Travel Fair in Helsinki in January 2009
The upcoming travel Fair MATKA2009 will be held at the Helsinki Fair Centre in January 15-18. We at the Hostelling International Finland office are vigorously planning our participation. The fair is a great place to meet people who are enthusiastic about travelling as well as others working in the travel business.
Joining us on our stand will be four Finnish hostels: Hostel Turku from the city of Turku, SKO-hostel from Savonlinna and Helsinki’s Stadion Hostel and Eurohostel. Look for a stand 6d9 and you will find us there.
The emphasis of the fair is on sustainable tourism, the theme is: Our world – our responsibility. Expect to find less plastic give away gadgets and more organic experiences and travel stories!
For more information about the fair visit: www.finnexpo.fi/matka
Stadion Hostel in Helsinki brought corner shop to the reception!
The staff and management at Helsinki’s Stadion Hostel aims at making their customer to feel as carefree as possible when staying in Helsinki. They constantly think of new ways to improve the quality of the hostel and the services provided. The latest improvement was to increase the selection of goods sold at the reception area.
Now the customer finds a good selection of drinks, sweets, basic groceries and toiletries in a fair price. There are also travel services available which you can find useful: tickets for the local transport, sightseeing tours by Rudolf’s City Experince company and also Helsinki-cards which gives you a free entry to main attractions as well as the use of local transport.
Tallinn – Helsinki’s overseas neighbour
Many travellers visiting Finland also take advantage of the great ferry connections between Helsinki and Tallinn. Tallinn is the beautiful and lively capital of Estonia, which is one of the Baltic countries. One of the biggest attractions in Tallinn is the Old Town, which dates back to the Medieval times. The Old Town is also included in the Unesco World Heritage list. But there is more to Tallinn too. It is definitely worth visiting and finding out more about Estonia, its interesting and even tragic history, but vibrant today.
There are ferries operating between Helsinki and Tallinn daily. The fastest ferries take you to Tallinn in 90 minutes, but you can also enjoy the more peaceful way of sailing when travelling there.
There are over dozen Hostelling International hostels in Tallinn where to stay. Here’s few examples:
City Guesthouse is located on the border of the Old Town. There are private rooms as well as dormitories available. The building is of historical value since it was designed by one of the most famous Finnish architects, Eliel Saarinen, in 1912.
Academic Hostel is situated 5 kilometres from the city centre on Tallinn Technical University campus. It’s great especially for groups since there’s a big parking lot with enough space for buses.
Nord Hostel is close to the city centre and has versatile amenities for its customers: sunny terrace to chill out and get to know other travellers, car rental and even a sauna.
Vabriku Guesthouse in a new hostel, located near the city centre, just a 15-minute walk away from the Old Town. After a day of exploring Tallinn, you can relax in Vabriku Guesthouse’s garden. They offer ensuite double rooms.
City Bike Hostel gives you a chance to spend an active holiday. This small hostel, situated in the Old Town, not only rents bicycles, but also arranges bike tours in Tallinn and in the nearby areas. And in case you realise you would enjoy travelling the rest of your trip by bike, they will sell you a second hand bike! That’s customer service!
More information from Estonian Youth Hostel Association.
Ferries from Helsinki to Tallinn:
Eckerö Line
Linda Line
Nordic Jet Line
Super Sea Cat
Tallink Silja
Viking Line
Hostel Academica – HI Finland Hostel of the Year 2008
The Board of Hostelling International Finland has named Hostel Academica as the Hostel of the Year 2008. Hostel Academica is a summer hostel located in the Helsinki city centre. Sights, shops and restaurants are near. The hostel has rooms from dormitories to 4-bedded rooms, all with private shower and bathroom and a small kitchenette with a refrigerator.
The atmosphere in Hostel Academica is open and international. The hostel is also known as environmentally friendly. In addition to backpackers and families, the cosy hostel accommodates also lots of meeting and conference visitors. The hostel is open 1.6-1.9.
More information: http://www.hostelacademica.fi
New brochures available
Brochures for the year 2008 are now available. In Hostels in Finland 2008 -brochure you can find contact details for all finnish HI-hostels.
Hostels in Helsinki 2008 -brochure includes HI hostels in Helsinki and Espoo. In Hostels in Scandinavia 2008 -brochure you will find all scandinavian hostels.
You can order all these brochures from HI Finland office or from our website.
New SRM-hostels
Kuusamon Portti in Kuusamo and Traveller´s home (Matkamajoitus) in Helsinki are new hostels in SRM-chain.
In Kuusamon Portti you can overnight in 2-6 bedded rooms. There are many possibilities for different kind of outdoor activities like berry and mushroom picking, skiing, husky and reindeer safaris. Further information: www.fi-nl.eu.
Traveller’s home offers apartments in Helsinki city centre. Apartments are fully equipped and furnished. In kitchen You will find for example tv, coffee maker and microwave. Further information: www.travellershome.fi
