Aland Islands
Autonomous, Demilitarised And Swedish Speaking Archipelago Of Some 6,500 Islands Between Finland And Sweden · Mariehamn, Aland
The Aland Islands are an autonomous, demilitarised and Swedish-speaking province of Finland: some 6,500 islands and skerries scattered across the mouth of the Gulf of Bothnia, halfway between Turku and Stockholm. Autonomy came out of a League of Nations decision in 1921, and the islands keep their own flag, stamps, parliament and car plates, plus a special tax status that is the reason the big Helsinki-Stockholm ferries stop at Mariehamn. People come for a slow, cyclable landscape of red granite shores, red wooden farmhouses, midsummer poles and medieval stone churches; for Kastelholm castle and the Bomarsund fortress ruins left by the Crimean War; for the four-masted barque Pommern in Mariehamn; and for island-hopping on small free or cheap car ferries into the outer archipelago. The honest caveat: this is a quiet, summer-driven destination. From October to April many restaurants, guesthouses and museums close or cut hours, beaches are rocky more often than sandy, the sea stays cold, and the ferry timetables, not you, set the pace of every day.
Aland Islands, from Mariehamn to the outer archipelago, Mariehamn, Aland, Finland
The islands are always open; the visitor season runs roughly mid-May to mid-September, peaking late June to mid-August. Kastelholm castle, Jan Karlsgarden and most small museums are summer-only or open short hours off season - check the current schedule. Reach Mariehamn by the Viking Line or Tallink Silja ferries from Helsinki, Turku or Stockholm, by the Eckero Line ferry from Grisslehamn in Sweden, or by short flights. Book car space on ferries and summer beds weeks ahead; inter-island ferries can fill with cars on July weekends, so check whether your route takes bookings.