Ps

I am planning to go to HEL from London. First time and wish to spend no more
than 2 days. Is it possible to make a day trip to nearby places of interest?
Like St. Petersburg? Can visa be issued at border? I have aussie passport.
Any other possible destination?

ps

Kalle

"PS" <[email protected]> wrote in message news
    > I am planning to go to HEL from London. First time and wish to spend no
more
    > than 2 days. Is it possible to make a day trip to nearby places of
interest?

Tallinn (in Estonia) is an easy choice for a day trip. It takes about one
hour by boat from Helsinki. The departure place is middle of the town by the
sea. For trips to Russia you'll need a visa and that's quite expensive and
time consuming. Turist visa is about 50 euros and it takes about six days to
get it.

So maybe you have to visit the Russian consulat in London before the trip to
get the visa.

Gerald Oliver Swift

"PS" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected] u...
    >I am planning to go to HEL from London. First time and wish to spend no
    >more
    > than 2 days. Is it possible to make a day trip to nearby places of
    > interest?
    > Like St. Petersburg? Can visa be issued at border? I have aussie passport.
    > Any other possible destination?

If it's your first time in Helsinki, where the hell else do you want to go
in your 2 days?
Samarkhand? Mar del Plata? Lilongwe?

Hatunen

On Mon, 1 Nov 2004 12:36:25 +0100, "Kalle"
<[email protected]> wrote:

    >"PS" <[email protected]> wrote in message news
    >> I am planning to go to HEL from London. First time and wish to spend no
    >more
    >> than 2 days. Is it possible to make a day trip to nearby places of
    >interest?
    >Tallinn (in Estonia) is an easy choice for a day trip. It takes about one
    >hour by boat from Helsinki.

Ninety minutes on the fast boats, like the catamaran, three hours
on the regular ships.

    >The departure place is middle of the town by the sea.

Depending on whether you take the fast boat from the main harbor
or the Tallink boats or ships from the west harbor.


************* DAVE HATUNEN ([email protected]) *************
* Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
* My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *

Hatunen

On Mon, 1 Nov 2004 22:28:25 +1100, "PS" <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >I am planning to go to HEL from London.

One of our favorite cities. We spent eight weeks there last
summer.

    >First time and wish to spend no more than 2 days.

While it is one of my favorite places, I do have to confess that
Helsinki has very little of general tourist interest, and if all
you want to do is look at tourist sights a day is sufficient.
Take a 3T tram and get one of the brochures for the route; the
tram passes near most of Helsinki's tourist sights. Check at the
tourist office on the north Esplanade near the harbor.

Helsinki is a very relaxing place to spend time, with a rather
good night life. And English is almost universally spoken,
frequently with astonishingly good accents.

    >Is it possible to make a day trip to nearby places of interest?

Another post mentions Tallinn, one of my favorite day trips.
Medieval city and all that.

    >Like St. Petersburg? Can visa be issued at border? I have aussie passport.
    >Any other possible destination?

In order to get a tourist visa you must first have a letter from
your lodging. Visas cannot be got at the border as far as I know;
they can be got at the Russian consulate in Helsinki, but they
are costly, and you still need your lodging place.

There is train service to St Pete from Helsinki.

************* DAVE HATUNEN ([email protected]) *************
* Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
* My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *

Ps

Thanks all. Someone on another forum did refer to HEL as HEL(L). Anyway
jokes aside, I live in Sydney, Australia and am travelling to Europe for the
first time. So London will be first stop and I thought I would take some of
the cheaper flight options from there to visit other cities closer to it.
HEL was chosen for 2 reasons...one, to give me a flt over 1000miles and,
two, to show me a different European city.

I like the idea of day trip to Tallinn. I may get a visa for Russia before I
leave Sydney and that will give me all the time in HEL for sightseeing. Just
for my info, how long is the train trip to St. Pete? Is it worthwhile for an
overnight stay? Cost? Will appreciate feedback.

Thanks again.

ps

"Hatunen" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > On Mon, 1 Nov 2004 22:28:25 +1100, "PS" <[email protected]>
    > wrote:
    > >I am planning to go to HEL from London.
    > One of our favorite cities. We spent eight weeks there last
    > summer.
    > >First time and wish to spend no more than 2 days.
    > While it is one of my favorite places, I do have to confess that
    > Helsinki has very little of general tourist interest, and if all
    > you want to do is look at tourist sights a day is sufficient.
    > Take a 3T tram and get one of the brochures for the route; the
    > tram passes near most of Helsinki's tourist sights. Check at the
    > tourist office on the north Esplanade near the harbor.
    > Helsinki is a very relaxing place to spend time, with a rather
    > good night life. And English is almost universally spoken,
    > frequently with astonishingly good accents.
    > >Is it possible to make a day trip to nearby places of interest?
    > Another post mentions Tallinn, one of my favorite day trips.
    > Medieval city and all that.
    > >Like St. Petersburg? Can visa be issued at border? I have aussie
passport.
    > >Any other possible destination?
    > In order to get a tourist visa you must first have a letter from
    > your lodging. Visas cannot be got at the border as far as I know;
    > they can be got at the Russian consulate in Helsinki, but they
    > are costly, and you still need your lodging place.
    > There is train service to St Pete from Helsinki.
    > ************* DAVE HATUNEN ([email protected]) *************
    > * Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
    > * My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *

Hatunen

On Tue, 2 Nov 2004 07:38:39 +1100, "PS" <[email protected]>
wrote:

    >Thanks all. Someone on another forum did refer to HEL as HEL(L). Anyway
    >jokes aside, I live in Sydney, Australia and am travelling to Europe for the
    >first time. So London will be first stop and I thought I would take some of
    >the cheaper flight options from there to visit other cities closer to it.
    >HEL was chosen for 2 reasons...one, to give me a flt over 1000miles and,
    >two, to show me a different European city.
    >I like the idea of day trip to Tallinn. I may get a visa for Russia before I
    >leave Sydney and that will give me all the time in HEL for sightseeing. Just
    >for my info, how long is the train trip to St. Pete? Is it worthwhile for an
    >overnight stay? Cost? Will appreciate feedback.

Finnish trains: http://www.vr.fi


************* DAVE HATUNEN ([email protected]) *************
* Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
* My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *

Iceman

    >Thanks all. Someone on another forum did refer to HEL as HEL(L). Anyway
    >jokes aside, I live in Sydney, Australia and am travelling to Europe for the
    >first time. So London will be first stop and I thought I would take some of
    >the cheaper flight options from there to visit other cities closer to it.
    >HEL was chosen for 2 reasons...one, to give me a flt over 1000miles and,
    >two, to show me a different European city.

Look at Ryanair, Easyjet, Air Berlin, Volare, SkyEurope, Basiq Air -
you can get cheap flights all over Europe from London, and you don't
have to go to Helsinki if you're not interested in it at all.

Iain Bowen

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
    > >Thanks all. Someone on another forum did refer to HEL as HEL(L). Anyway
    > >jokes aside, I live in Sydney, Australia and am travelling to Europe for the
    > >first time. So London will be first stop and I thought I would take some of
    > >the cheaper flight options from there to visit other cities closer to it.
    > >HEL was chosen for 2 reasons...one, to give me a flt over 1000miles and,
    > >two, to show me a different European city.
    >
    > Look at Ryanair, Easyjet, Air Berlin, Volare, SkyEurope, Basiq Air -
    > you can get cheap flights all over Europe from London, and you don't
    > have to go to Helsinki if you're not interested in it at all.

I think you'll find the poster may be interesting in gaining Qantas
Status Points from his flight, hence the mention of 1000 miles.

HEL is very lovely, but for sightseeing it's two days at best and much
better done at a light time of year.

Iain

Pete Schermerhorn

    >HEL is very lovely, but for sightseeing it's two days at best and much better
done at a light time of year.

Unless you are an architect. My daughter and her husband (both of that breed)
are planning on spending much or all of next July there.


Pete Schermerhorn, in the glorious Berkshire hills of western Massachusetts
Remove nojunk.

Ps

Thanks everyone for feedback. Iain is right...I am doing some trips to gain
QF status credits and FF points. However, I agree 2 days max. for Helsinki
and that could include day trip to Tallinn. I will forget St. Pete because
the visa is a hassle and so to is the rather long trip of some 6 hours by
train.

ps

"Pete Schermerhorn" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > >HEL is very lovely, but for sightseeing it's two days at best and much
better
    > done at a light time of year.
    > Unless you are an architect. My daughter and her husband (both of that
breed)
    > are planning on spending much or all of next July there.
    > Pete Schermerhorn, in the glorious Berkshire hills of western
Massachusetts
    > Remove nojunk.