Making the most of Kotka
Use these notes to shape a realistic day ashore, then confirm any time-sensitive information for the date of your call.
Arriving at the port
HaminaKotka, Finland's largest universal port, provides excellent facilities for cruise calls to the Kotka-Hamina area. Kotka and Hamina lie conveniently between Helsinki and St. Petersburg, allowing visitors to explore more of Finnish culture and history. Helsinki is approximately a 75-minute drive away, while St. Petersburg in neighbouring Russia is 125 nautical miles by sea or three hours overland.
The city centre is 700 metres away.
Kotka, meaning "eagle" in Finnish, belongs to the Kymenlaakso region within the province of Southern Finland.
Circular Hamina and its historic places, Kotka island with its luxuriant parks, and the wider Kotka-Hamina area offer an authentic visitor experience. See atmospheric old timber houses, churches in varied styles and maritime history at Finnish Maritime Centre. Other options include white-water rafting on River Kymijoki, an inner-archipelago tour and walks through nature. Together these experiences create an international yet authentic day in the Kotka-Hamina region...
Getting around
Central Kotkansaari (Island of Kotka) is compact enough to explore on foot without difficulty. To reach other districts, use a bus, taxi or hire car. Taxis can be called on 10041.
Finnish Railways runs the country's fairly extensive rail network.
Cars can be hired in Finland, although prices are generally high at upwards of € 80/day.
Food and shopping
Pasaati is a large shopping centre in central Kotka, with shops for every taste and particularly high numbers of Russian shopping visitors.
Money
Finland uses the euro (EUR), divided into 100 cents. The country does not issue 1 and 2 cent coins, instead rounding every total to the nearest 5 cents.
Staying connected
Finland has two official languages: Finnish (93%) and Swedish (7%). English is also spoken widely.
The national number for police and all other emergency services is 112.
Customer-WiFi cafés are scarce in a country where most people connect at home or work. Almost every public library provides free Internet, however, and WiFi hot spots are becoming increasingly common.
Opening Hours and
Weekday hours are:
from 07.00 - 09.00 until 20.00 - 21.00.
Saturday hours are:
from 09.00 until 15.00 - 18.00.
On Sundays, businesses are:
not open.