New Zealand to Helsinki; but how?

[EVskij]

I know that if I wanted a nicer ride I’d take 5 or 6 days to go via Germany then into Poland and head north through the Baltic States making the last leg into Helsinki a ferry from Tallinn but if you want to do it quickly then leaving Bedford after tea you can be in Helsinki by midday on the third day though it’s a slog up to Frederikshavn.

From my understanding, I think fella is looking to do your suggested route on the way to Italy.

See bellow.

Kia Ora,

I’m heading back to UK from my adoptive country of NZ for a little tour around Europe. I’ll be spending a week or so in England to renew my driving licence, buy a bike, sort insurance, and get kitted up before heading off.
I want to visit friends in Helsinki, and then take in some beauty spots on my way south to Italy, where I’ll be joined by my wife.
There’s so much to plan, so I may keep asking questions, but I can’t find a ferry from UK to Scandinavia, so what’s the best way to get to Helsinki, which is where the journey will begin?

This (bellow) might be a good suggestion, along with that of mine from Travemunde (Lubeck), to get him to Helsinki in a reasonable time frame. Then enjoy his trip down south via the Baltics, Poland, etc.

The ferries are actually pretty cheap between Frederikshavn and Gothenburg and I used the ferry from Kapellskar to Turku because it leaves a bit later than the one from Stockholm and you avoid the city. It’s not far north of Stockholm and when I went it was significantly cheaper than the Stockholm one because it’s aimed at freight transport and you get the added bonus of a free buffet dinner and breakfast.

One downside was that on the route between Gothenburg and Stockholm I saw quite a few things I’d like to have explored a bit but aiming for the ferry that day meant I had to crack on.

 

[AndyB_11]

When I rode back I went Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and going that way you can easily go either into Austria and across picking your entry point into Italy at will or if time is on your side go into the Balkans and catch a ferry to Italy.

I’d go even further and visit Romania though the highest passes are shut until early June but that’s a problem you can also get in the Alps so it’s not unique to Romania.

 

[AndyB_11]

One tip I would follow was the one given to me after I was relieved of €200 by Latvian police which was to print out a copy of the applicable fines for speeding in certain countries in case a bent copper lies to you if they try and pin a speeding rap on you.

I think it was Ev who told me to do that and it was definitely him who cheerfully informed me I’d been scammed

 

[SpeedySapper]

Back on the theme of your opening post’s question.



Any news on point 1?

I ask only in as much, as you could (as suggested) take the ferry from north Germany / Denmark / Sweden or meander along the north German coast, into Poland, then up into the Baltic States….. but not if you have set aside two or three days from Bedford.

We can assume late spring / summer for point 2.

I can allow a week Or so for Helsinki.

 

[Wapping]

I can allow a week Or so for Helsinki.

Thank you. It is surprising how often people forget to give this one key piece of information: How long they have available to go from A to B. You might have said, three days. Or you might have said a fortnight or a month. We now know it about a week.

Now it just depends on how much (or how little) you want to see and do on the week’s journey Bedford > Helsinki. Likewise, to some degree, it might depend on which way you plan on going Helsinki > Rome, as you’ll maybe not want to repeat legs.

I guess the thing for you to work out is, do you go:

A. Bedford > Harwich ferry > Hook of Holland > Travemunde ferry > Helsinki

B Bedford > Harwich ferry > Hook of Holland > Frederikshaven ferry > Copenhagen > north of Stockholm ferry > Turku > Helsinki

C. Bedford > Harwich ferry > Hook of Holland > Copenhagen > Stockholm ferry > Helsinki

It all hinges on how much riding you want to do and how much ferry. For example, option A can involve the overnight ferry from Harwich to the Hook of Holland and then the 30 hours ferry between Travemunde and Helsinki. Obviously, if you spend 30 hours on the ferry, then you are not riding the Denmark > Sweden leg. But, if you want to see Denmark / Sweden, then options B and C come into play.

Or, through an option D, you could near enough road it all the way from the Hook, across the top of Germany and Poland, across the three Baltic countries and then ferry to Helsinki. You could do this in a week or so. But this option might be less interesting, if you plan on crossing the three Baltic countries on your journey from Helsinki to Rome. But it might if you want to ride most of the way from the Hook to Helsinki, as some people have an aversion to ferries.

Over to you.

 

[NeilDD]

Slight variation to Richard's option B

Hoek Van Holland to Puttgarden (Ferry to Rodby) Ride up to Copenhagen and take the bridge over to Sweden amd ride to Stockholm.

All doable in 3 longish days

 

[Wapping]

Indeed so, Neil.

There is also the option of the ferries between Germany and Sweden, to miss out Denmark entirely:

These run:

Rostock > Trelleborg

Travemunde > Malmo

Travemunde > Trelleborg

There is also the option of ferries between Poland and Sweden and / or between Poland and Finland.

I guess we could also throw in the option of the ferry between Latvia and Finland, though there are no ferries between Lithuania and Finland. Which would just leave the ferries between Estonia and Finland.

Your turn now, OP.

 

[AndyB_11]

Slight variation to Richard's option B

Hoek Van Holland to Puttgarden (Ferry to Rodby) Ride up to Copenhagen and take the bridge over to Sweden amd ride to Stockholm.

All doable in 3 longish days

Close to the same route you can use the Helsingor to Helsingborg ferry which is only a short crossing. My wife and I used it riding home from a trip to the Arctic Circle and spent the night in Helsingør which was a nice little town. We were going to use the bridge but decided that stopping in a small town was preferable to Malmo or Copenhagen.

 

[SpeedySapper]

Thank you. It is surprising how often people forget to give this one key piece of information: How long they have available to go from A to B. You might have said, three days. Or you might have said a fortnight or a month. We now know it about a week.

Now it just depends on how much (or how little) you want to see and do on the week’s journey Bedford > Helsinki. Likewise, to some degree, it might depend on which way you plan on going Helsinki > Rome, as you’ll maybe not want to repeat legs.

I guess the thing for you to work out is, do you go:

A. Bedford > Harwich ferry > Hook of Holland > Travemunde ferry > Helsinki

B Bedford > Harwich ferry > Hook of Holland > Frederikshaven ferry > Copenhagen > north of Stockholm ferry > Turku > Helsinki

C. Bedford > Harwich ferry > Hook of Holland > Copenhagen > Stockholm ferry > Helsinki

It all hinges on how much riding you want to do and how much ferry. For example, option A can involve the overnight ferry from Harwich to the Hook of Holland and then the 30 hours ferry between Travemunde and Helsinki. Obviously, if you spend 30 hours on the ferry, then you are not riding the Denmark > Sweden leg. But, if you want to see Denmark / Sweden, then options B and C come into play.

Or, through an option D, you could near enough road it all the way from the Hook, across the top of Germany and Poland, across the three Baltic countries and then ferry to Helsinki. You could do this in a week or so. But this option might be less interesting, if you plan on crossing the three Baltic countries on your journey from Helsinki to Rome. But it might if you want to ride most of the way from the Hook to Helsinki, as some people have an aversion to ferries.

Over to you.

Thank you. And so my planning continues as I sift options.

 

[Wapping]

Thank you. And so my planning continues as I sift options.

Good stuff.

At least nobody has suggested a ferry between UK and St Malo or Santander. But give it time.

 

[Bem]

Good stuff.

At least nobody has suggested a ferry between UK and St Malo or Santander. But give it time.

I was just going to suggest....

 

[Bem]

I was just going to suggest....

I have only taken the ferry up to Oslo so my real world experience of the area is little in comparison to others here. But, on a scale of epicness for the memory banks, I think for the OP that taking in the Oresond Bridge (which we floated under) would be in the top ten.
I fully intend to go back just to travel on this.

 

[SpeedySapper]

O

Best of luck. From the information I gathered, my move to France 18 mths ago meant I had to renew my UK licence with a swap for a French one. (not a big issue apart from French bureacracy)
Specifically this...from Gov website

Renew your driving licence

Apply online to renew your 10-year driving licence, full or provisional - cost, payment methods, documents and information you need

www.gov.uk

I wondered if you were following this...also on the UK Gov website, which I suspect isn't meant for those who actually reside abroad rather than are say 'travelling' ? Anyway, best of luck. Is the bike trip still on ?

Oh my goodness. I just got lost in a sea of bureaucracy! Might be travelling on my NZ licence after all.
although, a friend suggested my licence is still valid, it’s just that the photo isn’t. Not sure how that works.

 

[Davey B]

From what I gather, and to add to your bureaucracy....I was under the impression that once you had 'exchanged' your UK licence for a foreign one (such as I am in the process of doing here in France), I effectively lose my UK licence (The licence number etc is on hold if/when I go back, I exchange my French licence for it).

 

[Northern jock]

O

Oh my goodness. I just got lost in a sea of bureaucracy! Might be travelling on my NZ licence after all.
although, a friend suggested my licence is still valid, it’s just that the photo isn’t. Not sure how that works.

Does that affect insuring the bike? I know some folk have had issues

 

[Northern jock]

How are the plans developing?

Always nice to get an update after folk have given a lot of advice