Earlier this month I went on a 12 day trip with one of my besties to Scandinavia and I’m so excited to share all of the details! Having Swedish blood, this is a trip I’ve always wanted to do, and Nicole had some of the same places on her travel bucket list. So back in February we booked our flights and made some plans! Scandinavia is not a budget destination by any means. Everything is much more expensive there than other parts of Europe. But it has loads of charm, cafes to no end and friendly people who will speak English when needed.
We started our trip in Helsinki, Finland. My international flights were pretty easy and relatively short. I did roundtrip out of Chicago with Iceland Air and had a three hour flight, a pitstop in Reykjavik (as in me running from one gate to another in order to make my connection) and finished with a six hour flight to Helsinki.
Helsinki REALLY surprised me! I didn’t have much for expectations and wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the city, but I really enjoyed it. Though we stayed three nights, we truly only had one ful day in the city. We didn’t make any plans and didn’t visit any museums (which can be said about the entire trip), but we walked A TON, stopping for food, drinks and photos throughout each day. Our full day of exploring was on a Sunday and while the city was certainly active, it wasn’t overly crowded. (A VERY good reason to not travel during the high tourists summer months.) I found Helsinki really easy to navigate, clean, SAFE and welcoming. I don’t think one would need more than 2 days to explore the city though.
Where We Stayed
We stayed in this AirBnB in the Kallio neighborhood – a bit of a boho area that has seen some transitioning in recent years. I thought our AirBnB was perfect for us. It was a ~15 minute walk from the main city center and right across the street from a large public transit station with a direct line to/from the airport.
Currency: Euro
Were We Ate/Drank
• Ravintola Såvel: We had dinner here our first night because it was directly below our AirBnB and we were exhausted from the flights. Seemed to serve more of the local crowd and our food was okay but not my favorite.
• Paulig Kulma: LOVED this little bakery/cafe in the city center surrounded by shopping. The avocado toast and latte was delicious and they have a great patio area.
• Johan & Nyström: Great little coffee shop right on the water in the harbor with colorful patio seating. Staff here was super friendly.
• Kapelli Restaurant Terrace: Super cute restaurant with an *awesome* patio right in the middle of the park in the city center. We only had wine here, but I loved the vibe and would totally recommend! We scored a patio spot and talked to the cutest older couple from Jersey.
• Talo Cafe: An eclectic cafe located right below our AirBnB that we popped into for a glass of wine. I really dug the place! Seemed more of a local place with a younger crowd.
Here’s a link to a Helsinki map with all of the spots marked.
Next stop: Estonia!
—m.