In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Porvoo (Borgå in Swedish) was chartered in 1346 and lies 50 kilometres east of Helsinki on the Porvoonjoki river. Its old town (Old Porvoo / Vanha Porvoo) has red-ochre timber storehouses, cobbled lanes, a 15th-century stone cathedral and chocolate shops. Intercity coaches leave Kamppi bus station all day (50 minutes). In summer the 1912 ship m/s J.L. Runeberg sails from Market Square in 3.5 hours. Allow five hours to walk the old streets, taste chocolates at Brunberg and eat beside the river. Or book a tour: a 5-hour half-day tour from Helsinkiad from €84 covers Porvoo Old Town and the 15th-century cathedral with a guide, so you do not have to plan the day yourself.
⚠️ HSL tickets are not valid. Porvoo is outside the HSL network, so a Zone AB or ABC ticket will not work. Buy a coach ticket from Matkahuolto or OnniBus, or pay the driver at Kamppi.
Getting to Porvoo: coach or summer ship
| Transport Mode | Journey Time | Standard Adult Fare | Departure Point | Frequency / Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intercity Coach (OnniBus / Matkahuolto) | 50 – 60 minutes | Fares on matkahuolto.fi and onnibus.com | Kamppi Bus Terminal (Level -1) | Every 15–30 minutes, 365 days a year |
| m/s J.L. Runeberg Passenger Ship | 3 hours 30 mins each way | Fares on the operator’s site | Market Square (Linnanallas quay) | Late May to early Sept: 10:00 dep, 16:00 return |
Option 1: Express coach from Kamppi
The long-distance bus terminal is underground in Kamppi Shopping Centre (platforms 1 to 6):
- Operators: Matkahuolto and the low-cost OnniBus run air-conditioned coaches with free Wi-Fi and power outlets.
- Arrival: Coaches stop at Porvoo Bus Station (Porvoon linja-autoasema) on Rauhankatu, 300 metres east of the Old Town.
m/s J.L. Runeberg, Porvoo. Photo: JIP, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Option 2: The historic cruise on m/s J.L. Runeberg
The m/s J.L. Runeberg, built in 1912, makes the trip through the archipelago:
- The voyage: From South Harbour it threads the narrow sounds of the Pellinki archipelago and goes up the reed-fringed estuary of the Porvoonjoki river.
- Timetable: Departs Helsinki Market Square at 10:00 and docks in Porvoo at 13:30. It leaves Porvoo at 16:00 and is back in Helsinki at 19:30, which gives about 2.5 hours ashore.
- Onboard food: A salmon soup lunch with dark archipelago bread, and a Runeberg tart.
Guided trips to Porvoo
Half-day sightseeing tour
From €84 · 4.5 stars from 37 reviews · 5 hours
From Helsinki: Porvoo Half-Day Sightseeing Tourad covers the old town’s 18th- and 19th-century buildings and the 15th-century Porvoo Cathedral.
Riverside medieval town tour
From €89 · 4.2 stars from 18 reviews · 5½ hours
From Helsinki: Porvoo Riverside Medieval Town Guided Tourad goes by bus from Helsinki, with a guided tour of the riverside town and free time to explore the old town.
Helsinki and Porvoo by car
From €120 · 4.9 stars from 9 reviews · 5 hours
Helsinki & Porvoo Tour with Local Stories and Transferad combines Helsinki’s squares and cathedrals with a stroll through Porvoo’s Old Town, by car with a local guide.
Exploring Old Porvoo (Vanha Porvoo)
Old Porvoo’s medieval street plan survived the fires that destroyed many other Finnish wooden towns.
Riverside storehouses, Porvoo. Photo: Drefer, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The red riverside storehouses (ranta-aitat)
A row of low red-ochre timber storehouses lines the eastern bank of the Porvoonjoki river:
- Purpose: Built in the 17th and 18th centuries, they stored tobacco, spices, salt, coffee and timber brought by merchant ships from Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands.
- The red paint: In the late 18th century King Gustav III of Sweden visited Porvoo, and the town ordered every riverside warehouse painted red ochre (punamulta) for the royal fleet. The colour then spread across rural Finland.
- Best photo spot: From the western bank, reached by the Old Bridge (Vanha silta), the storehouses reflect in the river.
Porvoo Cathedral. Photo: Zache, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Porvoo Cathedral (Porvoon tuomiokirkko)
Porvoo Cathedral, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, stands on the highest point of the old town hill:
- Building: Stone and red brick from the late 15th century (about 1450–1480). It has been sacked and burned several times by invading armies.
- The Diet of Porvoo (1809): After Sweden lost Finland to Russia in the Finnish War, Tsar Alexander I convened the Diet of Porvoo here in March 1809 and promised to uphold Finland’s Swedish legal code, religion and internal self-government. Finland became an autonomous Grand Duchy, the basis for independence in 1917.
- Visitor hours:
- Summer (May to September): Monday to Friday 10:00–18:00, Saturday 10:00–14:00, Sunday 14:00–17:00.
- Winter (October to April): Tuesday to Saturday 10:00–14:00, Sunday 14:00–16:00.
- Admission: Free (closed during worship services).
Jokikatu and Välikatu, Old Porvoo. Photo: Teemu Eskola, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Cobblestone lanes: Jokikatu and Välikatu
The two main pedestrian streets in Old Porvoo run parallel to the river:
- Jokikatu (River Street): Antique shops, homeware boutiques, ceramic studios and waterfront cafes.
- Välikatu (Middle Street): Design studios, linen weavers and tea shops. Many wooden doorframes keep 18th-century wrought-iron knockers and carved fanlights.
Brunberg: chocolate since 1871
Brunberg has made sweets in Porvoo continuously since 1871.
- The Old Town shop (Välikatu 4): Open Monday to Friday 10:00–18:00, Saturday 10:00–16:00, with free tastings at the counter.
- Specialities:
- Brunbergin Suukot (Kisses): Chocolate-coated domes filled with vanilla, strawberry or mocha cream over a thin wafer base.
- Alku caramels: Soft toffees in retro wrappers, a Finnish childhood staple since the 1910s.
- Salmiakki: Dark salted liquorice with a strong ammonium chloride taste.
- Truffles: Dark chocolate truffles dusted in cocoa.
Johan Ludvig Runeberg and the Runeberg tart
Finland’s national poet, Johan Ludvig Runeberg (1804–1877)—author of the national anthem Maamme—lived in Porvoo from 1837 until his death.
- Runeberg’s Home Museum (Aleksanterinkatu 3): In the 19th-century Empire-style district just south of Old Porvoo. The house is kept as it was in the poet’s lifetime, with his library, walking canes and the indoor garden his wife Fredrika tended.
- The Runeberg tart (Runebergintorttu): Said to have been devised by Fredrika, it is a cylindrical almond sponge cake soaked in arrack or rum, topped with raspberry jam and a ring of icing sugar. Elsewhere in Finland it is sold mainly in January and February around Runeberg Day (5 February); Porvoo’s cafes serve it all year.
Where to eat and drink in Porvoo
- Porvoon Paahtimo Bar & Café (Mannerheiminkatu 2): In a 1902 red-brick riverside storehouse, roasting its own coffee on site. There is a wood stove in cool weather, and in summer craft ales and natural wine on a floating barge deck.
- Zum Beispiel (Rihkamakatu 2): At the town entrance, serving fresh pasta made in-house, slow-cooked meats, sourdough bread and organic wines.
- Gabriel 1763 (Raatihuoneentori): On the old Town Hall Square, serving thin-crust pizzas, some with Finnish toppings such as cold-smoked reindeer and lingonberries.
- Restaurant Vår (Papinkatu 17): Fine dining built on wild ingredients from the archipelago and the Porvoonjoki valley. Reserve well ahead.
Practical day-trip planning tips
- Footwear: Wear flat, sturdy shoes. The cobbled slopes around the cathedral hill are slippery in leather soles or high heels.
- Season: Porvoo is open year-round. Summer (June–August) brings boat cruises, gardens and river terraces; late November and December bring snowy streets and a Christmas market on Old Town Hall Square.
- Getting back: Buses to Helsinki leave the bus station on Rauhankatu until about 22:00 or 23:00 on weekdays.
- Other day trips: Day trips from Helsinki, Tallinn and Nuuksio National Park.
Common questions
How do you travel from Helsinki to Porvoo?
By express bus from Kamppi bus station. Departures run every 15 to 30 minutes and take 50 minutes to an hour; tickets are sold by Matkahuolto and OnniBus. From late May to early September you can also take the historic ship m/s J.L. Runeberg from Helsinki Market Square.
Can you use standard HSL municipal transit tickets to travel to Porvoo?
No. Porvoo is 50 kilometres east of Helsinki, outside HSL zones A to D. You need an intercity bus ticket.
How much time is needed to explore Porvoo?
Four to six hours is enough to walk the cobbled lanes of Old Porvoo, see the cathedral, browse the shops on Välikatu, taste chocolates at Brunberg and have lunch in a riverside warehouse.
When does the m/s J.L. Runeberg sail between Helsinki and Porvoo?
From late May to early September. The ship leaves Helsinki Market Square at 10:00 and reaches Porvoo at 13:30, leaving about 2.5 hours ashore before the 16:00 return sailing. Adult fares are €37.00 one way and €50.00 return.
Is Old Porvoo easy to walk in?
It is compact and best done on foot, but the hillside alleys are cobbled and uneven. Wear flat shoes.
