Helsinki Transport

The city is served by a comprehensive network of tram, bus and metro routes. It is worth noting however, that much of Helsinki can easily (and pleasantly) be explored on foot. ‘Tourist tickets’ are available and useful for those wanting to take in the surrounding area as well as the central sights, whilst the ‘Helsinki Ticket’ offers unlimited travel within the city for a specified period and also allows for free and discounted entry into many museums and attractions.

On a wet day the 3T tram offers a tour around Helsinki’s center. Its route takes in all the main sights and actually points these out as they are passed.

Day trips

Turku is not a day-trip destination but well worth seeing if you have the opportunity. Closer destinations of interest include the Järvenpää lying half an hour’s train-ride to the north of Helsinki. Here you can find the marital home of Jean Sibelius, the world-renowned Finnish composer whose music gave pleasure to millions of people during his life and has continued to do so since his death in nineteen fifty-seven.

To get a sense of traditional Finnish life as we perhaps imagine it, try Porvoo lying less than an hour’s train ride east of Helsinki and also connected by regular bus services. The wooden buildings, narrow streets and cobbled paths combined with a relaxed ambience and gentle riverside scenery allow for a relaxing and tranquil day out.