Hotels in Helsinki and Tampere
The Finns are right to be proud of their trains. Fast, punctual and meticulously clean, they set a standard that is hard to match. In an age where people are increasingly looking for enviromnentally friendly holidays, VR Ltd Finnish Railways sets the benchmark, giving you every reason to leave the car at home.
If you can tear yourself away from the cultural and architectural delights of Helsinki, the train journey to Tampere is one of the real gems of European travel. This sparsely populated land is a place of great natural beauty, where the modern sits well with the traditional.
Summer brings never-ending daylight, while the winter landscape has an ethereal elegance often lit up by the hauntingly beautiful Northern Lights.
As the majestic red and white train glides through the open - countryside, passing lakes fringed by forest, you cannot help but be struck by the serenity of it all. It is hard to think of any other intercity journey in the developed world that passes through landscape of such untamed beauty.
The only complaint one could have is that the journey is over so soon. The memory of sumptuous lakes, verdant forests and grand farmsteads is one that will linger long in the mind. The next time you are on the train to work, you will be tempted to close your eyes and try to imagine that you are back on the Helsinki-Tampere Express.
HOW
By train
WHEN TO GO
Year round
TIME IT TAKES
Ninety minutes
HIGHLIGHTS
The train is the real star, as you view pristine countryside through immaculately clean windows.
Helsinki Station - a green trimmed Art-Deco style masterpiece.
The 200 or so lakes that surround Tampere.
Central Museum of Labour (Tampere) a quirky museum full of interesting things.
YOU SHOULD KNOW
One cannot say this too often: train travel in Finland is fun, affordable and stress-free.
