using any of the
options shown on the Germany page. For
example, the 07:46 InterCity from Hamburg Hauptbahnhof,
change at Cologne for an ICE train to Brussels, change
at Brussels for the Eurostar to London, will get you to
London St Pancras between 16:57 and 18:12 depending on
the day of the week. Or there's a 10:45 from
Hamburg, change at Cologne and Brussels, arriving London
around 20:00 (an hour or so later on Saturdays).
How much does
it cost?
London to
Hamburg by Eurostar+sleeper train starts at around £81
one-way including a couchette in a 6-bunk
compartment or £107 one-way including a bed in a 2-bed
sleeper. But the price varies. For full details
of fares in each type of seat, couchette and sleeper, see
the London to Germany page.
London to Hamburg by daytime trains starts at just 49 euros
(£43) with a London Spezial fare, if one is available,
though the price varies.
Hamburg to
Travemünde by local train and bus costs only a few
euros.
Travemünde to
Helsinki by Finnlines ferry costs between 79 and 119
euros (£69-£103) each way in a reclining seat depending on
the day and season. However, I recommend a cabin.
The fare including a bed in a 3-bed shared inside cabin is
between 129 and 216 euros each way. The fare including
a bed in a 2-bed outside cabin is between 189 and 309 euros
(£164-£269) each way. Children under 6 go free, and
there are reduced fares for children 6 to 12 and youth fares
for children 13-17. See the fares at
www.finnlines.com.
Hamburg to
London by daytime trains starts at just 49 euros (£43)
with a London Spezial fare, if one is available, though the
price varies.
How to buy
tickets online...
It takes several
websites so it's best to try a dry-run on all of them first
to check prices and availability before booking for real,
but here's how it's done:
Step 1, book the Travemünde-Helsinki ferry, online at
www.finnlines.com.
Step2, book the Paris-Hamburg sleeper train. Go to
www.bahn.de, the German Railways website. Book from Paris to
Hamburg
Hbf looking for the direct CNL train with 0 changes in the
search results and clicking to check availability of the cheap 'savings' fares.
You pay by credit card and print out
your own tickets in .pdf format. Easy! Note that
the prices shown on
www.bahn.de are in euro, and are the
total cost for all passengers selected, not per person.
You can buy your Hamburg-Lübeck-Travemünde local ticket
at the station when you get to Hamburg.
Step
3,
book your London-Paris Eurostar. Go to
www.eurostar.com to book your connecting Eurostar
tickets between London and Paris, using the Eurostar times
above as a guide. By all means book an earlier
Eurostar outwards, or a later Eurostar on the way back, if
this has cheaper seats available of if you'd like to stop
off in Paris for a while. Eurostar tickets can be sent to any UK
address, self-printed or collected at the station.
Alternative step 2 & 3, book London to Hamburg by daytime
trains: If you want to travel from London to
Hamburg by daytime train instead of using the sleeper, try
for a cheap 'London Spezial fare' using this link:
London to Hamburg departing London at 08:27 Monday-Friday or 08:57 at weekends.
You can buy your Hamburg-Lübeck-Travemünde local ticket
at the station when you get to Hamburg (although you could
try booking from London direct to Lübeck instead of Hamburg,
it may well be the same price so could save a few euros).
Alternative step 4: If you don't see any suitable
fares from Hamburg to London using the links above, try
booking Hamburg to Brussels at
www.bahn.de
then Brussels-London at
www.eurostar.com. If you want to travel on an
earlier train from Hamburg, first book Hamburg to Cologne at
www.bahn.de,
then book Cologne to London at
www.raileurope.co.uk
(UK residents only).
How to buy
tickets by phone...
Step 1, buy
your ferry ticket: Finnlines telesales number in
Germany is 00 49 451 1507 443.
Step 2, buy your London-Hamburg train tickets: You can buy
tickets from the
UK's
Deutsche Bahn office, on 08718 80 80 66 (lines
open 09:00-20:00 Monday-Friday, 09:00-13:00 Saturday &
Sunday, no booking fee, 2% credit card charge).
Alternatively, you can also buy them from
www.europeanrail.com (a booking fee is charged).
London to Helsinki
by train to Berlin & ferry to Finland...
This leisurely option runs 3 or 4 times a week and takes 2 days &
3 nights. It's slightly slower than the ferry from
Travemunde, but you may prefer a chance to stop off in
Berlin. Take
an afternoon Eurostar to Paris and the City Night Line overnight sleeper to Berlin, a
train to Rostock on Germany's Baltic coast, then a
Tallink or Finnlines ferry from Rostock direct to Helsinki, a 2-night
cruise.
This route is the one via Berlin and Rostock shown in dark blue on
the route map above.
London ► Helsinki
Day 1, travel from London to
Paris by Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras at
16:01 (15:31 at weekends), arriving Paris 19:17 (18:47
weekends).
To connect with the four-times-a-week ferry you need to
leave London on a Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday
afternoon. By all means take an earlier Eurostar if
this has cheaper seats available of if you'd like to stop
off in Paris for a while. It's a
10-minute walk
from Paris Nord to Paris Gare de l'Est.
Day 1 evening, travel from Paris to Berlin
by sleeper train, leaving
Paris Gare de l'Est daily at 20:05 (20:20 at weekends) and arriving at Berlin
Hauptbahnhof at 08:26 next morning. The
Paris-Berlin
overnight train is one of the
German Railway's excellent City Night Line sleeper trains. It
has modern sleeping-cars
(1, 2 & 3-berth deluxe rooms with private shower and
toilet, 1, 2 &
3-berth standard rooms with washbasin, shower at
the end of the corridor, all rooms with power points for
mobiles & laptop computers),
modern air-conditioned couchettes (choose between a berth in
a 4 or 6-berth compartment), ordinary seats (not
recommended) and a bistro-restaurant
car. Inclusive fares are charged covering
travel plus sleeping accommodation. The
sleeping-car fare includes a light breakfast.
More pictures
& information about this train.
Day 2, spend
some time seeing Berlin, then take a train from Berlin
to Rostock in northern Germany. The train takes
around 3 hours, there are regular departures through the
day, you can check train times at
www.bahn.de. In Rostock, take a taxi
from the station to the port (Rostock Überseehafen),
about 25 euro.
Boarding for foot passengers starts at 21:30. You must reach the terminal no later than
midnight, as this
is when the last boarding for foot passengers takes
place, on a shuttle bus at 00:30 from the Tallink office
to the ship.
Day 2 afternoon, board the Finnlines ferry at least an
hour before departure. She sails from Rostock at
16:30 on Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays all year
round, calling at
Gdynia in Poland 07:00-11:00 next day, arriving in
Helsinki at 09:00 the following day (Thursday, Saturday,
Monday). This ferry also arrives at the new Hansa
Ferry Terminal in the Vuosaari Harbour 16km east of
central Helsinki.
Map of Helsinki showing Vuosaari. You can check details with
www.finnlines.com. The competing Tallink ferry
from Rostock to Helsinki was withdrawn in August 2011.
Helsinki ►
London
Day 1, sail from Helsinki to
Rostock in Germany with Finnlines, departing Helsinki at
18:30 on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays all year round, calling at
Gdynia in Poland 15:00-17:00 next day, arriving Rostock
at 08:30 the following day (Thursday, Saturday, Monday).
This ferry also sails from the Hansa Ferry Terminal in
the Vuosaari Harbour 16km east of central Helsinki.
Map of Helsinki showing Vuosaari. You can check sailing dates & times at
www.finnlines.com.
Day 3, take
a train from Rostock to Berlin. The train takes
around 3 hours, there are regular departures through the
day, you can check train times at
www.bahn.de.
Day 3, travel from Berlin to Paris by City Night Line
sleeper train, leaving Berlin Hauptbahnhof daily at
20:07 and arriving Paris Gare de l'Est at 09:24 next
morning. The
Berlin-Paris sleeper has ordinary seats (not recommended), couchettes (4-bunk or
6-bunk) and modern sleeping-cars (1, 2 or 3-berth standard
rooms with washbasin or
deluxe rooms with private shower & toilet), plus a bistro-restaurant car.
Breakfast is included in the fare for sleeper passengers.
More pictures
& information about this train.
In Paris, it's an easy
10-minute walk
from the Gare de l'Est to the Gare du Nord.
Day 4, travel from
Paris to London by Eurostar. A Eurostar leaves
Paris at 11:13
arriving London St Pancras at 12:30.
How much does
it cost?
London to
Berlin by Eurostar+sleeper train starts at around £117 return including a couchette in a 6-bunk
compartment. For full details
of fares in each type of seat, couchette and sleeper, see
the London to Germany page.
Berlin to
Rostock costs around 33 euro (£25) one-way, 66 euro
(£50) return.
Rostock to
Helsinki by Finnlines ferry costs between 79 and 119
euros (£69-£103) each way in a reclining seat depending on
the day and season. However, I recommend a cabin.
The fare including a bed in a 3-bed shared inside cabin is
between 129 and 216 euros each way. The fare including
a bed in a 2-bed outside cabin is between 189 and 309 euros
(£164-£269) each way. Children under 6 go free, and
there are reduced fares for children 6 to 12 and youth fares
for children 13-17. See the fares at
www.finnlines.com.
How to buy
tickets online...
It takes several
websites so it's best to try a dry-run on all of them first
to check prices and availability before booking for real,
but here's how it's done:
Step1, book the Paris-Berlin sleeper train. Go to
www.bahn.de, the German Railways website.
Book from Paris to Berlin
Hbf and back by the overnight sleeper train.
Availability of both cheap 'spezial' special fares and
fully-flexible full fares will be shown, for each type of
seat, couchette & sleeper. You pay by credit card and print out
your own tickets in .pdf format. Easy! Note that
the prices shown on
www.bahn.de are in euro, and are the
total cost for all passengers selected, not per person.
Step 2,
book your Eurostar. Go to
www.eurostar.com to book your connecting Eurostar
tickets between London and Paris, using the Eurostar times
above as a guide. By all means book an earlier
Eurostar outwards, or a later Eurostar on the way back, if
this has cheaper seats available of if you'd like to stop
off in Paris for a while. Eurostar tickets can be sent to any UK
address, self-printed or collected at the station.
Step 3, book the Rostock-Helsinki ferry.
To book the Finnlines ferry, book online at
www.finnlines.com.
Step 4, you simply can buy your Berlin-Rostock ticket
when you get to Berlin at the station, or buy it online at
www.bahn.de.
How to buy
tickets by phone...
London-Berlin-Rostock train tickets: You can buy
all the
London-Berlin-Rostock tickets from the
UK's
Deutsche Bahn office, on 08718 80 80 66.
Lines open 0900-1700 Mon-Fri, no booking fee.
Alternatively, you can also buy them from
www.europeanrail.com (a booking fee is charged).
Rostock-Helsinki ferry ticket: The best way to
book is by phone with Tallink's UK agents, DFDS Seaways, on
0871 522 9955. Phone lines are open
09:00-17:00
Mondays-Fridays, 09:30-17:00 Saturdays, 10:00-16:00 Sundays.
Finnlines telesales number in Germany is 00 49 451 1507
443.
London to Helsinki
by ferry to Denmark, train to Stockholm, ferry to
Finland...
The journey shown here involves
sailing to Denmark aboard DFDS Seaways' cruise ferry from
Harwich to Esbjerg, then taking trains on to Stockholm for
the overnight Silja Line or Viking Line cruise ferry to
Finland. The DFDS ferry sails 3 or 4 times a week.
It's more leisurely than the Eurostar-based option via
Brussels & Stockholm described above. It takes 3
nights, but this includes the best part of a day in
Stockholm. This route is shown in yellow on the
route map above.
London ► Helsinki
Day 1, travel from London to Harwich by train, leaving
London Liverpool Street at 14:00 (14:02 on Sundays),
changing trains at Manningtree and arriving Harwich International
at 15:17 (15:43 on Sundays). Harwich International station is right next
to the ferry terminal. The train runs hourly, but
this departure gives plenty of time to catch the ferry.
Please double-check train times at
www.nationalrail.co.uk.
Day 1, sail from
Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark aboard DFDS Seaways 'Dana Sirena'.
The Dana Sirena sails from Harwich every Wednesday, Friday & Sunday
at 18:00 (increased to every second day in
June, July & August ), arriving in Esbjerg at 13:00 next
day (day 2).
www.dfds.co.uk
will confirm sailing dates. The Dana Sirena is a
modern and well-run ship, with comfortable cabins,
two restaurants, a bar, coffee shop and lounges, see the
photos below. On arrival at Esbjerg, take a taxi
or bus or simply walk to the
railway station. Bus number 5 runs from the ferry
terminal to the
station every 20 minutes, bus fare 15 Kr adult 8 Kr
child. If you've a backpack or light luggage,
you can easily walk from the ferry terminal to the
pedestrianised town centre in about 10-15 minutes, from
where it's another 5-10 minutes walk to the station.
The station is a historic red-brick building, though not
very distinctively marked.
Day 2 afternoon, travel from
Esbjerg to Copenhagen by air-conditioned InterCity
train, leaving Esbjerg town station at 14:42 and arriving
Copenhagen
main station at 17:50. The journey is about 175
miles, right across Denmark in air-conditioned comfort.
Day 2 evening, travel from
Copenhagen to Stockholm overnight, leaving Copenhagen
by frequent local train at 21:12 arriving Malmö
at 21:46 (these Copenhagen-Malmö local trains run every 20 minutes). A sleeper train leaves Malmö
at 22:38
arriving Stockholm at 06:30 next morning (day 3). This sleeper
train runs daily except Saturday nights, and has couchettes (6 bunk) and sleepers (1 & 2 bed
rooms with washbasin). Alternatively,
spend the night in Copenhagen and head for Stockholm the
next day. Regular high speed tilting 'X2000' trains link Copenhagen with
Stockholm, check train times at
www.bahn.de.
Day 3: Enjoy the best
part of a day free in Stockholm. Late in the
afternoon, transfer to the Silja Line terminal. The terminal
is about 2.5km from the city centre, 500m from Gärdet metro station. A shuttle bus links the Cityterminal (the bus terminal next to the central railway station) with the
Silja terminal. Silja Line's ferries sail
daily at 17:00 arriving in Helsinki at about 09:30 next
morning (day 4 from London). It's a very scenic
voyage, as the liner sails out of Stockholm past all the
islands,
see this video.
Map of Helsinki showing Silja terminal.
Helsinki ►
London
Day 1, sail
on the luxurious Silja Line cruise ferry from
Helsinki at 17:00 arriving in Stockholm at about
09:30 next
morning. Departures are daily, and a range of
cabins is available. Transfer by bus or metro to
Stockholm central station. Enjoy day 2 free in
Stockholm.
Day 2, travel from Stockholm to
Copenhagen overnight, leaving Stockholm
at 22:23 by sleeper train and arriving Malmö at 06:17 next
morning. This sleeper runs daily except Saturday
nights, with both couchettes and sleepers. A connecting local
train leaves Malmö every 20 minutes, with one at 06:42 arriving Copenhagen at 07:16.
The sleeper train has seats, couchettes (6 bunk) and
sleepers (1 & 2 bed rooms). Alternatively, on
Mondays-Saturdays there is a high
speed X2000 train leaving Stockholm at 05:55 (06:14
on Saturdays) and
arriving Copenhagen at 10:40 (11:23 on Saturdays), allowing you to spend
the night in Stockholm and travel next day (day 3) to make a
same-day
connection to Esbjerg for the ferry to England.
Check times and days of running at
www.bahn.de.
Day 3, travel from Copenhagen to
Esbjerg by modern air-conditioned InterCity train, leaving Copenhagen at
12:30 and arriving Esbjerg at 15:26. You can
check times at
www.bahn.de. Take a bus or taxi or
simply walk (25 minutes) to
the DFDS ferry terminal. Bus number 5 runs from the station
to the port every 20 minutes.
Day 3 evening, sail from
Esbjerg to Harwich aboard DFDS cruise ferry 'Dana Sirena', leaving Esbjerg ferry
terminal at 18:45 on Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays, arriving Harwich at
12:00
next day (sailings are increased to every second day in
June, July & August). See
www.dfds.co.uk
to confirm sailing dates.
Day 4, travel from Harwich to
London by train, leaving Harwich at 12:33, changing
trains at Manningtree and arriving London Liverpool Street at
13:55.
The train service runs hourly, you can check
times at
www.nationalrail.co.uk.
Introducing DFDS
Seaways "Dana Sirena" from Harwich to Esbjerg...
The Dana
Sirena is a modern and well-run ship, built in 2002.
All passengers travel in cabins, and all cabins have a private
shower & toilet. Facilities on board include the 7 Seas buffet restaurant,
the Blue
Riband à la carte
restaurant, Café Lighthouse (with WiFi access for laptops), Columbus Lounge,
and shop. The ship is child-friendly, with children's play
area, child restraints for cabin berths available from
reception, and highchairs available in all restaurants and
lounges.
Cabins come in three classes:
Seaways class:
1-6 berths with private shower and toilet;
Sirena class: 1
or 2 berth with private shower and toilet, TV (BBC World,
BBC Prime), complimentary minibar, breakfast included;
Commodore
Deluxe: Hotel-style rooms with double bed or two single
beds, TV (BBC Prime, BBC World), small sitting area, private
shower and toilet. Commodore cabins are on their own
deck with exclusive access to the Commodore Lounge which has
sea views, complimentary tea, coffee, snacks, beer and (in
the evening) free wine and spirits, PC with internet access
and WiFi access if you have your own laptop. Commodore
Deluxe is like travelling to Scandinavia
aboard a
floating hotel, highly recommended..!
Crossing the North Sea aboard the Dana Sirena...
Commodore class cabin
with double bed.
Sirena class cabin.
On board the
Danish InterCity train from Esbjerg to Copenhagen...
Air-conditioned Danish InterCity train.
2nd class seats on board
the InterCity train...
All aboard for Copenhagen!
On board the X2000 daytime
train from Copenhagen to Stockholm...
With Silja Line from Stockholm to Helsinki...
The Silja Line
Stockholm-Helsinki cruise ferries are more like floating
cities than ferries, with luxurious cabins, nightclubs,
bars, restaurants, cafes, cinemas & shopping centres.
Silja
Line ferries 'Silja Symphony' (above left) and 'Silja
Serenade' (above right) on the overnight
Stockholm to Helsinki route
are more like cruise liners than ferries.
Photos courtesy of Silja Line.
The crossing is very scenic as the ship sails out of
Stockholm past all the islands - see this
short video of a Helsinki-Stockholm crossing with
Silja Line...
How much does
it cost?
London to
Harwich by train starts at just £8 each way if you
pre-book a cheap Advance
ticket (no refunds, only valid on the specific train you
book at these prices). If you buy tickets at the
station on the day of travel, the cost is £30.10 for an Off-Peak
1 month return, or £27.80 full
fare one-way. No reservation is necessary with these
fares, you just turn up, buy a ticket, and hop on the next
train.
Harwich to
Esbjerg by ferry starts at around £158 return for two people
sharing a 2-bed cabin with private toilet and shower (= £79
each) or £147 return for one person with sole use of a
cabin. To
check sailing dates, times and fares for different types of
cabin, visit
www.dfds.co.uk.
DFDS
Seaways now has an airline-style pricing system so prices
vary, book early and avoid peak times to get the cheapest fares. Children under 16 travel at
reduced fare. Unfortunately, DFDS
won't now let solo passengers share cabins, the whole cabin
must be booked.
Esbjerg to
Copenhagen by intercity train costs 347 Kr (£42) one way,
694 Kr (£84)
return for adults, or 173 Kr (£21) each way for children and
seniors over 65. Advance reservation is possible but not
necessary, tickets can be bought at the station on the day
and you can just hop on.
You can check fares at
www.dsb.dk
(Danish Railways).
Copenhagen to
Stockholm by sleeper train costs SEK 760 (£56) one-way
or SEK 1520 (£112) return per person travelling in 6-bunk
couchettes, or SEK 1170 (£87) one-way, SEK 2340 (£174)
return per person travelling in a 2-bed sleeper.
Step 1:
Buy your Harwich-Esbjerg ferry tickets online at
www.dfds.co.uk
(no booking fee)
or by calling DFDS Seaways on 0871 522 9955, although there's a £20 fee for phone bookings.
Phone lines are open 09:00-17:30 Mondays-Fridays,
09:00-17:00 Saturdays, closed Sundays. If you
book by phone, you can also buy your Silja Line ferry ticket
from DFDS.
You can buy
your London-Harwich & Esbjerg-Copenhagen train tickets at
the station on the day of travel. No reservation is
necessary, and there's no price advantage in buying tickets
in advance. But if you want to save queuing at the
ticket office, you can buy
the London-Harwich ticket online at
www.nationalrail.co.uk and the Esbjerg-Copenhagen ticket
(with seat reservation) at
www.dsb.dk,
the Danish Railways website. This is in Danish, but
it's not difficult to work out how to use it if you're
familiar with the way such booking systems work. You
pay by credit card then print out your own ticket.
remember that Copenhagen in Danish is 'Kobenhavn'.
Alternatively, if you book by phone,
DFDS can add both UK and Esbjerg-Copenhagen tickets to your ferry fare, including
making a seat reservation on the Esbjerg-Copenhagen train.
Ask DFDS about special cheap train fares from other UK
stations to Harwich, too.
Step 2:
Buy the Copenhagen-Malmö-Stockholm sleeper tickets online at
www.sj.se (no booking fee,
see my advice on using
www.sj.se here).
You buy online and pick up your tickets from the SJ vending
machines at Copenhagen station, located just outside the
ticket office near the main entrance. Bookings open 90
days before departure.
Step 3: Silja Line
tickets can be bought online at
www.silja.com
or through their UK agents, DFDS Seaways, on 0871 522
9955. Viking Line can be booked
online at either the Seat61 Ferry
Shop or
www.vikingline.fi or by phone though its UK agent, Emagine Ltd, on 01942 262662.
The direct overnight train
called the "Tolstoi" is easily the best way to travel from
Helsinki to Moscow. It's safe, cheap, civilised and
comfortable. The train has been completely
refurbished, there are comfortable sleepers, a restaurant
and even business class sleepers with private shower.
Border controls have been streamlined.
Helsinki ► Moscow
Moscow ► Helsinki
The "Tolstoi"
Daily
The "Tolstoi"
Daily
Helsinki
depart
17:23
Moscow (Octyabrskaya)
depart
22:50*
Moscow (Octyabrskaya)
arrive
08:25
Helsinki
arrive
11:00
On board the
Helsinki-Moscow "Tolstoi"...
2nd class sleepers
with 4-berth compartments (each berth is sold separately)
1st class
sleepers with 2-berth compartments (if you are travelling
solo you can either book one bed in a 2-bed compartment and share,
or pay extra for sole occupancy)
Business class
deluxe sleeping-car with four 2-bed compartments,
each with private shower, toilet & DVD entertainment.
Only whole compartments are sold, you cannot book one berth
in a 2-berth deluxe sleeper. See photo below.
a
newly-refurbished bar-restaurant car. The restaurant
accepts Euros, US Dollars and Rubles, but not credit
cards.
The coaches on this train
were renewed in 2006, and it's a safe, affordable and very comfortable way to travel.
Customs and passport formalities are carried out on board
the train, no need to get off at the frontier. The
Russian border station is Vyborg.
See the Finnish Railways website
page which
shows sleeping berth layouts of each
type of sleeper and the restaurant car on the
Helsinki-Moscow train.
A 2nd class
4-berth sleeper on the Tolstoi...
A business
class en suite sleeper on the Tolstoi...
The
Tolstoi's restaurant car.
All Tolstoi photos courtesy of Finnish Railways VR.
Fares...
Helsinki to Moscow costs 106 euros (£92) one-way per person
in a 2nd class 4-berth sleeper, or 152 euros (£132) per
person in a 1st
class 2-berth sleeper, or 196 euro (£170) in a 1st class
sleeper with sole occupancy.
Travel in a deluxe business class sleeper with private
toilet & shower costs 278 euros (£241) per person for two
people or 390 euros (£339) for sole occupancy.
A return is twice the one-way fare.
Children aged 6 to 16 (inclusive) travel at half fare.
Children under 6 go free.
Anyone over 60 gets a 30% reduction. A passport must
be shown on the train.
You can check
these fares at
www.vr.fi (English button top right, look for 'international'
then 'Russia')
How to buy tickets...
Helsinki to Moscow:
You can buy Helsinki-Moscow tickets at the station
reservations office (the office at Helsinki is open
08:30-16:30 Monday-Friday, closed Saturday & Sunday), or by email with Finnish Railways on
international.tickets@vr.fi quoting journey & dates,
passenger name, date of birth, passport number, nationality,
date & time of travel and credit card details and they will
mail back a reservation number. Or you can call Finnish Railways
international reservations on +358 9 2319 2902
(Normally they require you to collect tickets two days
before departure, so be prepared to persuade them to allow
collection on the day!) The
Real Russia online booking
system can also book this journey, but you will need to
have tickets sent to the UK (£12 fee) or collected in London
(£6.50 fee) as Real Russia don't have offices in Helsinki
and e-tickets don't work for departures from Finland.
Moscow to Helsinki: Use the
Real Russia online booking
system here, tickets can be booked online & collected in
Moscow. Or you can buy at any main Russian station.
New fast 'Allegro' trains from
December 2010, and service doubled to 4 per day each way from May 2011!
Russian & Finnish Railways (RZD &
VR) have formed a joint venture to launch a high-speed
Helsinki-St Petersburg train service called 'Allegro'.
On 12 December 2010, two daily Allegro 'pendolino' tilting
electric trains started linking central Helsinki with central St
Petersburg in an airline-beating 3½
hours, down from the 5½ hours of the old 'Sibelius'
and 'Repin'. As from 29 May 2011 there will be four
daily departures and in due course the new service will be
further speeded up to 3 hours flat. The 130 mph tilting trains use the existing
track, the time is saved by track upgrading, the trains
tilting into curves,
no longer requiring a time-consuming locomotive change at
the frontier, and streamlined border checks.
News story.
Photos
Helsinki ► St Petersburg
St Petersburg ► Helsinki
Daily from 30 October 2011:
Allegro
Allegro
Allegro
Allegro
Daily from 29 May 2011:
Allegro
Allegro
Allegro
Allegro
Helsinki
depart
05:12
09:00
14:00
18:00
St
Petersburg (Finlandski)
depart
06:50
11:25
15:25
20:25
St
Petersburg (Finlandski)
arrive
10:48
14:36
19:36
23:36
Helsinki
arrive
08:26
13:01
17:01
22:01
The Russian border station is Vyborg. Note that Russia
is now GMT+4 all year round, Finland is GMT+2 in winter,
GMT+3 in summer, so the Helsinki times may vary by an hour
in summer.
Which station
in St Petersburg? Since September 2006, these
trains have been once again using St Petersburg Finlandski station,
not the new Ladozhki station which they used for a while.
On board Allegro trains...
The Allegro trains are tilting 'pendolino' electric trains,
with 1st & 2nd class, plus a proper restaurant car.
There's a children's play area, wheelchair spaces, and a
conference room. The first class fare includes a
snack, newspapers and tea or coffee from a self-service
counter. Allegro trains are all non-smoking. The
place of entry into Russia is Vyborg.
See Russian news video.
Russian president Putin rides the Allegro.
The 130mph
tilting Allegro train from Helsinki to St Petersburg.
Photo courtesy of VR
2nd class
seats on the Allegro train from Helsinki to St
Petersburg. Photo courtesy of VR
Fares...
Helsinki to St Petersburg by Allegro train costs 86.10 euros (£75) one-way in 2nd
class, 137 euros (£119).
Children aged 6 to 16 (inclusive) travel at half fare.
Children under 6 go free.
Anyone over 60 gets a 30% reduction. A passport must
be shown on the train.
You can check
these fares at
www.vr.fi (English button top right, look for 'trains to
Russia') or (if you don't mind hunting through Finnish
pages)
www.vr.fi/allegro.
How to buy tickets...
New!! Buy tickets online: New from autumn
2011, you can buy Allegro tickets online for travel in
either direction (Helsinki to St P or St P to Helsinki) at
the Finnish railways website
www.vr.fi. Select 'English' at the top, then look
for 'International', then 'Allegro' then 'Buy tickets to
Russia online!'. You pay online and an e-ticket is
emailed to you.
Helsinki to St Petersburg:
You can buy Helsinki-St Petersburg tickets at the station
reservations office (the office at Helsinki is open
08:30-16:30 Monday-Friday, closed Saturday & Sunday), or by email with Finnish Railways on
international.tickets@vr.fi quoting journey & dates,
passenger name, date of birth, passport number, nationality,
date & time of travel and credit card details and they will
mail back a reservation number. Or you can call Finnish Railways
international reservations on +358 9 2319 2902
(Normally they require you to collect tickets two days
before departure, so be prepared to persuade them to allow
collection on the day!).
St Petersburg to Helsinki: Use the
Real Russia online booking
system here, tickets can be booked online & collected in
Moscow. Or you can buy at any main Russian station.
The Thomas Cook European Timetable...
The
Thomas Cook European timetable
has train & ferry times for every country in Europe plus currency
& climate
information. Published since 1873, it costs £13.99.
It's essential for any serious traveller
and an inspiration for armchair travellers. Still
not convinced you need one? More information
on what the Thomas Cook Timetable contains. You can
buy the latest monthly edition online at
www.thomascooktimetables.com with worldwide delivery or
buy it in person from any UK branch of Thomas Cook (ask at the
bureau de change), or from W H Smiths in Victoria or Kings
Cross stations in London.
Or
buy the twice-yearly independent traveller's edition with
laminated cover from Amazon.co.uk:
Winter/Spring 2011/12 edition (Dec 2011 to June 2012) or
(when available)
Summer/Autumn 2012 edition (June to Dec 2012)
The Thomas Cook Rail Map of
Europe is the best and most comprehensive
map of train routes right across Europe, from Portugal in the
west to Istanbul, Moscow & Ukraine in the east, from Finland
in the north to Sicily & Crete in the south. High speed
&
scenic routes are highlighted. Highly recommended!
Buy online
at
www.amazon.co.uk
(worldwide delivery).
See an extract from
the map.
You
should take a good guidebook.
For the independent traveller, I think this means either the Lonely Planet or the
Rough
Guide. I personally prefer the layout of the Lonely Planet, but
others prefer the Rough Guide. Both guidebooks provide the same
excellent level of practical information and historical background.
You won't regret buying one! My own book, an essential handbook
for train travel to Europe based on this website called "The
Man in Seat 61", was published in June 2008, and
is available from Amazon with shipping worldwide.
www.hotelscombined.com
is probably the best hotel search system I've seen, a free search tool
which checks all the main hotel booking sites (Opodo, Expedia,
Booking.com, Hotels.com, AsiaRooms, Travelocity, LateRooms and
others) to find the cheapest hotel rates. Set up in
2005, it's probably the best place to start for booking any
hotel online in any country, worldwide.
Other hotel sites worth trying...
www.tripadvisor.com
is the place to find
independent travellers' reviews of all the main hotels.
www.booking.com is my own preferred hotel booking system
(Hotels Combined being a search/comparison system). It
has a simple interface, a good selection in most countries
worldwide, useful online customer reviews of each hotel, and
decent prices, usually shown inclusive of unavoidable extras
such as taxes (a pet hate of mine is systems that show one
price, then charge you another!).
Backpacker hostels...
www.hostelbookers.com: If you're on a tight budget,
don't forget about backpacker hostels. Hostelbookers
offers online booking of cheap private rooms or dorm beds in backpacker hostels
all over Europe & the world, at rock-bottom prices.
Travel insurance & health card...
Get travel insurance, it's essential...
Never travel without insurance from a
reliable travel insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover. It should also cover loss of
cash (up to a limit) and belongings, and cancellation. An annual
multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip
policies even for just 2 or 3 trips
a year (I have an annual policy myself).
Don't expect travel insurance to bail you out of every missed
connection, but European international rail conditions of
carriage (known as the 'CIV') contain consumer protection
provisions that entitle you to travel forward by the next
available train if you miss a connection because of a delay to
the first train, irrespective of who operates which train, and
even if your ticket is in theory train-specific and
non-changeable.
Feedback from using
insurance for rail & ferry travel is always welcome. Here are some suggested insurers.
Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these
links.
If you're a
UK citizen travelling in Europe, you should apply for a free
European Health Insurance Card, which entitles you to free or
reduced rate health care if you become ill or get injured in
many European countries, under a reciprocal arrangement with
the NHS. This replaced the old E111 forms
as from January 2006. The EHIC card is available from
www.ehic.org.uk. It doesn't remove the need for
travel insurance, though.
Get a spare credit card, one designed for foreign travel with no currency
exchange loading & low or no ATM fees...
It costs nothing to take out an extra credit card.
If you keep it in a different part of your luggage so you're
not left stranded if
your wallet gets stolen, this is a form of extra travel insurance in itself. In addition,
some credit cards are significantly better for
overseas travel than others. Martin Lewis's
www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money explains which
UK credit cards
have the lowest currency exchange commission loadings when you buy something
overseas, and the lowest cash withdrawal fees when
you use an ATM abroad. Taking this advice
can save you quite a lot on each trip compared to using your
normal high-street bank credit card! You can save money on ATM charges and exchange rates using a
Caxton FX euro currency Visa Card, or indeed the
multi-currency 'Global Traveller' Visa Card,
find out about these cards & sign up here.
Get an international SIM card
to save on mobile data and phone calls...
Mobile phones can cost a fortune to use abroad, and if you're
not careful you can return home to find some huge bills
waiting for you. I've known people run up over £1,000 in
data charges just by leaving their iPhone connected during a
simple trip to Europe. However, if you
buy a global SIM card for your mobile phone from a company
such as
www.Go-Sim.com you can slash the cost by up to 85% and
limit any damage to the amount you have pre-paid. Go-Sim
cuts call costs in 175 countries worldwide,
and you can receive incoming calls and texts for free in 75 countries. It's pay-as-you-go, so no nasty bills
when you get home. It also allows cheap data access for laptops
& PDAs. A Go-Sim account and any credit on it doesn't
expire if it's not used between trips, unlike some
others, so a Go-Sim phone number becomes your 'global phone
number' for life.
Rough
Guide. I personally prefer the layout of the Lonely Planet, but
others prefer the Rough Guide. Both guidebooks provide the same
excellent level of practical information and historical background.
You won't regret buying one! My own book, an essential handbook
for train travel to Europe based on this website called "
Backpacker hostels...
In
the UK, try
If you live in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the
EU, try
If you live in the USA or Canada, try
