Travellers usefull tips

Things to know about Finland

Capital: Helsinki.

Religion: 90% of the Finns are evangelical Lutherans. Another 10% of the population is represented by several religious denominations. Among them are Finnish Orthodox Christians, Baptists, Methodists, members of the Liberal Church, as well as Roman Catholics, Jews and Muslims.

Official language: Finnish. 93.6% of the population speaks Finnish fluently. Swedish is a native language for 6% of the population. The Sami people, who live in the north of the country, speak the Saami language. English is widely used in tourism and human services.

Climate is temperate, accompanied by significant temperature variations. In Finland, summer is warm, but winter is cold and protracted. It lasts from November to mid-March. In the north of the country, snow remains from October to May. In the Arctic region of Finland, summer days are about 16 hours long. When winter comes to the north of Finland, twilight period lasts for two months. Climate is quite dry – the country receives most precipitations in winter. They fall as snow.

The average temperature in Helsinki:

January −5 °C
February −6°C
March −2°C
April +4°C
May +10°C
June +15°C
July +18°C
August +16°C
September +11°C
October +13°C
November +6°C
December −3°C

Currency: euro. International code – EUR or €. Circulated banknotes are in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 euro and coins of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 cent, as well as 1 and 2 euro.

Means of payment: cash. However, large amounts of money are paid by credit cards. Credit cards of Eurocard, Maestro, Mastercard and VISA are widely spread in Finland. You can use them in most hotels, supermarkets, restaurants and car rental companies. Besides, you can also use traveller’s cheques, denominated in American dollars or euros. A wide range of traveller’s cheques are acceptable, including American Express, Bank of America, City Corp, MasterCard, Thomas Cook и Visa.

Currency exchange: You can exchange freely convertible foreign currency in state banks and exchange offices with the “Money exchange” sign. In addition, such offices are located in most hotels, department stores and border posts. Banks are open only on weekdays, from 9:15am to 4:15pm. However, on weekends you can exchange money in exchange offices, which are located at airports, railway stations, sea ports and post offices.

Calls to Finland from other countries
To make a call to Finland from another country, you should dial an international access code (different for each country) – international code of Finland (358) – necessary dialling code – phone number itself.

Calls from Finland to other countries
To make a call from Finland, you should dial: exit code – international country code – dialling code – phone number. To call within the country, you should dial dialling code and phone number. In the street, you can use public phone boxes to call from Finland to any other country. Public phone boxes accept either coins, or phone cards, which are sold in such special shops as “Tele”, at kiosks “R-Kioski” and in central post offices. SIM cards are sold there too. Sonera Easy, DNA Prepaid, Columbus Prepaid and Go Mobile are the most famous mobile companies in the country. To top-up your phone account, you should buy an additional payment card – “latauslseteli”.

Useful phone numbers in Finland:
Police, Ambulance, Emergency services on the whole territory of the country – 112
Inquiry desk – 118
Directory inquiries of Helsinki-Vantaa Airport – 9600/8100
Helsinki City Tourist Office – 169-37-57
To order a taxi in Helsinki – 700-700
Lost and Found Department – 189-31-80

Time zone:
UTC / GMT +2 hours
UTC / GMT +3 hours – Greenwich Daylight Savings Time

Customs
People, who are more than 20 years old, are allowed to bring into country duty-free:
- up to 300 cigarettes, 75 cigars or 400 gr of tobacco;
- up to 15 l of beer, 5 l of wine, 1 l of strong alcohol beverage;
- up to 50 ml of perfume, 250 ml of cologne;
There is no limit to the amount of currency you can bring into Finland.

Shopping: In Finland, shops work from 09:00am to 6:00pm from Monday till Friday. On Saturdays, they are open from 09:00am to 3:00pm. You can buy alcohol beverages only in special shops. In all department stores, sale period starts after Christmas. It lasts till the end of January. Summer sales are held after Midsummer – the 22th of June. Signs “Ale” and “Tarjous” show that shops have bargain sale and discount.

Transport in Finland

1) Public transport:

1. Buses and trams. A single ticket worth about 1.1-1.5 euros or a 10-trip ticket worth 12 euros must be bought to use public transport. Such tickets are sold at kiosks or from a driver. Your ticket must be punched during a trip. Passengers must get on a bus or a tram through the front door only. In order to get off at the stop, you should press a door opening button. A few routes are available at night. Such trip will cost you about 3-5 euros. Such vehicles have “N” sing.

2. Subway has only one line, which consists of 12 stations. If you need to get to the Central Railway Station of Helsinki, you should get off at Rautatientori Metro Station. This subway station provides connection of the city centre with its south-western districts. M-sign on the red square box shows the entrance to Helsinki Metro.

3. Taxi. When a taxi is available, its taxi roof light is yellow. In Finland, licensed taxis are equipped with taximeter, this taximeter has a receipt printer and will provide you with a printout at the end of your journey. It is not accepted to leave tips a taxi driver. Initial tariff in a taxi on weekdays from 6:00am to 8:00pm, on Sundays and on the eves of holidays is about 5.3 euros, otherwise – 8.3 euros.

2) Long-distance transport

1. Aircraft. Regular flights operate on the routes between 22 airports of the country. These are following: Vaasa, Ivalo, Joensuu, Jyväskylä, Kajaani, Kemi, Kittilä, Kokkola, Kuopio, Kuusamo, Mariehamn, Oulu, Rovaniemi, Tampere, Turku. It’s the fastest and most convenient kind of transport in Finland.

2. Railway transport. Finnish railway roads connect all large cities. Two main railway lines come up to Lapland. Trains in Finland include also business-class carriages, as well as carriages for people with limited mobility, and for those who travel with pets. Trains with baggage carriages are marked with the letter “P”. Some trains are specially equipped to carry cars.

3. Bus service operates between all major cities and towns of the country. More than ten thousands of comfortable buses follow their routes every day. One-way ticket costs from €4 to €50. If you travel for a distance of more than 80 km, you can expect a 10% discount on your back ticket. Children under the age of 11 travel at half-price and pensioners receive discounts.

Car rental
To rent a car, you must have an international driving license and a credit card. You must be at least 20 years old with driving experience at least one year. After choosing a car you will need to pay a bond, the amount of which is equal to the rental price. Rental prices depend on season – in winter and summer they are higher than in other seasons.

Traffic rules in Finland
The legal alcohol content in blood of a driver is 0.5 per mille. Finland determines such speed limits: in built up areas – 50km/h, outside built up areas – 80km/h, on motorways – 120km/h. In winter these limitations become lower. Drivers must follow traffic rules, including:
- Headlights must be switched on 24-h
- All passengers must fasten their seatbelts
- Talking on mobile phone while driving is prohibited
- Stopping or parking is allowed on the right side of the road
- A bus when leaving a bus stop has priority
- Winter tires are compulsory in Finland year-round
If you have a car accident, you’re advised to call to emergency service – 112.

Water transport
Finland is covered by numerous lakes and rivers, that’s why water transport and tourism are well developed there. In summer time – from May to August – water buses regularly run from Sapokanlahti Harbour in Kotka to the nearest islands: Haapasaari, Kaunissaari, Varissaari, and Lehmäsaari.

Hotels in Finland: hotels in Finland provide a high level of service and are not classified according to the star rating system accepted in Europe. Breakfast is included in the price of the room; if available, sauna and swimming pool are also included. Children under the age of 15 usually have stay discounts. Low-cost excursions are often offered families. Price for a hotel room ranges between 80 and 200 euros. In summer time, cheap rooms in student hostels and cosy suburban cottages are in demand among tourists, as their prices are lower than in hotels.

Tipping
As a rule, a porter in a hotel or a restaurant is given a few-euro-tip. You shouldn’t leave money taxi drivers and hairdressers.

National Holidays:
1 January ‒ New Year
26 January – Epiphany
April ‒ Good Friday
April – Easter
1 May – May Day
40th day of Easter ‒Ascension Day
June – Pentecost
19-20 June ‒Midsummer Day
31 October ‒ All Saints’ Day
6 December ‒ Independence Day
24-26 December ‒ Christmas

Visa: is not required for citizens of the countries of the Schengen Agreement. These are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Vatican City, Hungary, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Iceland, Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, France, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Sweden, Estonia. Citizens of other countries, who wish to visit Finland, must apply for a visa.

Electricity in Finland: voltage – 220-240 V. The country uses socket of the European type. For units of the UK, USA network type you’ll need an adapter.

Health service: tap water is safe to drink in Finland.

Behaviour rules
Handshake is a must in Finland. First of all, hosts should drink for guests’ health, and only then guests can have a drink. European clothes is accepted in the country. The Finns are reserved and never raise their voice, so you’re advised not to speak very loudly. They are very punctual, that’s why you should come to a meeting in time. Invitation to a visit is usually carried out two weeks before meeting. In Finland, it’s forbidden to smoke in public places and transport.