Getting to Helsinki: Vantaa Airport Ring Rail Trains, Central Station and Ferries

Helsinki-Vantaa Airport (HEL) sits 19 kilometres north of the city centre and operates out of a single, sleek timber-and-glass terminal where arrivals, baggage claim and the underground railway escalators are all under one roof. Getting into central Helsinki is fast, step-free and remarkably inexpensive.

1. HSL Commuter Trains I and P (Best & Fastest: 27 to 32 minutes)

Follow the "Trains / Junat" signs from the arrivals hall down the long escalators or spacious lifts to the underground Airport Railway Station (Lentoasema). The station sits on a circular suburban loop called the Ring Rail Line (Kehärata), served by two commuter train lines that both terminate at Helsinki Central Railway Station (Helsingin päärautatieasema):

• I Train vs P Train: both trains start and end at Helsinki Central Station. The P train runs clockwise via Tikkurila (taking 27 minutes from the airport to Central Station), while the I train runs counter-clockwise via Myyrmäki and Huopalahti (taking 32 minutes). Because they depart every 10 minutes during the day, simply hop onto any train arrives next on the departure board.
• Which ticket to buy (Zone ABC): while central Helsinki sits in Zones A and B, the airport sits in Zone C. Therefore, you need an HSL Zone ABC Single Ticket (valid for 90 minutes, including any connecting city tram, metro or bus ride to your hotel door). There are no ticket sales on board the train; buy your ABC ticket in seconds on the HSL smartphone app, at the blue HSL ticket machines on the platform, or by tapping a contactless bank card on the purple platform card reader before boarding (note that tapping a bank card directly on the reader only sells an adult single ticket).

2. Bus 600, Taxis and Arriving at Helsinki Central Station

Overnight when trains pause briefly between roughly before dawn and before dawn, trunk Bus 600 runs every 15 to 30 minutes from the airport bus bays to Central Station on the same HSL ABC ticket. Outside the terminal, four official contracted taxi lanes (FixuTaxi, Taksi Helsinki, Menevä and Lähitaksi) display their fixed or metered rates to downtown clearly on signs (around 25 minutes by road). When you step out of Eliel Saarinen's 1919 Art Nouveau granite Helsinki Central Station, guarded by Emil Wikström's four monumental stone Lantern Bearers (Lyhdynkantajat), trams, the Metro and central hotels are right in front of you.