Top Helsinki Walking Tours - page 7

A shuttle from the cruise terminal is necessary to meet the local tour guide in the center of Helsinki especially if you have a set meeting time. Luckily, there was a free port shuttle that took us to a spot not too far from Senate Square, our appointed meeting spot. Unfortunately, our tour guide, Kerstin, had different instructions from Viator, so I had to text Kerstin after we had waited for 15 minutes or so. She replied that she was about 5 minutes away, and once she arrived, we set off on a whirlwind tour of Helsinki highlights. Senate Square with the pastel colored Cathedral, Umiversity and Parliament buildings was the best square in Helsinki. Close by was the artisan’s and food open market next to the smaller harbor. We strolled through the open market and tasted the specialties of Finland on our way to the Old Market, the beautifully preserved wooden structure with equally impressive wooden stalls that now hold food stuffs from around Finland as well as the world rather than the fruits and vegetables and fish and meat that used to fill the stalls. We walked through Esplandi park right in the center of Helsinki and ended up at the Central Train Station which has been maintained and whose dining area is now restored to its former glory as a restaurant with Finnish specialties, and NOT Burger King. Kerstin was informative and conscientious. We told her we wanted to return to the ship by shuttle, so she made sure to route the tour, so we would end up at the shuttle stop within 2 hours time. Thank you, Kerstin, for making our brief stop in Helsinki worthwhile!

We greatly enjoyed our time with Jen in Tallinn. The 2.5-hour walking tour followed by the 2.5 hours of free time felt like the right mix of education and exploring. We learned much more with the tour than we would have if we were left to our own devices. Our pickup at the hotel in the morning was on time and comfortable and it was easy to located our guide once we got to Tallinn. I would reccomend this tour to those with 1 day free in Helsinki and looking to explore a new place.

We loved this excursion. Jeff, our guide, was so knowledgeable about nature in the Finnish forest. We had delicious Finnish fish soup, Finnish bread and blueberry juice for lunch. The views of the Baltic Sea were beautiful. In spite of a brisk wind, the sunny day made the experience really enjoyable.