Showing posts with label finland. Show all posts

Helsinki, the capital of Finland is where we experience the city vibes after visiting the medieval town of Porvoo and meeting Santa Claus and his reindeer at Lapland (northernmost region of Finland) near the Arctic Circle. It may look like an ordinary capital with plenty of modern buildings and busy streets but our impression of it is more towards a peaceful, cool, introverted and quiet city. Well, this sounds boring but there are actually many hidden gems within this beautiful city giving us a relaxing, friendly and comfortable feeling as we explored it. As we wandered along the streets, we learnt to appreciate the tasty local foods, the friendliness of the Finnish people and the incredible details of the  architectural works! 

The northernmost region of Finland called Lapland is the home of Santa Claus as well as the place for people to hunt for the Northern Lights (or Aurora Borealis). There are actually many exciting activities to do there such as taking the reindeer or husky ride, experiencing the midnight sun, ice floating, ice fishing and many more. During our autumn visit, we enjoyed watching the colorful and beautiful autumn trees along the road trip, as well as visiting Santa Claus and had a quick chat with him! Well, these were more than enough for our 2 days at Lapland.

Porvoo, the second oldest town in Finland, has been magnetizing people to fall in love with it. The strongest attraction would probably be from the medieval town’s signature red ochre painted riverside warehouses.

The sea fortress, Suomenlinna, which is located at 15-20 minutes of ferry distance from the capital city of Finland, Helsinki, has become a popular sight due to its unique monument of military architecture. It has also been declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1991. Hence, there is simply no reason for us not to pay this amazing fortress a visit.

Initially, it felt like an unattractive country to visit but the more research we did about it, we felt more and more interested and excited to visit it. The country which is located in the northern region of Europe touching the Arctic Circle - Finland! 

The transportation mode between the city and airport will usually be the last item for travelers to research on. Travelling in the European countries no matter the eastern, western, northern or southern region, they are all equally expensive. If you guys are budget travelers like us, then you should definitely check out the below transportation options and fares between the city and airport for the 3 cities (Oslo - Norway, Stockholm - Sweden and Helsinki - Finland) that we recently visited.

It is very important to have good accommodation when you are travelling so that you could have a good rest and enjoy your vacation happily. This is why we are always very choosy when it comes to selecting our accommodation no matter where we are travelling to. 

It all started with the dream of waking up to the stunning and spectacular/breathtaking fjord view, crossing the magical Arctic Circle to meet Santa Claus, experiencing Swedish “Fika” culture at a Swedish café and hunting for aurora borealis in the northern region of Norway. What a luxurious dream, right? Yes indeed, but we did it in an economical way by travelling across Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia for only RM11,800 per person (ALL IN). Stay with us as we share our money-saving tips, what to eat and what you need to know about these countries.