Helsinki Travel Forum

Hi, i am travelling to Helsinki for a couple of days in early March 2008 and i have booked a hostel at the eurohostel in town. I am wondering if it is easy to get a shuttle into town or directly to the hostel.

Does anyone know of a timetable or costs for such a service?

Any websites would be great.

Also does anyone know if staying at the eurohostel at this time of year is ok? Location wise?

I only have 2 days to see the sights (in the cold!) I am hoping for sub -10 degree weather as i am used to mid twenties here in Australia and i'd love to experience real cold!

Cheers

Ben

Hi, Ben, and welcome to Helsinki! You can get from airport to the city center by bus 615, which take you to the Central Railway Station (Rautatientori). The ride takes about 40 minutes and here's the timetable: http://aikataulut.ytv.fi/linjat/en/s615.html
A single ticket costs 3,60 euro and you can transfer to tram 4 near the railway station to get to the hostel. Another option is Finnair Citybus which is slightly faster than line 615, but the ticket is 5.20 and not transferable. See http://www.finnair.com/filecontent/com/citybus_com.txt for timetable. Eurohostel is a good choice, I stayed there couple of nights years ago. Location is very good, only some 10 minutes by tram from the very center of the city. -10 degrees is quite likely in early March, beacause the sea will probably be covered by ice and it will keep Helsinki cold.

So, have a freezing trip! :)

Well, actually the icy sea takes up a lot of energy coming from the sun in early spring, so the area near sea is colder than inland. Coastal area can only warm up when the sea is already warmer. On the contrary, in autumn weather near the sea is warmer than in inland, because the sea is still relatively warm (above zero, at least). I visited Helsinki today and it was quite chilly, but apparently it's not cold enough to ski even in far north, as a slalom World Cup event planned to take place in Levi next weekend was cancelled. Sorry for that. Anyway, last winter was extraordinarily short and warm all over the Europe, so it's impossible to predict what's the weather gonna be like in March. I wouldn't recommend to walk on the sea anyway, because, yes, you might fall through the ice, especially in the harbour :)

I understand that you can never garantee the weather, but i reckon i can garantee it will be colder at the start of march than any day in history in the middle of winter in Sydney.

When does the ice start to really melt in helsinki? Both on the streets and the sea?

Usually the ice starts to melt in late March or in April on the sea, but if the winter is really long and cold, you can see some fragments of ice even in May. On the streets you can meet some ice still in early April, but not necessarily.

Hello,
Here is at least one website. The bus routes covering all Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa, ie the capital area, www.ytv.fi
The link should be in English, and the information is very reliable. (We can be trusted on such things).
I'd recommend the tram 3b or 3t to have the cheap sightseeing tour. Check out the options for the bus ticket at the hostel - they will have the information for you there.
In any R-KIOSKI , a kiosk, you can buy the travel cards, cigarettes,maybe alos beer (just to taste). The supermarkets are open in KAMPPI centre where you get the subway connection as well. Check the shop called ANTTILA for souvenirs (like music CDs and glasses etc as they have their offers sometimes and surely worth checking). If you need to get any clothes, that could be the place for you or a shop called DRESSMANN I think it's Swedish) is ok, too. Trousers, shirts, underwear, socks etc
welcome to Finland,
Soili in the south of Finland