Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital of Finland. Many foreign hitchhikers enter the country here, either by boat from Tallinn or by plane to the Helsinki international airport (which is not actually in Helsinki, but in the neighbouring community of Vantaa).
Hitching in
If the driver is not going directly to the Helsinki city centre, then it is a good idea to ask to be dropped off at a train- or a metro stop. At train- and metro stops there are ticket machines that sell public transportation single tickets or day tickets if you need. You can also buy them from "R-kioski"-convenience stores, many grocery stores or parking machines (the last one only applies to single tickets). Note that you can't buy the bus- or tram ticket from the driver. You can extremely easily blackride all metros, trains and tramways since there are not so many checkers and metro doesn't have tolls. Also buses are blackrideable, since you only need to display your ticket to the driver when entering (you can try to display a screenshot of a ticket, or just anything since often the drivers seem not to even checking what you're showing. There are even websites where you can download authentic-looking fake tickets to be used in buses). Buses with orange colorway (lines 20, 30, 40, 200, 300, 400, 500, 510, 520, 530, 560, 570 and 600) don't even require showing the ticket, so you can enter them from any of the doors. However, there might be controllers in those orange buses, but as infrequently as in trams, metros and trains. Even less frequently there are controllers in blue buses, but it's still possible as well.
Note, however, that if the driver drops you off in the outskirts of neighbouring communities of Espoo or Vantaa, a journey to Helsinki by train, metro or bus will cost 4,10€ (ABC-ticket).
October 2024: Commuter trains (named with letters) are blackrideable. There is staff in purple uniforms mostly just taking care of that everything is OK. They may also check tickets and kick you out if you don't have one, but they can't give fines. Beware of groups of controllers in blue uniforms, they happen randomly, not too frequently.
Here's a link to ease your navigation in public transportJourney Planner of Helsinki Region Transport.
If you hitch a cargo boat from Tallinn your driver will most likely land at Vuosaari marina that is a bit far from the city as from the closest metro stop (last stop, Vuosaari). Better if you can ask him/her/them to take you at the metro station. However, bus 90 runs between the port and the metro station.
When arriving on a normal ferry from Tallinn, you can hitchhike already on the car deck of the ferry some 30 minutes before arrival. You will leave the ferry sitting in the car and it will take you somewhere far beyond the city limits.
Hitchhiking out
North to Hämeenlinna, Tampere E 12
The easiest place to get a lift north is the petrol station complex Neste Keimolanportti itä situated in the suburb of Vantaa. There is one bus station right in front of the petrol station called Keimola. Check the easiest way to get there with the Journey Planner of Helsinki Region Transport. The journey from the west side of the central railway takes about 40 minutes and you need an ABC ticket (€4.10). The petrol station is located north of Helsinki's ring roads, so traffic is going long-distance. It is very easy to get a lift straight to Hämeenlinna or Tampere if you just stand at the exit with a sign.
It is possible to take commuter train P from central railway station to Kivistö, which is very near to the targeted petrol (check map). Commuter trains may be blackrideable, frequency of controllers is unknown. Note that controllers wear blue uniforms. Purple uniforms belong to train staff, and they can also check tickets and kick you out if you're travelling without a ticket , but they can't give fines. If you get asked to get off the train by them, you better just obey and catch the next train.
If you don't wait to spend 4,10€ on an ABC ticket, you can also take a bus with a cheaper AB ticket (€2.95 to the northern end of the street Mannerheimintie, where the road Hämeenlinnanväylä starts. From the west side of the central railway station, take bus 40, 200, 300, 321, 345 or 400 (or 37, 41, 42, 63 from Kamppi) to the stop Ruskeasuon varikko and hitchhike straight from the bus stop. The downside of this place is that traffic passes by very quickly, and many drivers are reluctant to stop at a busy bus stop. If your driver is not going very far, ask him to drop you off at the petrol station Neste Keimolanportti itä mentioned above.
Northeast to Lahti, Jyväskylä E 75 East to Porvoo, Kotka, Kouvola, Saint Petersburg E 18
There's a bus stop called Koskelan varikko and you can reach it with several bus lines: 70, 73, 74, 75, 77, 78, 79N, 711, 717, 718, 721, 731, 738, 739, 785, 787, 788. You can also get there by tram, which is easier to blackride than buses. Go to the Kumpulan kampus tram stop using tram #6 or #8. From there you can walk 1200m to the Koskelan varikko bus stop. The motorway splits into two slightly before Ring Road 3. Road number 4 goes towards north/northeast (Lahti, Jyväskylä), while road number 7 goes towards east (Porvoo, Kotka, Kouvola, Saint Petersburg, and so on). This place works okay with a sign, but it is impossible without one. Stand just behind the traffic lights and there will be plenty of space for the cars to stop. It could be a good idea to stand before the bus stop, so that the cars can actually pull over into the stop, because it is actually illegal to stop after the traffic lights (at least some drivers think so). You should also make sure the driver is really going to your way, because there's no place to drop you off between the bus stop and the junction where the motorways split.
Another option is to get to the Viikki bus stop, where both local buses and long distance buses stop. You can reach it with following bus lines: 70, 73, 74, 75, 77, 79, 506, 711, 717, 718, 721, 731, 738, 739, 785, 787, 788, 848 (lines 70, 73, 74, 77, 79 and 506 don't stop right by the highway, so you need to walk less than 100m there. Other mentioned lines use the same stop as long distance buses) . Or you can take bus 57 or 78, or light rail line 15 to the Viikin tiedepuisto stop right next to the Viikki stop. That bus stop is the first one after the motorway sign. That is already highway, so hitchhiking is technically forbidden there, but usually the police don't care (according to the previous edit). Sign highly recommended since the road splits in two.
In case you can't find a satisfying ride within a reasonable time (can happen, especially on Sunday mornings), hitch from here to the junction with ring road III (make a sign for one of the suburbs behind, e.g. Järvenpää). Get out once you have passed the junction, and hitch on the road connecting the ring road and the motorway. Half of the traffic is driving very fast, the other half rather slow – however, you'll find much more long distance traffic here than in Koskelan varikko bus stop. Note that this is officially a motorway, so hitching is actually forbidden!
If you're going towards east in the direction of Porvoo, Kotka and Russian border check also another option below! (probably works better)
East to Porvoo, Kotka, Kouvola, Russia border, Saint Petersburg E 18
The fastest way to go east is to walk to the junction of Ring Road III and the motorway from the metro station Mellunmäki. This is about a 40 minute journey on foot (see image). Once at the junction, it is easy to get a ride as short as the suburbs or as far as Saint Petersburg. With so many options, it is wise to turn down any ride not going all the way to your destination.
If you go further than to Porvoo, there is a rest stop halfway between Helsinki and Porvoo, so ask to drop you there. All there is is toilets and a café, so it's most efficient in the morning time. From there, find a ride at least to Kotka.
West to Turku E 18
Take bus 20, 25 or 30 from Kamppi to the Niemenmäki stop (buses 52 and 57 also go there, but not from the city center). A little further ahead from the bus stop and across from the street is the entry ramp onto the motorway. Unfortunately, there is absolutely nowhere safe for cars to pull over and stop for you here, at least not before the motorway sign. However, if you walk on 100m further after the sign, you will find that the hard shoulder begins and you can hitch there (of course, it's not legal). If you want to stay the right side of the law, it's recommended to hitchhike with a sign at the Niemenmäki bus stop; however, traffic going in this direction will already be filtering into the left lanes (away from the bus stop) to turn onto the on-ramp. Alternatively, it is possible to stand on the grass verge dividing Huopalahdentie and ask drivers as they are waiting to turn at the lights.
West (direction Hanko)
Take the national road/motorway 51 that starts in the southwestern part of the central city area.
You can take the metro to the station Ruoholahti. Walk (north) for one block past the Kauppakeskus (shopping centre) to the next big street (Porkkalankatu). Cross over to the other side of the street and a bit further on is the junction of the motorway and Porkkalankatu. The best place to stand is on Porkkalankatu at the start of the bus lane before the Länsiväylä bus stop. Use a sign here. On the motorway, the hard shoulder starts about 50m up and it is not very wide and so it is very difficult for cars to stop there. However, hitching right at the beginning, at the corner where the continuation of the 'bus lane' turns into the motorway, it is possible for cars to pull over into this lane (if there are no buses coming!)
South, ferry towards Tallinn, Estonia
It's not possible to hitch rides with people going by car. If there is an extra passenger in a car or truck, an extra ticket has to be paid.
But you can try to become a member of the Viking Club (only in Finnish, Swedish and Estonian) and get a free "picnic cruise" and just not use the return ticket.
As of January 2020, the ticket price for viking lines buying it through the website in finnish is 12€ round-trip (you can use the outgoing way only, if you want). It is around 30€ (?) the website in english language. You will have to fill a rather long form in the finnish version but you can always ask for help to a native finnish or use google translator. Note that you need to buy the ticket online at least 1h 30' earlier than when the ferry departs.'
While on the ferry, you should hitchhike already on the car deck of the ship. Go to the car deck at least 30 minutes before arrival time to the harbour and start asking around. If you have a large backpack, keep in mind that at some point the car deck's doors will open and the cars will start flowing out into the harbour. You don't want to be between large trucks at that point! You should be able to get a ride at least until Pärnu this way, often all the way to Riga or through to Lithuania. If you're on your way to Poland or beyond, obviously look for Polish licence plates and talk to those people first.
You can find boats from small harbors for sailboats. Distance to Tallinn is only 80km and small boats can do it easily. Catalog of harbors
Ferry companies
Eckerö line -> The cheapest one. 2 / 3 ferrys per day. One in the morning, one in the afternoon and one in the evening. Terminal 2 West.
VikingLine -> Cheaper when bought from the finnish website. They take longer and depart from a different terminal not close to the other ones.
Tallink -> Many times available but expensive and bad service. Terminal 2 West.
Linda line
Sleeping
Even within the Helsinki city limits, there are plenty of secluded wooded areas where one can set up a tent, and these can be reached by local train. A glance at the map will show many ideal places around, for example, the intersection of Ring Road I and Vihdintie (from the city center take local train P to the stop Pohjois-Haaga and then some walking). If you are discreet, then you should have no problem; even if you are discovered by police, they are more concerned about Roma camps than foreign hitchhikers. Kaivopuisto park, in the south part of the city centre is a very calm and cool place for wildcamping. If you don't have or prefer avoid put tent there are also some rocks at the very edge of it, near the sea, where you can lay on your mat without any problem, just maybe geese will arrive to wake you up in the morning..
Nomadwiki & Trashwiki
Check Trashwiki for dumpsters...and share your wisdom :)
Trustroots people in Helsinki FB group
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