My husband and I are are flying into Helsinki,Finland 10 days prior to joining RS's Scandinavian tour in Stockholm.
We would appreciate insight from others on how best to spend these 10 days. Does 3 nights in Helsinki, 2 nights in Tallin, and 4 extra nights in the Stockholm seem right or is there a better way to divide up this time? Thanks much to anyone who can advise us! :)
Posted by
Denver, CO, USA
1601 posts
Sounds like a good plan. If you are adventurous you could also try and visit Riga in Latvia for a couple of days and shorten the time in Stockholm.
I found Riga to be a great city to visit - probably not as advanced as the Scandanavian cities but worth a visit. We took the Eurolines bus from Tallinn. However, I'm not sure what your connections would be to get back to Stockholm.
Posted by
Nice, France
49 posts
Tallink sails from Riga to Stockholm,
http://www.tallinksilja.com/en/tab3/
Posted by
OP
Iowa
20 posts
Thanks Arnold and Marie.Your suggestions were appreciated.
Posted by
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
172 posts
If you have the time, Savonlinna, several hours north of Helsinki, is a very beautiful town, built on several islands on a lake. Also, the cruise around Helsinki harbour is nice. Helsinki is a pretty northern European city, with lots of attractions. I loved our walk around the historic part of Tallin, very picturesque. You won't need that much time in Stockholm.
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5849 posts
You can easily fill 4 days in Stockholm if you choose to, particularly if you venture beyond the city. Drottningholm Palace can be reached by boat or by a combination of t-bana and bus. It has nice gardens and a very interesting theatre from the 1700s. Mariefred is a very cute little town with Gripsholm Castle which is well worth a visit. Although you can get there by boat, I prefer the train route which includes a transfer to an old-fashioned steam train. You can take a day trip to Uppsala, a university town which has a cathedral and Scandinavia's oldest university. It is about 45 minutes by train from Stockholm.
In Stockholm, don’t miss the Vasa museum (a wonderful museum), the Stadshuset (City hall where the Nobel dinner is held … make sure to take an English tour as the guides are excellent), and Skansen (the open air museum). Gamla Stan (the old town) is also nice. I also think that the gold room in the Historiska Museet is amazing if you like viking treasures. If you like the sculpture of Carl Milles, Millesgården is a great place on a sunny day.
Östermalms Saluhallen (www.ostermalmshallen.se)is an indoor food market that sells produce, cheeses, baked goods, etc. It is a great place to pick up things for a picnic and there are also a couple of places in the market where you can eat. You will see lots of traditional Swedish foods. There are other food markets at Hötorget and in Södermalm, but I think the one in Östermalm is the most impressive and traditional.
Another place that I love for lunch is Rosendals Trädgårdscafe www.rosendalstradgard.se. This is an apple orchard and garden on Djurgården (the island in Stockholm where Skansen and the Vasa museum are) which has a wonderful café that makes excellent sandwiches, salads, and baked goods. It is very Swedish experience … sit outside at picnic tables in the orchard.
Trevlig Resa!