Once in a while everyone needs a short break. If you live next to the Baltic sea or come to visit this region – it is so easy to get a cruise and visit several cities in few days! Knowing how expensive is in Scandinavian cities, visiting a city during the day might be a good idea.
So as I spend some time in Helsinki, I decided to visit Tallinn. My third time there, first time using a cruise to reach it.

Getting the best price

There are many sales for these cruises as they are so big and demand is not so big. We got the sale code and got a room for 2 for 20eur round trip. 5 eur one way with Silja Tallink cruise line. Hm, why not right? And almost every week I see some great deals to go to Tallinn, or to Stockholm from Riga or Helsinki. So just check tallinksilja.com or Vikingline.com. So we got this night cruise, that is also called as a ”party boat”. Finnish people love it because alcohol is cheap in a tax free shop and even in a bar is cheaper than in Helsinki. So you get in the cruise in the evening, party all night, sleep and the next morning visit Tallinn. If you have energy. If not, just keep partying until it goes back to Helsinki on the next day afternoon.
If you just want to visit Tallinn, you can book a one day cruise – you leave in the morning and come back in the afternoon. It is common to do another way round so tourists do not spend money in Helsinki.

The party boat

It is an interesting life experience. All the students will be in the cheapest cabins lower than a car deck. Older clients will get the upper floors. We got right in the middle. Cabins are small but cosy, everyone has a private shower and toilet.
Party boat would not be a party if there would not be an alcohol. Few minutes before seven we see a crowd of people. They are waiting for the tax free shop to open. We join the line and after few minutes door opens and madness starts. It is like from Hollywood movies about sales in USA. People are running, grabbing everything and spending 30min in a line to pay. We were not so interested to buy things as to look how people get crazy.
After one hour you can already see drunk people in the corridors and elevators going up and down. If you decide to join this boat, you better join that crowd, otherwise it will be boring as it was for me.

What happens in a boat, stays in a boat

After 10 pm, when the boat gets to Tallinn, the party starts. We cannot leave the boat until the morning so it is better to enjoy. Talking about food, restaurants are pretty expensive. You will need at least 20 Eur/pp to eat. You can bring food to the boat if you are really on a budget.
After few drinks in a cabin we decide to explore the party areas. Honestly, I thought I have seen a lot after Erasmus times and USA style 100 people parties at one house. So on one floor you will see many students dancing like crazy with popular music hits, not necessarily from past 5 years. And on the other floor you will find a live disco group with a dance floor with people that remember great parties in 50s and 60s.
Honestly, me and my boyfriend did not see ourselves in none of the groups. So after few hours wondering around decided to rest before morning in Tallinn.

Sunny morning in Tallinn

When you have 3 hours in Tallinn you do what? Visit the main areas, grab a morning coffee and go back to the boat. It is only 15min walking to the main tourist sights from a boat. And close by there are shops for more food and alcohol to bring to Finland. I did not want to miss the observation point of the city that is in the upper old town, where beautiful churches and presidential palace is. Then you can go down on the other side and get the city hall and shopping streets. I could not resist Lithuanian coffee chain Caffeine latte that I just love. In Helsinki this kind of coffee is at least 5 Eur and in Tallinn 2.5 eur. You see the difference right?
After this short walk we were heading back to the boat. It is so easy to miss it! You have to be at least 30min before departure, otherwise all your belongings will go back to Helsinki without you. Good that there are many ferries to Helsinki everyday. Good that we did not need to use them.

I hope you enjoyed my experience in a party boat. Join it with your group of friends and comment how was the trip.
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