The Port of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin Satama, sv, Helsingfors Hamn) is one of the busiest passenger
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
s in Europe and the main port for
foreign trade
International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (see: World economy)
In most countries, such trade represents a significant ...
in
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
.
For passenger traffic, the port operates regular liner connections to destinations such as
Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
,
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
,
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
and
Travemünde
Travemünde () is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of the river Trave in Lübeck Bay. It began life as a fortress built by Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony, in the 12th century to guard the mouth of the Trave, and the Danes ...
, serving a total volume of 11.6 million passengers in 2018. Additionally, it is a popular destination for international
cruise ship
Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as "s ...
s with 520,000 passenger arrivals in 2018.
As Finland's leading cargo port, a total of 14.7 million tonnes of goods were transported in 2018. The main export commodities are products for the forest industry, machinery and equipment, whereas in imports the most prominent product group are daily consumer goods.
In 2017, the Port of Helsinki acquired a majority stake in the
Port of Loviisa
The Port of Loviisa (Finnish: ''Loviisan satama'', Swedish: ''Lovisa hamn'') is a Baltic seaport in the city of Loviisa, located on the south coast of Finland and the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland. It is situated in the Valko district ...
, situated some east of Helsinki.
The port is owned by the city of
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
and operated by ''Port of Helsinki Ltd''.
The current port traffic volumes and urban population categorize Helsinki as a Large-Port City
Harbours
The Port of Helsinki consists of three active harbours.
South Harbour
The South Harbour ( fi, Eteläsatama, sv, Södra hamnen) is a bay and harbour area immediately next to the centre of the city of Helsinki.
Silja Line
Silja Line is a Swedish-Finnish cruiseferry brand operated by the Estonian ferry company AS Tallink Grupp, for car, cargo and passenger traffic between Finland and Sweden.
The former company Silja Oy—today Tallink Silja Oy—is a subsidiary ...
operates from the
Olympia Terminal
The Olympia Terminal ( fi, Olympiaterminaali, sv, Olympiaterminalen) is a dock in the South Harbour of Helsinki, Finland. It was designed by the Hytönen- Luukkonen architects bureau and opened for the 1952 Summer Olympics.
Today, the termina ...
on the west side of the bay, whereas
Viking Line
Viking Line Abp is a Finnish shipping company that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between Finland, the Åland Islands, Sweden and Estonia. Viking Line shares are quoted on the Helsinki Stock Exchange. Viking Line is operate ...
operates from the
Katajanokka Terminal
Katajanokka Terminal ( fi, Katajanokan terminaali, sv, Skatuddens terminal) is a ferry terminal located in Katajanokka, in the Southern Harbor of Helsinki, Finland. The shipping company Viking Line operates scheduled services from the termin ...
on the east side of the bay. Silja Line and Viking Line each operate one ferry to
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
via Mariehamn per day, and Viking Line also has multiple departures to
Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
every day. Silja Line's
MS Silja Serenade
MS ''Silja Serenade'' is a cruiseferry owned by the Estonian shipping company Tallink Grupp, operating under their Silja Line brand on a route connecting Helsinki to Stockholm via Mariehamn. She was built in 1990 by Masa-Yards at Turku New Ship ...
MS Gabriella
MS ''Gabriella'' is a cruiseferry sailing on a route connecting Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden for Viking Line. She was built in 1992 in Brodosplit, Croatia as ''Frans Suell'' for service with Euroway. Between 1994 and 1997 she sailed as ...
MS Viking XPRS
MS ''Viking XPRS'' is a fast cruiseferry owned by the Finland-based Viking Line and operated on their service between Helsinki, Finland and Tallinn, Estonia. Her keel was laid on 16 April 2007 and launching took place on 19 September 2007. ''Vik ...
has multiple departures to Tallinn Terminal A every day. The Makasiini Terminal is also located on the west side of the bay but has been closed since the only regular operator,
Linda Line
Linda Line was the brand name of ''Lindaliini AS'', an Estonian ferry company operating between Tallinn, Estonia and Helsinki, Finland. Its high-speed passenger ferry ''Karolin'' was the fastest vessel sailing between the two cities, linking T ...
, went bankrupt in 2017.
West Harbour
The West Harbour ( fi, Länsisatama, sv, Västra hamnen) is a passenger and cargo harbour in the
Jätkäsaari
Jätkäsaari (; sv, Busholmen) is a peninsula and a quarter in Helsinki, the capital city of Finland. It is part to the Kampinmalmi district and Länsisatama neighbourhood. It was the location of the main container harbour in Helsinki until late ...
district of Helsinki. The harbour features two terminals: the older Terminal 1, and the newer Terminal 2 (completed in 2017).
St Peter Line
St. Peter Line is water transport company owned by Moby SPL Limited, a Maltese-registered shipping company, which operated services from Helsinki, St. Petersburg, Stockholm and Tallinn. The company was founded in 2010 with it starting operations ...
’s cruise service to
St Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
MS Megastar
MS ''Megastar'' is a fast ro-ro/passenger (ro-pax) ferry built by the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland, for the Estonian shipping company Tallink. The 230 million euro vessel is the first ship in Tallink's fleet to use liquefied natural gas ...
and
MS Star A number of motor ships have been named ''Star'', including:
*, originally ''Merzario Hispania'' and later MS ''Nordic Ferry'', a car ferry
*, a Ro-Pax ferry operated by the Estonian ferry company Tallink
{{DEFAULTSORT:Star, MS
Ship names ...
Eckerö Line
Eckerö Line is a Finnish shipping company owned by the Åland-based Rederiaktiebolaget Eckerö. Eckerö Line operates one ferry between Helsinki (Finland) and Tallinn (Estonia). Eckerö Line should not be confused with the similarly named Eck ...
’s shuttle ferry MS Finlandia to Tallinn Terminal A operate from Terminal 2. The West Harbour area also includes the Munkkisaari Quay on the west side of neighbouring
Munkkisaari
Hernesaari (; sv, Ärtholmen; until 2013 known as Munkkisaari / ''Munkholmen'')Vuosaari Harbour
Vuosaari Harbour (''Vuosaaren satama'' in Finnish; ''Nordsjö hamn'' in Swedish) is a seaport facility in Helsinki, Finland, opened in November 2008. It is also the 19th tallest building in Finland. Pillu Kolehmainen is the most famous stevedorer ...
( fi, Vuosaaren satama, sv, Nordsjö hamn) is located in the suburb of
Vuosaari
Vuosaari ( sv, Nordsjö) is a neighbourhood in the City of Helsinki, Finland. It is located by the sea in East Helsinki and with its area of is geographically the largest district in the city. It also has two Helsinki Metro stations, Rastila ...
and was opened in November 2008. It replaced the ''North Harbour'' and ''Laajasalo Oil Harbour'' and serves primarily container and
Roll-on/roll-off
Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...
traffic. The majority of passenger services operate from the other two harbours in Central Helsinki with the exception of
Finnlines
Finnlines Plc ( fi, Finnlines Oyj, sv, Finnlines Abp) is a shipping operator of ro-ro and passenger services in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. It is a subsidiary of the Grimaldi Group. Finnlines’ sea transports are concentrated in the Bal ...
’ daily service to
Travemünde
Travemünde () is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of the river Trave in Lübeck Bay. It began life as a fortress built by Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony, in the 12th century to guard the mouth of the Trave, and the Danes ...
on
MS Finnstar
The ''Star'' class is a class of five Ro-pax ferries built by Fincantieri, Italy at their Castellammare di Stabia and Ancona shipyards for Finnlines. They are used on Finnlines' routes connecting Finland to Germany and Sweden to Germany. Most shi ...
, MS Finnmaid and MS Finnlady. Passengers on this ferry service check in at the Hansa Terminal and are transport to the ship by bus.
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...