Suomenlinna Ferry and Guided Walking Tour in the Fortress
Helsinki, Finland
- 3 to 5 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
What's Included
- Transportation Helsinki Market Square - Suomenlinna / Lonna island.
- Guided walking tour of Suomenlinna
- SnacksBeverages and snacks available onboard for purchase.
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
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End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
1
Sea Fortress Suomenlinna
2 hours • Admission Ticket Included
2
Sea Fortress Suomenlinna
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Stroller accessible
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
This experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. If you cancel or ask for an amendment, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
3.7
based on 55 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Tour is exactly what it states. Would definitely recommend because the site is beautiful. Recommend and would go again.
The departure location is next to the public ferry. The map in Viator was misleading and caused us to miss the ferry . Which I then paid more to then take the public ferry
Suomenlinna was fantastic, this tour operator is awful.
Other reviewers have mentioned the lack of communication about meeting site. I can confirm the instructions were terrible and confusing. The worst thing for us was the fact that we didn’t actually have valid ferry tickets. Nobody checked our tickets on the ferry ride to Suomenlinna but on the way home we learned the hard way that we should have gotten on a different ferry. The tour instructions say “after your tour, stay as long as you want and take the ferry back” but apparently there’s a specific return ferry we knew nothing about. We were asked for our tickets, showed them the Viator tickets and almost got fined €300 for not having valid tickets.
DO NOT do business with this company. You’re better off buying your own ferry ticket (€3) at the kiosk in Helsinki Market Square, then just go to the visitor center on Suomenlinna and ask about guided tours (€10).
Our tour guide, who worked for the Suomenlinna museum, was excellent. I recommend visiting this place but not with this operator.
This was a very enjoyable day. The 10am ferry arrived on the island on time at 10.25am and I walked to the museum and took the 10.30am tour in English. The guide was very knowledgeable and explained the fortress history. After the tour I spent another 2 hours walking around the island visiting the parts that interested me. I then returned to the wharf and took the ferry back to Helsinki. Highly recommended.
A very good short overview of the fortress which you then can explore on your own time. The guide was very knowledgable.
Unresponsive team either on text or calls and uncooperative staff at the station gave us wrong information and we missed the guided tour
Great Tour!! Our guide was very knowledgeable and personable, and had a good sense of humor. He got our group into a few places that are usually reserved for private tours!!
Ferry got the job done, Island was beautiful and interesting, particularly for those with an onterest in history. Guide was knowledgeable but had poor people skills/sad personality.
The ferry ride was on time and smooth. Our guide on the island was great. He was very knowledgeable and entertaining. I would recommend.
The FRS Finland ferry was really nice. Way less crowded than the main ferry. Operated right on time. The guided walking tour wasn’t worth the time or money. It took an hour and only hit three spots on the island. The tour can also be booked from the gift shop on the island if you feel like it. If you do this trip, the FRS Finland boat picks people up on the island twice an hour at two different locations. My recommendation: book your ferry directly with FRS Finland and skip the walking tour. But definitely go to the site…I spent 6 hours in calling all over the island. Good restaurants there too.
I scheduled for the wrong day unfortunately. Viator was of no assistance. Completely disappointed in the service.
Unmissable Finnish experience! Knowledgeable guide, great combo of history and stunning scenery. Definitely recommend!
Follow the reviews directions to the ferry in Helsinki, then go to the museum to get a sticker for the next walking tour
Interesting background to the occupation and use of the island - Swedish, Russian and Finnish. Also helpful to have a guide to show you around.
READ THIS FIRST BEFORE BOOKING! (written June 16, 2025)
This listing is very misleading and has terrible instructions. While the ticket includes both the tour and ferry passage, the tour itself does not begin at the Helsinki port. It begins at the Suomenlinna visitors' center!
I tried to follow a previous reviewers' instructions, which were mostly helpful, but unfortunately the times were largely outdated by the time I arrived. I've provided some notes below to help you!
1. The time listed on the ticket does NOT correspond to the time the ferry is at or the start of the actual tour in Suomenlinna. My ticket was for 1:45, and my tour started at 2:30 (which I didn't know until I arrived). I went on a Saturday, and ferries departed every half hour, so I caught the 1:30 ferry. My impression was that they stick you on the next available tour once you check in at Suomenlinna.
2. Be sure to take the FRS ferry and NOT the HSL. The HSL is unaffiliated with the tour, and you will have to pay separately. Additionally, it drops you off on another part of the island, so you will have a considerable walk ahead of you once you get to Suomenlinna.
3. The FRS check-in is a kiosk on the water by Market Square. It is kind of hidden but is marked by red flags; however, when I went there were actually two sets of red flags. The ones for FRS were lower to the ground than the others and were the left set of flags if you're facing the water. You should check in at the kiosk after arriving to confirm you're in the right place.
4. While the HSL Suomenlinna ferry takes around 15 minutes, the FRS takes closer to 30 because it makes a stop at another island (Lonna) each way. Additionally, it gets confusing because FRS also does a ferry to Vallisaari, so be sure you are on the Suomenlinna side of the line and not the Vallisaari side while waiting for the ferry!
5. Once you get off the FRS ferry, check in at the Suomenlinna visitors' center, which is the first building on the right at the end of the dock. I did not know to do this and walked around for 20 minutes trying to find the start of the tour. The front desk will give you a sticker and point you to your tour guide.
Regarding the tour itself, it was really great! I gave 5 stars for this reason. Noah was incredibly knowledgeable and led a fun and interesting tour. The tour took 60-75 minutes, after which I spent a couple of hours exploring the island on my own. Highly recommend!
Response from Host, Jun 2025
Thanks for your review and suggestions to improve the instructions!
The time stated in the ticket is the leaving time of the FRS Ferry. The start of the tour at the museum next to the pier at Suomenlinna island is also stated on the ticket.
Unfortunately there is a construction site in front of our pier at the market square which makes it a bit hidden for the time being. Indeed it is marked with the red flags. We apologize for any inconvenience caused and are happy that you enjoyed the tour.
The fortress is very interesting and the tour provided done great information. A trip to the fortress is a must but not sure if you would be better to just take the ferry over yourself at less cost.
The information about this tour is not complete which almost made us not make it to the tour. Read along if you want to buy this!
If you choose the pier as the meeting point, then no guide will meet you there. Don't wait for noone and board the FRS water bus (not HSL). There are Red flags with FRS next to the boarding place. It says Suomalinna Lonna on the pier.
The tour that is written as to start at 10:00, actually starts at 10:30, and the one at 12:00, actually starts at 14:00. Water bus ride takes around 30 minutes. Check the timetable because it goes only once per hour. The other comments that say it goes once in 20 min are incorrect, they are referring to the HSL ferry and that is a different ride which stops at the Suomalinna visitor center which is 5-8 min away by foot from the Suomalinna museum which is the actual tour starting point.
When you get to the museum, you must redeem your ticket at the counter and get a sticker. The tour gathers inside the museum next to the cafe area.
The tour itself was fine, the guide shared the history of the whole fortress and the most significant places on the island. The tour took around an hour.
There is an option to download the island app for 5€ and go on a self - driven tour.
It was confusing as to the actual tour start time. We took the one o'clock water taxi. We arrived at the island by 1:25 and the tour did not start until 2 pm. The ticket looked like the tour should have started at 1:30. Wasted time.
The guide was very knowledgeable and professionable.
Our tour was to begin at 1:30. No tour guide from Viator. We were put into a huge group on a 2 pm tour. Not impressed. Not worth the money we paid.
Getting on the boat was easy and I asked someone from boat where to check in with the tour. The boat returning to Helsinki leaves every 20 minutes. After the informative tour, I walked around the two islands. There is a few to enter the church, so, I just took pics of outside.
The tour guide did no show up at the meeting point. I had arrive 20 minutes earlier than the actual until and was waiting there until 13.00pm. Then i asked 1 person from the ferry and he said I could go there so then took the ferry to the suomenlina island. So then i thought that i will meet the tour guide on the island but also when we arrived there i did not see the tour guide. Very disappointed
The Ferry was a short and pleasant ride, the fortress was all that was expected and the mini museums are rich in history.
Nice island to explor after the tour. The tour gives you insight into the history of the castle of finnland / sweden
I wanted to take this trip because Suomenlinna is a Finnish UNESCO World Heritage Site. The directions to get to the ferry were very easy to follow. The ferry to the island was right on time and also enjoyable. Our tour guide was fabulous. We spent about an hour with her where she gave background about what we were seeing. Then I was able to continue on my own, taking as much time as I wanted and then catch whichever ferry back I wanted. Many Finnish people were there enjoying the beautiful day in the outdoors.
There was very little direction from start to end. The ferry turned up and we just presumed it was the right one. No-one checked any tickets. When we got to the island we were not directed where to go. I went into the shop and asked and only just caught our guide as she was leaving. The guided tour is very short. The guide was nice, but we did not see very much with her, a lot of it is self guided. The times for the ferry are at port, again we were not instructed about this it was just a fend for yourself. If you want a casual wander around and self guided tour book this, if you want a detailed guided tour do not book this.
Walking tour covered all we wanted to know about the history and present day status of Suomenlinna with a knowledgeable and friendly guide. An added advantage was it was a beautiful sunny dat.
The instructions on where to go once on the island weren't clear. The tour was okay, but was just a brief walk through the Fortress to talk about a few of the buildings and some history. I would recommend buying a ferry ticket and exploring the island on your own, which is a bit cheaper and what you will end up doing on this tour.
Worst. No one called and when I called them no one picked up. Because of that I missed ferry, I missed your in semolina and my entire trip got ruined.
I can't review the tour bc I didn't get to go so my rating is based on that. I forgot to add a pick up point until the night before, by then there was no longer the option to add one. There was no default pick up point so I just went directly to the ferry. Couldn't find the tour operator anywhere. So I wasn't able to go. I wasn't looking for a refund and take responsibility for missing it, I did want the chance to go on another day. Viator said my ticket was "redeemed" so there was nothing they could do. Not cool Viator.
Tip: don't rely on the Viator app to contact anyone. I messaged Viator and the Operator thru the app. Viator responded 20mins too late and operator responded via email for some reason.
This is a very memorable experience -and a must do while in Helsinki. It’s generally an easy walking tour, there are some hills to navigate but the guide kept the pace easy enough for all. The fascinating historical information was well organized and pretty thorough. Once the tour was done you have plenty of time to self tour the rest of the fort and shops. There are so many beautiful places to take in nice panoramas of the island and sea. Plan to give this area a half a day (roughly 6 hours) to really see it all.
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