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One of our most popular routes is now avaiable with start in Mariehamn instead of Turku With eight days and seven nights, this is the largest bicycle tour on offer in the region. You will experience the entire archipelago of the Åland Islands, as well as the Finnis archipelago aroung Nauvo, Turku, Kustavi and Naantali - with everything it has to offer. At the same time, you will also get to feel the city life in Finland's oldest city, Turku, and the Åland port city of Mariehamn.
In total, you will cycle 265 km in a large loop around the archipelago, traveling from island to island using the same ferries as the locals: a total of 15 ferry crossings during the trip – ranging from 5 minutes to 3 hours at sea. We have selected hotels and guesthouses of good standard, which we believe are the best fit along your route.
With this rate, you will sleep in double rooms every night. For example, if you are a group of four, you will have two double rooms at your disposal. You never have to share rooms with other groups.
With this rate, you will sleep in larger rooms, accommodating three or more guests. You never have to share rooms with other groups.
We book and pay your ships between the islands, so you wont have to worry about them.
Accommodation in private rooms at hotels, guesthouses and cabins. Showers and bathrooms in separate buildings.
Breakfast is included in all accommodations.
Our standard bicycle is a 3-geared 28" bike of the model Helkama Ainotar, made in Finland. Comfortable to ride and with a basket in the front.
If you travel with your own bicycle we will give a discount on the price.
Bike panniers with a capacity of 20 liters are included. Your empty bags can be kept when you collect the rental bikes, or stored in safe lockers in the Mariehamn ferry terminal.
Clean sheets and fresh towels are provided at every accommodation, so you don't have to bring this.
Our itinerary is sent to you as a PDF document, specially formatted to be easy to use on any smart phone. The itinerary contains your route description, map links to all important and interesting places, and all ferry departures you need to mind to travel between islands.
We send you a digital travel calendar that you can easily add to your telephone to remind you of important times and places. The calendar works on every model of telephone.
We also send your routes for each day in GPX file format, that can be used with bike computers or offline maps.
Day 1: Optional biking
Day 2: 40km biking
Day 3: 27km biking
Day 4: 50km biking
Day 5: 45km biking
Day 6: 42km biking
Day 7: 40km biking
Day 8: 21km biking
Departing Stockholm at 07:45
Departing Grisslehamn at 10:00
Departing Turku at 08:45
Departures from Helsinki not included
Arrival in Stockholm at 18:55
Arrival in Turku at 19:50
Arrival in Grisslehamn at 14:30 or 19:30
We have new and comfortable electric bicycles of the Helkama E7 model, with batteries lasting you the entire day.
If the schedules of the Kökar ferry fits, we can book a visit for you to the famous island Källskär.
Would you like to spend an extra night on any of the islands, or spend a night in Mariehamn before you start biking? Write a request with your booking and we'll take care of it.
By your request we can book more expensive en-suite rooms with private bathrooms for most nights.
Your journey starts in the small maritime town of Mariehamn. This is the only city in the Åland Island, a green and charming start to your trip. You can easily reach Mariehamn by flight or by ferry from Turku or Stockholm, or by ferry and bus from Grisslehamn. Tasty food is served on all ships departing for Åland. Upon arrival at the terminal in Mariehamn, you pick up your rental bikes and bike bags. Extra luggage can be left in secure storage lockers.
A short walk from the ferry terminal is the Åland Maritime Museum and the impressive museum ship Pommern. This four-masted sailing ship has been preserved from the early 1900s, before Åland's shipping industry completely transitioned to motorized propulsion.
You will spend the night at Strandnäs Hotel, located a couple of kilometers north of the center, in a quiet part of the city. In the evening, you have time to stroll in the Eastern Harbor, with restaurants, a marina, and the Maritime Quarter. If you want to stretch your legs right away, you can take a bike trip to the beautiful Järsö peninsula South of the city.
After breakfast, you leave Mariehamn and continue across the largest island in Åland. The route mainly follows a separate, paved bike path through forests and along farm fields. Along the way, you cross the Lemström Canal, as well as the captain's estate Pellas, which has interesting exhibitions about shipping on the upper floor, as well as a café conveniently located along the route.
Onboard the ferry to Kökar you can enjoy the view of the surrounding archipelago as the ferry goes from island to island and finally arrives in Kökar. This small community in the outer archipelago is one of the most beloved touristic destinations in Åland. If you are interested in history, you can visit the monastery ruins in Hamnö; otherwise, you can walk along the Kalen hiking trail, or just relax seaside at Klobbars Guesthouse, where you will be staying overnight.
After breakfast, you have the whole morning to continue exploring Kökar. Around lunchtime, you take the ferry from Kökar and arrive in Galtby in Finland. You cycle along the archipelago road to Nagu. The restaurant Bakpocket at Hotel Nestor is on the way. You can make detours to Korpoström's archipelago center and Nagu's southern archipelago if you want to cycle a lot, or relax with a good meal. You will spend the night at Hotel Stallbacken about 5 km from the center, or at Hotel Strandbo in central Nagu.
If you are traveling during the low season (before June 9 or after August 15), you will instead stay in Korpo at Solvillan or Hjalmars Hotel. This is because the ferry from Kökar departs later in the evening.
Morning ferry departure from Nagu via Själö to Hanka. From here, you cycle north towards Naantali through a bit more forested terrain. Just before Naantali, you can detour to visit the garden at the Kultaranta Estate, which is the summer residence of the President of the Republic.
The journey continues to Naantali, which is a charming little town with a long history. If you want to extend your trip, we can book you a night at the luxurious Naantali Spa hotel before you continue. From Naantali, the cycling continues to Turku. The cities are not far apart, so part of the cycling goes through residential areas.
This is Finland's oldest city, with a lot of interesting culture and history, as well as, of course, nightlife and culinary experiences. You will stay centrally at Hotel Helmi and be close to the Aura River, which flows through the city center and connects the attractions. If you want to skip the somewhat heavier cycling today, we can help you cheat with a bike ferry that goes from Nagu directly to Turku in the afternoon.
In the morning you can visit sights in Turku before cycling back to Naantali and further towards Teersalo. The toughest cycling leg of the journey is today, but you have plenty of time and do not need to catch any specific ferry departure. You will cycle over several bridges, between the bridges the road winds through forested areas.
From the ship pier in Teersalo you take the ferry to the small island of Palva and on the other side another ferry to Velkuanmaa, where you will spend the night at the archipelago hotel Vaihela. They have a nice restaurant and their own wine cellar.
Today you'll rise early for the morning ferry to Hakkenpää. From here you cycle through Kustavi (Gustavs), where you can visit the Archipelago Museum or do some climbing among the boulders known as Jeremiah's caves.
From Kustavi, you leave Finland with an archipelago ferry to Brändö in Åland. In the middle of this archipelago is Hotel Gullvivan, where you check in for the night. Alternatively, you cycle on to the small island of Lappo, to spend the night at Pellas Guesthouse.
The morning ferry from Brändö to Vårdö takes 2.5 hours through beautiful archipelago and stops at several smaller islands. From the harbor in Vårdö, there will be a bit of cycling until you reach the ruins of fortress Bomarsund. The road goes straight through the ruins, and you can stop to look at what was once the fortress of the Russian Empire. Here, it is worth taking your time to see the different parts of the fortification and enjoy a cup of coffee. The cannons are still there and are regularly polished.
A little while longer in the saddle and you will arrive at the Kastelholm Castle, which is one of Åland's most popular attractions. You also have time tomorrow to visit the castle. Overnight stay at Kastelholm Guesthouse or Saltvik Bed & Breakfast a bit further away. Several good restaurants are located near the castle.
Today you have an easy bike ride back to Mariehamn. Along the way, you can visit the Jomala church, which is believed to be one of the oldest preserved churches in Finland. If you have booked a return ferry, it departs in the afternoon to Stockholm or Turku. If you want to book an extra night in Mariehamn, we are happy to help you arrange a hotel room.
