Travel to Finland is becoming more and more popular among citizens of the Russian Federation. This small prosperous country is distinguished by a high level of service; many amazing historical and cultural monuments of bygone eras have been preserved on its territory. In addition to the capital of the state of Helsinki, you can visit the equally interesting cities of Jyväskylä, Savonlinna, Tampere. Lovers of mountain tourism and skiing await the Levi resort in the Kittilä community. However, in order to travel comfortably around the country, transport mobility is necessary. Let's take a look at how car rental in Finland is organized.
Transport links and car rental in Finland
Finland is a developed European state with all types of transport links. There are several seaports in the country of Suomi, connecting it not only with the Scandinavian states, but also with other countries of the world.
In addition to Helsinki Airport, located in the satellite city of Vantaa, air transport services can be used at Turku Airport, at Kemi-Tornio Airport or Kruunupii, which is located near the town of Kokkola-Pietarsaari. There are 28 airports in Finland. However, air communication with Russia is possible only from the Helsinki-Vantaa airport.
Railway transport is also well developed in the country.
There is also an extensive network of highways of good European quality in Finland.
If you want to get to know Finland better, and not use it exclusively for transit, it makes sense to explore it by car.
Thus, you can avoid being tied to the public transport schedule and devote as much time to acquaintance with the settlements and natural objects you like as you see fit.
If you don't feel like driving your own car abroad, the idea of renting a car in Finland looks pretty tempting. Moreover, you can rent not only a car. For example, a camper rental is available here. This is a motorhome on wheels that combines the functions of a car and a hotel.
Car rental service in the country of Suomi is well developed. All of the world's largest car rental companies are represented here. In addition, there are also small Finnish car rental companies.
There are about 50 thousand rental cars in operation in the country. So renting a car in Finland is not a problem - there are rental offices in all major airports and train stations, as well as in almost all cities of the country.
True, it is better to book vehicles in advance via the Internet. This option will allow you to save on payment and be sure that the car you need will be waiting for you.
Finland is quite an expensive country. You can find out the current fuel prices by following the link. Car rental itself is not cheap - a rental day will cost from about 60 euros. However, when the rental period is extended, the daily price decreases noticeably.
It should be borne in mind that compared to hiring a taxi, renting a car will cost less. And even car sharing will cost much more.
Where and how to rent a car in Finland
You can rent a car immediately upon arrival in Finland right at the airport, train station or ferry terminal. However, it is still better to take care of renting a vehicle in advance. Reservations can be easily made from anywhere in the world using the Internet.
We bring to your attention a small list of sites that allow you to book a car:
- Rentalcars is one of the largest car rental websites in the world. The company does not have its own cars and offers rental cars from partner companies. Moreover, due to its own discounts, Rentalcars sometimes offers car rental cheaper than the owner company. The site is Russified.
- Avis is the largest operator of the international car rental market, part of the Avis Budget Group and headquartered in the United States. The company has its own fleet of cars from budget models to expensive prestigious cars. The site is in Russian.
- Hertz is another largest American company that rents its own cars around the world. In Finland, you can rent cars from this company through holidaycars.com or Rentalcars.
- Sixt is an international car rental company headquartered in Germany. The company offers its own vehicle rental. You can work with the site in Russian.
- Cars-scanner is another car rental site that promises rental discounts of up to 70%.
You can easily find other companies offering car rental in Finland on the Internet. Therefore, it makes sense to spend a few hours before the trip to compare offers and choose the best option for you.
What are the conditions for renting a car in Finland
It is allowed to drive a car in Finland from the age of 18 - it is from this age that car rental is also available. However, distributors require a minimum driving experience, which cannot be less than one year. The length of service is determined by the date of issue of the driver's license; no additional certificates are required.
When renting expensive prestigious cars, a condition is often put forward regarding the driver's age, which must be within the range of 25-70 years, and the driving experience must be at least 3 years.
Quite often, citizens of the Russian Federation have a question about whether an international driver's license is required in Finland. Answering it, we can say that they are not required. However, you should understand a little about this issue.
There are two main international conventions on road traffic - Vienna 1968 and Geneva 1949. Russia is a signatory of both documents. The member states of the Vienna Convention, including Finland, have undertaken to recognize the rights of other signatory states, provided they conform to a single model. For this reason, a Russian driver's license can be used in the country.
The so-called International Driving Permits (IDPs) are the result of the signing of the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic. An IDP is actually a translation of a national driver's license into major international languages. Therefore, without presenting a national driver's license, the IDP is invalid.
In theory, Russians do not need an IDP in Finland. However, some distributors ask to show it, which is related to car insurance issues. Therefore, you should clarify in advance whether you will need this document at the selected rental office.
Speaking about the terms of car rental, you should definitely stop at a deposit or, as it is also called, a franchise. All rental cars are insured. Moreover, each insurance includes a deductible - part of the damage that the owner of the car pays for. The franchise is introduced so that the owner is not indifferent to the fate of the car.
When renting a car, companies cannot control the driver's actions, and they are not going to pay a deductible. Therefore, a certain amount (deposit) is necessarily blocked on the tenant's credit card to cover such expenses. You will not be able to use this money for the entire rental period.
It should be borne in mind that we are talking about blocking a fairly substantial amount - for example, for economy class cars, the deposit in Finland is about 1200 euros. Without blocking the deposit, not a single rental office leases a car.
What documents are required for rent
In order to rent a car, you will need:
- passport;
- driver's license;
- credit card. Debit and prepaid are not accepted.It must belong to the payment systems American Exspress, Visa, MasterCard. In addition, the card must be embossed - volumetric embossing with the name and surname of the owner. The card must be issued for the main tenant;
- voucher if you booked the car in advance and made a partial prepayment.
Car rental prices in Finland
The rental price depends on the class of the car, the place of rental, the rental company and the period for which the car is rented. The longer the rental period, the cheaper one day costs.
For the convenience of our readers, we have tabulated the prices for car rental per day in some cities in Finland:
| Helsinki | Turku | Jyväskylä | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skoda Fabia / 1 day | 60.98 | 73.11 | 75.05 |
| Skoda Fabia / 3 days | 31.94 | 49.5 | 37.51 |
| Skoda Fabia / 7 days | 24.23 | 40.25 | 34.44 |
| Skoda Octavia / 1 day | 85.35 | 124.57 | 94.26 |
| Skoda Octavia / 3 days | 42.97 | 74.5 | 58.61 |
| Skoda Octavia / 7 days | 33.31 | 70.17 | 55.86 |
| "Nissan Qashqai" / 1 day | 101.82 | 98.82 | 210.03 |
| Nissan Qashqai / 3 days | 71.97 | 73.96 | 88.74 |
| Nissan Qashqai / 7 days | 49.66 | 52.83 | 85.39 |
The rental price includes a civil liability insurance policy. The car is issued with a full tank, and it must be returned in the same condition, otherwise the cost of gasoline will have to be paid at a higher price than at gas stations.
Traffic regulations in Finland
Finnish traffic rules are not much different from Russian ones, although some specific points still exist.
Speed limits:
- in settlements - 50 km / h;
- outside settlements - 80 km / h;
- on highways - 120 km / h.
There are many CCTV cameras installed on the roads of the country, so traffic violations never go unpunished. The fines in Finland are very high. Find out more in the article “Traffic rules in Finland”.
Parking features
Finding a free parking space in small towns in Finland is not a problem, while in the centers of large cities it is almost impossible to do so. For example, the whole of Helsinki is divided into three paid parking zones, and the closer to the center you leave your car, the more you will have to pay for parking.
Payment for parking is made through parking meters. The payment receipt should be placed on the dashboard under the windshield. The cost of parking is from 20 to 50 cents per 10 minutes and from 1 to 3 euros per hour.
In free parking lots, the time you can stay there is usually limited.
To confirm that you are not breaking anything, you need to purchase a special parking clock for 1-3 euros. They display the time when you left the car, rounded up to half an hour. The clock is placed under the windshield on the dashboard so that it is easy to see its readings from the street.
Find out more about the peculiarities of parking in Finland.
Finally
Renting a car in Finland is not a problem. There are a lot of rental offices there, including all the world's major rental companies. True, the cost of gasoline and the rent itself is quite high. However, in order not to depend on public transport and fully enjoy the beauty of the country and get to know its sights, these costs are still worth going for.
