The Sea Fortress of Suomenlinna, Finland

The fortress of Suomenlinna is one of Finland’s most popular sights. It is only a very short ferry crossing away from Helsinki. Just a 15-minute ferry ride from the Kauppatori. The Suomenlinna ferry is part of Helsinki’s public transport service. Set on a tight cluster of islands connected by bridges, the UNESCO World Heritage site was originally built by the Swedes as Sveaborg in the mid-18th century. Swedish built here a fortress for defensive purposes against the Russians and was original called Sveaborg (fortress of Svea, Swedish still call it this way) but of course Finish renamed it after their independence into Suomenlinna (castle of Finland). The construction of the fortress begun in 1748 but expanded later in 19th century by the Russians. We noticed some old canons on the island but what we liked most were some colorful corners full of flowers.

suomenlinna The Sea Fortress of Suomenlinna, Finland