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Helsinki

mrspaper

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maritar

maritar

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Helsinki is very easy to do your own. City has a very good public transportation, streetcars, buses and taxis. If you Google "Hop on Hop off bus in Helsinki" you'll get some answers from there. You can also Google just "Helsinki" and it gives you some tips what to do in there.

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mtnmusic

mtnmusic

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great, but i'm wondering if you can give some more info. ie: is there a HoHo bus, what should we do, are there taxi's at port, etc.

There is a really neat market right at the harbor in easy walking distance if you're tired at looking at buildings, churches and monuments. Most of the merchants speak some English and you can find a lot of crafts, curios and souvenirs.

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maritar

maritar

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There is a really neat market right at the harbor in easy walking distance if you're tired at looking at buildings, churches and monuments. Most of the merchants speak some English and you can find a lot of crafts, curios and souvenirs.

 

Yes, that market place is very nice, I recommend that one too. One church what you might want to see is a Rock Church of Kallio, church is carved into a big rock and is quite unique.

 

P.S If you like shopping, one good department store to visit is Stockman.

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MightyQuinn

MightyQuinn

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is Helsinki easy to do on your own from port. we leave in a week for the Baltics. please give me info

Yes indeed - Helsinki is a perfect DIY port! ;);)

Last year we cruised the Baltics on HAL Prinsendam. In Helsinki we hopped a shuttle (US$10 return) to the Swedish Theatre downtown. We arrived at 8:45am & had the place to ourselves! We walked down Esplanade towards the water, stopping to take note of awesome buildings such as Hotel Kamp and Café Kappeli. At Market Square, we hopped Tram 3T and purchased a One-Day Ticket from the driver for 6 Euros. We stayed on for the entire circuit (50 min) and then got off at Toolo Square second time around. This was the closest stop for Sibelius Monument. After seeing this, we continued to Rock Church, an easy 10 min walk. The atmosphere inside the Church was peaceful and inviting, despite being crafted of stone and rock. We returned to Market Square for lunch, this time taking Tram 3B in the opposite direction. After lunch (various smoked fish), we visited Uspenski and Lutheran Cathedrals & witnessed weddings at both!

 

Next we ambled around downtown (watched a Samba Parade) before going to the Helsinki Arctic IceBar in La Bodega Restaurant. We paid 10 Euros, donned thermal ponchos and entered for our cool experience. But it was a big disappointment. The room itself was dark & small, with no ambiance and a sullen bartender. We had an Absolute Vodka cocktail and were out in under 15 minutes. Box ticked. We walked back to Swedish Theatre for the shuttle back to ship.

 

We loved Helsinki. It was a lively, vibrant place full of happy and helpful people. And very easy to do on your own once you get the hang of finding those very foreign street names on the map. Hope you have a wonderful time in Helsinki! :):)

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mrspaper

mrspaper

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Yes indeed - Helsinki is a perfect DIY port! ;);)

 

We loved Helsinki. It was a lively, vibrant place full of happy and helpful people. And very easy to do on your own once you get the hang of finding those very foreign street names on the map. Hope you have a wonderful time in Helsinki! :):)

 

this was very in depth. thank you so much.

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mrspaper

mrspaper

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Yes indeed - Helsinki is a perfect DIY port! ;);)

 

We loved Helsinki. It was a lively, vibrant place full of happy and helpful people. And very easy to do on your own once you get the hang of finding those very foreign street names on the map. Hope you have a wonderful time in Helsinki! :):)

 

this was very in depth. thank you so much.

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maritar

maritar

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We are going to be in Helsinki on a Sunday. Will the market place at the harbor and the Stockman department store be open?

 

Not sure about market place if it will be open but my guess is that there's at least some sellers in there on Sundays. Someone else might have better info about that.

 

Here's Stockman department store hours and other info I copied from their website.

 

Address Aleksanterinkatu 52 B

00100 Helsinki

(PL 220, 00101 Helsinki)

 

Phone and Fax Puh: +358 (0)9 1211

Fax: +358 (0)9 121 3632

 

Store hours Monday-Friday 9.00am - 9.00pm

Saturday 9.00am - 6.00pm

Sunday 12.00pm - 6.00pm (5.10 and 5.31 closed)

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12B@C

12B@C

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THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

 

Helsinki's Church Built in Rock! Very Unique Design!:quote]

 

Terry we all agree that your pictures are great. But could you please reduce them and your font to a reasonable size???? Most people who read this are not visuably impaired, so a size like the following would be much more appreciated.

misc%205

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TLCOhio "Live from...." Rare

TLCOhio

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TLC Ohio

What great pictures...Did you use a small digital?

 

Disagree, I like the big pictures that allow me to pick out all kinds of detail.

 

THANKS, oc323 and BigWally! The camera I use is a Nikon D50 that is a SLR type with inter-changeable lens. Most pictures were shot on that camera at about a three mp level for about a 3008 × 2000 size picture. Then for posting here, most are done at a size of 1000 by 665.

 

If you go to this Cruise Critic posting:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=977864

it shows more of my photo details, tips.

 

Look at that CC posting on this Baltics board and let me know your reactions, feed-back and suggestions.

 

On the photo size, I liked it so much when others posted the larger-sized pictures so that you can really see, experience and enjoy THE DETAILS! Plus, to re-do and reduce the size of all of the pictures is a little challenging and time-consuming as they are placed (or inbeeded) on an outside website right now. On the type size, it is a good and valid point. That can and maybe should be toned down a bit. That's easy to do. Thanks 12B@C. Appreciate the many comments and interest. Keep it coming!

 

Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

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Ultima Thule

Ultima Thule

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We are going to be in Helsinki on a Sunday. Will the market place at the harbor and the Stockman department store be open?

Yes, the market place will be open from 9 am to 4 pm on Sundays until end of August. Its a bit different looking than on weekdays.

 

Most major stores are open from 12.00 pm during summer.

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