St Petersburg - Helsinki
Ferries to Finland
St Petersburg - Helsinki
Ferries to Finland
Compare live pricing across ferry operators worldwide and find the sailing that fits your trip. Booking sooner rather than later is the simplest way to secure the best fares and the widest choice.
Direct Ferries runs discounts across the calendar year. If your route qualifies for a senior discount, it's applied for you automatically as soon as you choose the correct age bracket in the passenger options when you search.
Students and recent graduates qualify for a 5% saving on their ticket. Register with our partner Student Beans to confirm your eligibility, then apply the discount code you receive at checkout.
A resident discount is also on offer for a number of Spanish and Italian crossings — select the "Residents" option where available and the price will adjust automatically. Make sure you can show proof of address, such as a residency certificate or ID card, when you check in.
Document requirements differ by route, so check what you'll need well before departure. Travelling from St Petersburg to Helsinki generally calls for a valid passport, plus any visa or national ID your nationality requires. Since rules depend on both your citizenship and your destination's regulations, our Check-in, Travel Documents & Tickets guide is a good place to check the details and avoid delays at check-in.
Getting your tickets is simple — enter your departure port, arrival port, and preferred travel date to see every fare and sailing available. From there, you can compare alternative routes and departure times to land on the best option for your trip.
Watch for early-bird pricing and flexible ticket formats, such as upgrades or flexi-fares that allow later changes or cancellations. Enter your details accurately, including passenger count and vehicle information, to keep your booking process smooth.
A confirmation email lands in your inbox the moment your booking is finalised. How your boarding pass gets issued from there depends on the specific ferry operator.
Certain operators release your boarding pass right after booking; others want you to check in once you reach the port. Where available, the Direct Ferries app lets you check in online ahead of time.
Ticket desks sit near the ferry terminal in most cases. Give yourself extra time before departure to collect your tickets and complete check-in without stress.
You'll need to present your confirmation email plus valid photo ID — a passport or identity card — at check-in. Pet owners should bring vaccination and insurance paperwork, and anyone using a resident discount should have proof of address on hand.
A handful of reasons can explain the lack of departures from St Petersburg to Helsinki on your selected date — timetable adjustments, sold-out sailings, or a seasonal gap are the usual culprits. Try a different date or browse other routes through our Route & Port finder.
Booking your St Petersburg to Helsinki ferry early usually pays off, both in terms of price and choice — earlier bookings tend to unlock better fares and more departure and cabin options.
A few weeks' notice is generally enough to catch the best deals, though fares can still move depending on the season and remaining availability.
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Located on the banks of the River Neva, St Petersburg is Russia's second largest city and lies at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea coast. The city's name was changed to Petrograd in 1924 but was later changed back to St Petersburg in 1991. Widely regarded as Russia's cultural hub it is probably the most western of all Russia's cities. St Petersburg's historic centre and related collection of monuments have been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A popular tourist attraction in the city is The Hermitage, which is one of the largest art museums in the world. Located in the city are a large number of foreign embassies, international corporations, banks and other businesses. Unlike in Moscow, Saint Petersburg's historic architecture of the city centre, mostly consisting of Baroque and neoclassical buildings of the 18th and 19th centuries, has been largely preserved.
The city is served by passenger and cargo seaports in the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland, the river port higher up the Neva and tens of smaller passenger ports on both banks of the Neva River. It is a terminus of both the Volga-Baltic and White Sea-Baltic waterways.
Helsinki is the capital of Finland and is located in the south of the country and lies on the shore of the Gulf of Finland. The city is quite small and therefore is just begging to be explored on foot where visitors will be impressed by the city's architecture, culture and shopping and will love exploring the city's parks, forests and coastline with its many islands. A popular attraction in the city is the National Museum of Finland which contains a large collection dating back to prehistoric times through to the present day. The museum is housed is a neomedieval castle which is a popular attraction in its own right. For visitors that enjoy history, other museums in the city include the Helsinki City Museum, which introduces visitors to the city's 500 year history, the University of Helsinki, which has a number of museums which includes the University Museum and the Natural History Museum.
There are daily ferry services to Helsinki from Estonia, Sweden and Germany. All the ferry companies offer also possibility to take a car with you. Helsinki can be reached by ferry also from Russia as well as Poland.
