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How Many Days in Helsinki vs Tallin vs Gdank?

I am going to be traveling to the Baltic and Poland in August 2025, starting after a few days in Stockholm. I am planning to take the overnight boat from Stockholm to Helsinki, then a ferry to Tallin, and then onward to Gdansk for a RS Poland tour.

How many days should I allow to visit each of the cities - Helsinki, Tallin, and pre-tripping to Gdansk?

Helsinki is the Old Town walking tour, Design Center, Sibelius Monument, and the Suomenlinna Fortress. Anything should not miss? Or not a big deal to see?

Tallin is the Old Town walk, Vaamu Museum of Occupations and Freedoms, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. Similar questions to above.

Gdansk - Eplore Gdansk.

Posted by
7266 posts

A good start for a travel plan is to learn to spell the places you are planning to visit. The name of the Estonian capital is Tallinn, that's two N at the end. Tallin is the russian spelling that was used during the occupation and it can make the locals a bit upset if you use it.

How much time do you have in total? What are you interested in? The Sibelius Monument has been a bit controversial and might not be worth it if you're not a fan of abstract art, but two well known sculptures in the city is the Runeberg monument and Havis Amanda. It can also be worth it to stop by the railway station, even if you're arriving and leaving by boat. It is a very beautiful station.

There is a lot to see in Tallinn as well, it has a beautiful medieval centre, but for a taste of modern Estonia you can visit Telliskivi just north of the railway station.

Posted by
28 posts

Have not gone yet, but we are planning 3 nights each in Helsinki and Tallinn, with overnight boat back to Stockholm as we head to Norway for 7 more nights. Initially I had just planned 2 nights each but I feel better deciding on 3, knowing full well that more time could be spent.

Posted by
120 posts

For Helsinki, two more sites I would suggest are both churches- the Temppeliaukio church, cut into the rock and a very beautiful engineering feat, and and the silent chapel (Kamppi chapel), which is a tiny chapel in the middle of a busy area which is totally silent inside. I found both very moving and you don't need to be religious to appreciate either. For Tallinn, nothing beyond what you've already listed, and unfortunately I haven't been to Gdansk though I would love to go. There's also great shopping in Helsinki, especially Marimekko (clothes) and Iitala (dishware).

Posted by
51 posts

I spent two nights in Gdansk prior to starting the RS Best of Poland Tour and felt like this was a good amount of time.

I arrived late in the afternoon on Sunday and strolled around town for a bit then had an early dinner and was in bed by 8:00pm. The next day I visited the Museum of Amber in the morning, had a long lunch, then visited the Uphagen House, Main Town Hall, and Artus Court. I had also planned on visiting the three churches on the self-guided walking tour in the RS Guide Book, but I got a headache and ended up going back to the hotel to rest before dinner. I spent the whole day the tour started at the World War II Museum. On Day 2 of the Tour there was some free time in the afternoon and I visited the National Museum to see the amazing Last Judgement by Hans Memling.

Posted by
28599 posts

Helsinki is blessed with a lot of lovely Art Nouveau buildings. If you happen to like that style of architecture, you can spend several extra days there. I think for the typical tourist Tallinn (which is much older) has more "wow" things to see. I spent at least 8 days in each of those cities.

In addition to the sights already mentioned, Gdansk has the very interesting Solidarity Center. It's a deep look at the movement but doesn't take as long to see as the World War II museum (8 hr. vs. 20 hr. for me--I'm nuts about 20th-century history).