Ferry Travel Culture in Finland -A Viking Line ferry trip to Sweden and back with our friends.

What Finnish Ferry Travel Culture is like!

While friends of ours, fly to Cape Verde, off the western shore of Africa, for a sunny warm vacation, others drive a thousand kilometers to Lapland Lappi twice a year, for skiing at a cottage. Finnish residents takes popular trips like a overnight ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn Estonia and back.

Our trip...

...is close to very popular of Finnish Ferry travel culture. We travel from Turku, Finland on-board the M.S. Amorella, to Stockholm, Sweden. On our return we cruise with the M.S. Isabella. Both Viking line ferry boats.




Parking at the Finnish port of Turku.

If you need to leave your car at the port for a few days. Here is a safe and inexpensive way...

The sign says: Parking house for Cars and goods. Open every day from 7am to 8.30am, and then again opens from 6pm to 8.30pm. The cost is 10 -15 euros, depending if you park inside the building or leave the vehicle behind a fence. The locals say...this is safer than leaving your car at the parking lot.

On-board Amorella -our ferry to Stockholm via Mariehamn.

If you are traveling by sea from Turku to Sweden, consider taking the Mariehamn route. Mariehamn Maarianhamina of which Åland is the capitol, is between Finland and Sweden, surrounded by 6500 islands. Plenty of Finnish island exploring by bike.

On-board the Amorella ; Destination Stockholm -Finnish Ferry travel culture the light and cheap way.

The first thing most people do once on-board is head for Food. Last year, our meal...Tasty sea shark! This time... Sandwiches! Our friends, Pekka and Anne, share a cabin with us. There's room for four in our cabin.




Wahhhoo!!-- It is Karaoke time after dinner. Pekka is on his way to the disco, and is among many Finnish folks, who Really enjoy performing Karaoke. Pekka makes sure he gets there a bit before startup, he's almost first-in-line do do some sing-along's.

Pekka selects his songs and signs up. In a very short time, other sing-alonger's join us, and within minutes the Disco is comfortably full.

Finnish Ferry travel culture at it's best. Aura is right behind Pekka in line and she now gets the microphone.

Aura doing Karaoke on the Amorella ferry

A display screen on the left shows Aura what to sing next. Lights are low and singing spirits high. No matter if you sing 'on' or a bit 'off-tune'...you get a clappin. So ... Applause Everyone!

After karaoke time, the four of us complete our evening at another deck to mingle, dance, or listen to live band perform some 70's tunes.

Live music on Finnish ferry boats

These performers do have energy, still going strong since the mid 70's.

After listening to the band we go to bed, wake up and we are in Stockholm.

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On-board the Isabella ; Destination Turku ; We are in our ferry at 7pm

After boarding the ship. Dinner is served, and shortly thereafter why not go to the store to buy some gifts. Shopping is very important in the ferry travel culture of Finland. Everyone loves shopping! What can you buy on a Finnish ferry? Drinks are very popular. Toys for children, high quality Finnish products from Iitala.

Hmm!, what a pouch?

This gift-in-a-pouch includes a sauna brush for use on your skin in the sauna.

Hey, it's almost Sauna Time! Join me and we will have a sauna on Deck 6



Pekka and Anne are karaokeing, Aura is shopping. Oh my...it's off to the sauna section on my own. Let's go for a walk...

...After this long hallway.------------->



Almoooooosst there...






My preference...I love getting a good sauna experience...the Isabella ferry boat recently renovated Finnish Sauna, three Whirlpools, Steam Bath, Infra-Red sauna, special massage showers, lockers, towels are provided, and even a bathing suit --if needed!. Hmm! We are all set to relaaaax!

Price: For a go at the sauna department, it is 5 euros. This does not include the use of the infra-red sauna.

Finnish Ferry travel culture includes a sauna store -An eye catcher for those who enjoy Finnish sauna on a boat. Why not enjoy a Finnish sauna on your way to Finland. You might as well do it right.

You can buy drinks at the bar, and --shop at the on-board sauna shop on our ferry boat.

Shop at the sauna shop

A gift idea -- For your own home sauna. With this pocket size ladle throw the water onto your sauna stove from longer distances. Using this ladle takes less hand coordination FYI.

Wooden ladle

I went into the sauna area at 9pm on a November evening shortly after the ferry leaves Stockholm. It helps going there ahead of time to check with the attendant how crowded it may be...or will become. It never hurts to chat with the Sauna Master. He is friendly!

50 people can fit into the water recreational area. Kinda scrunchy for all 50 folks. Fortunately, now only two people are in the sauna area. The best time to go is when the seas are calm and few people around.

Men's sauna changing room

The Men's side changing room. Lot's of tall lockers, a blow dryer, large mirrors. Plenty of bench space. Comfy non-slip sponge mats.

Inside the sauna. To the right is the stove hidden behind a wooden fence. A high quality electric element type stove...with a rare benefit...round sauna rocks. Yipeee!! That means, after pouring water onto the stove, the steam hit's you evenly making your sauna more enjoyable.

Inside the sauna

Misty shot of water vapour in the air. The round windows open a view to the whirlpools. Three levels of benches help you to adust to the heat of the sauna. The higher you sit the hotter it feels.

Non standard shaped sauna room!
The shape of the room is like a half moon or elongated narrow rectangle. Not a basic standard shaped sauna hot room.

If you were to turn around, like you were facing the sauna as in the above picture, you would see a mirror image of this picture, minus the windows, behind us, which is where sauna stove No. 2 is. hidden from our view.


Adjust the speed of the heat/steam as it hits your body by moving around different positions in the room.

An experiment: Throwing on the water. Throwing water onto the larger stove. Stove No. 1 from the above pic. while sitting on the upper bench right across the stove. = Steam hits me fast. Ouch hot!

Moving my seating position to the very edge of the sauna bench, I throw on some more water. Low and behold...Heat hits me slower.

Finally, moving all the way near the smaller stove, I throw water onto sauna stove No. 2. The heat hits me at so so speed.

The Sauna Whirlpool routine.
Normally in Finland... Doing Finnish sauna--whirlpool jacuzzi--steam sauna--infra-red sauna, is no typical combination among ferry travel culture. All these are at the sauna department Isabella ferry.

The Whirlpools

Far left: Above that whirlpool is a glass door leading to the steam bath. The center whirlpool -- a friendly Red sea-serpent. Above the serpents head is an entrance to the spa showers.

Getting your endorphins flowing -A feeling of wellbeing.
First Take a shower and sit in the sauna for 5 minutes before throwing water onto the stove. Throw on water once, wait until you can't bear it, then exit the Finnish sauna and go into the whirlpool for a minute or two. The whirlpool comes on automatically.

Steam bath door near the whirlpool

On the other side of those windows, is our sauna hot room. Beyond the black glass door center lies the steam bath.

Oh, my aching back!

For temporary back-ache relief, use the spa showers. These special showers shoot water onto your lower back and shoulders, or...down onto your head. Give your back a good spray massage until you feel better. As you are using the spa shower, slowly turn up the heat.

Use the steam bath for a minute, then shower off. At this point, each time you shower before getting back into the Finnish sauna, decrease the temperature of the shower. This helps your endorphins kick in.

This sauna routine is an additional experience, and may not accurately reflect the general ferry travel culture of a Finn. An added bonus so you can get a feeling of wellbeing.

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