How to Easily Visit Suomenlinna: Your No-Fuss Guide

I just keep returning to Helsinki in winter, and on my last visit, I finally checked out Suomenlinna. While the rest of Helsinki felt like it was beginning to defrost, winter still felt like it had its hold on Suomenlinna just a little bit longer, with frosty chunks of ice bobbing on the surface of the Baltic.

I got lucky at the end of March: temperatures were borderline pleasant, the sun was pretty high in the sky and strong, and honestly? It was the best of all worlds, a rare bright, crisp winter day in what is often a drab, overcast, freezing long-haul winter.

My issue was timing. I was only in Helsinki for a day and a half after having taken the overnight train down from a longer visit in Rovaniemi (I visit frequently as my best friend and her partner live up there!).

And with limited time in Helsinki — just one proper full day, as the other half-day was dedicated to stressing about the airport, iykyk — I decided I wanted as much freedom as possible with my day’s itinerary. So I went on DIY mode, with no plans except “get on ferry, wander around, get back on”. And readers: I loved it!

The ferry ride was beautiful, but really, the whole experience from start to finish was incredible. It’s truly the perfect nature escape (complete with birdwatching and walking along a rocky coastal beach) right in the heart of Helsinki… all this, just 20 minutes away on one of the most beautiful boat rides in the Baltic Sea.

The main thing I didn’t get from my visit to Suomenlinna was historical context. Sure, I got to ooh and ahh over the pretty island, especially its pink gate, old walls, and brightly painted buildings… but there’s actually really not much in the way of historical placards around the island. So while I often could easily reach certain points of interest, I didn’t always know why what I was looking at was important.

A bit later, I read the Wikipedia page and realized just how interesting and multi-layered the history of Suomenlinna is. In retrospect, I do wish I had a guide. However, if you’re just going for the nature, vibes, and a choose-your-own-adventure-style wander, it’s extremely easy (and ultra cheap!) to DIY as I did.

Inside Tip: Did you know you can stay the night on Suomenlinna? Yes, there is even accommodation on the island if you want your trip to last even longer!

How to Visit Suomenlinna Independently

The DIY version of visiting Suomenlinna is extremely simple and easy to follow.

First, head to the place where the Suomenlinna ferries depart. It’s on the harbor, between the big Ferris wheel downtown and the Old Market Hall (making it a natural stop on a larger sightseeing run through Helsinki) and buy a ticket from one of the machines.

The best part? It’s cheap. Like, shockingly cheap for Helsinki. It’s literally the price of a regular metro ticket — I paid just €2.95!

The ferry ride takes about 15-20 minutes, and it’d honestly be worth the price even if you didn’t get off at the island.

All along the ride, you get gorgeous views of Helsinki’s unique waterfront, little ice chunks drifting by if you go in the winter, and the unique atmosphere that is, in my opinion, truly unique to the Baltic Sea.

Once you’re on the island, everything is well sign-posted so it’s easy to wander on foot and just follow the posted signs to various points of interest, letting my curiosity roughly be my compass.

You can also rent a bike — an especially nice idea if it’s warm weather — but in winter, something about walking felt right, so I could explore the more rugged coastal edges of the island and have more of a chance to indulge in some photography without needing to get off a bike every time I wanted to take some photos.

Visiting Suomenlinna With a Guide (Two Options)

As much as I enjoyed my peaceful, almost meditative winter wander around Suomenlinna, I ultimately walked away knowing almost nothing about what I had seen (except that it was really, really pretty).

And as it turns out, Suomenlinna’s history is extremely interesting, even if you, like me, tend to zone out when it comes to historic battles and fortresses and the like, and that’s because the story of Suomenlinna is, in a way, a story of how Finland came to be an independent nation.

This fortress island was fought over by the Swedes and the Russians — both naturally, due to its position between the two, but also because the Swedes and the Russians were constantly fighting over control who would take control over Finnish land and trading it back in forth in battles.

Strategically positioned between the two and directly in front of Helsinki, Suomenlinna was a key part of Finland’s independence being viable, rather than having it be absorbed into a larger kingdom.

That’s why I say that learning the history of Suomenlinna is genuinely like learning the origin of Finnish independence as a whole. When I pieced it together afterwards, I found myself wishing I learned the history while I was there instead of in a late-night Wikipedia rabbit hole.

Anyway, if you feel like the history would add to your visit, you’ve got two options if you want a guide:

1. 5-hour Helsinki city highlights tour with Suomenlinna visit

This is the no-stress, all-context option that includes a walking tour of Helsinki’s historic center and a guided visit to Suomenlinna, including help getting onto the public ferry if that kind of navigation in a foreign country tends to make you nervous.

It’s the more expensive option, but it’s a 5-hour tour (so basically, if you visit in winter, all day) that gives you a solid grounding in Finnish history and culture and makes sure you don’t miss anything important.

Book your 5-hour city highlights and Suomenlinna tour here!

2. A budget-friendly Suomenlinna-only fortress tour

This tour is just 1 hour and focuses entirely on the island’s military and strategic history. You make your own way to the island, which is totally fine because the ferry is super easy.

This is a great option if you want to save money but still get the historical storytelling that a great guide can give you. It’s also only a few bucks more than visiting the Suomenlinna Museum, but will give you a lot of the same historical information while actually seeing the buildings themselves while hearing their stories.

Plus, after your tour, you can explore Suomenlinna at your leisure, as the tour starts and ends at the museum, giving you plenty of opportunity for some self-guided wanderings.

Book your 1-hour tour of Suomenlinna here!

Points of Interest on a Suomenlinna Visit

Here are some of the main POIs you’ll want to look for — all easy to reach on foot:

• Suomenlinna Church: A beautiful and unusual church that tells much of Suomenlinna’s history: built in 1854 as an Eastern Orthodox church for Russian troops, built by the official architect of Czar Nicholas I (who also worked on the Grand Kremlin Palace, among other major buildings in Moscow). However, in 1918 it was stripped of some of its Orthodox markings — including its iconic onion domes and church bell (now displayed next to the church) — to assert its independence from Russia, becoming an Evangelical Lutheran church instead. In 1929, it added a lighthouse to its bell tower, a unique feature found in very few other places — you can see it above if you look very closely!

• Kuninkaanportti (Kungsporten) / King’s Gate: These large stone gates surround the interior of Suomenlinna and make up the bulk of the fortress’s main wall. It’s very iconic fortress vibes, and the main image you’re probably thinking of when you think of Suomenlinna or see pictures of it online.

• Galleria Rantakasarmi: This pastel pink main gate with an arch you walk through to the rest of Suomenlinna will be your welcome to the island. It’s a beautiful photo opp and you truly can’t miss it as you need to pass through it when exiting the ferry and going towards the sights of Suomenlinna as well as on your way back to the ferry when you’re ready to leave the island. Like many places on the island, these are repurposed barracks.
  

• Suomenlinna Museum: This is a great way to get historical context if you didn’t come with a guide. It’s a bit pricy at €10 (especially when you compare to the cost of the guided tour, which is only a little bit more), but if you love museums, it’s a good one!
  
• Old Barracks Buildings: Painted in several different colors, including some in beautiful bright yellow, a lot of the barracks buildings have been repurposed and repainted to make Suomenlinna both more functional and more beautiful without sacrificing its history.
  
• Uimaranta / Badstrand (Beach): A little rocky beach area. I suppose it’s a bit more of a summer spot, but frankly, I loved walking around here in the winter with all the icy waters.
  

• Kustaanmiekka / Gustavssvärd: The southernmost of the eight islands making up Suomenlinna, with endless views into the Baltic, complete with rocky paths and old cannons.
  
• Ehrensvärd Museum: A small museum (€3 fee) dedicated to the founder of the fortress, located in the Commander’s House, a historic residence integrated into the fortress walls themselves.

Where to Eat & Drink on Suomenlinna

Even though the island feels remote, there are several great spots to rest your legs, have a snack, or have a full meal if you’re making a full day of it.

• Viaporin Café & Deli: A cozy café with pastries, soups, and sandwiches. Open year-round, including in winter, so it’s great for a warming pit stop.
• Panimo Ravintola: A proper sit-down restaurant with its own brewery; great for heartier meals and local beer, which Finland excels at. It’s open for lunch only Monday and Tuesday, lunch and dinner Wednesday through Saturday, and closed on Sundays.
• Piperin Puisto (Café Piper): A lovely summer café in a garden setting — closed in winter, but ideal in warm months.
• Café Silo: A cute, casual spot perfect for coffee, pastries, and lighter bites, also open in winter. It’s home to some of Suomenlinna’s only accommodations as well.

Allison Green

Allison Green is a former teacher who has been travel blogging since 2016, visiting 75+ countries in total. She has a Masters in Teaching and a B.A. in English and Creative Writing. As a former educator, she merges her writing and educational experience to encourage ethical, sustainable travel. She has been a speaker at the World Travel Writers Conference and TBEX. Her writing, photography, and podcasting work has appeared in National Geographic, CNN Arabic, CBC Canada, and Forbes, amongst others. When she’s not on the road, she lives in Bangkok, Thailand.