Transport on the Åland Islands
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Åland is an archipeligo of over 6,000 islands in the Baltic Sea. Constitutionally, it is a Swedish-speaking autonomous province of Finland. Sea travel is a vital part of Åland's economy and a major local employer. The main ports are located at the capital Mariehamn, at Berghamn and at Långnäs on the east shore of Fasta Åland (the main island).
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[edit] Air
Air Åland operates flights from Mariehamn Airport to both Helsinki-Vantaa Airport and Stockholm-Arlanda Airport. Also Turku Air flies to Turku three times a week with a Piper PA-31 Navajo.
[edit] Roads
The islands have quiet roads which are much appreciated by cyclists. There are no railways on Åland, but there are Ålandstrafiken local bus services operating in conjunction with the inter-island ferries.
Road vehicles registered in Åland have number plates with blue lettering starting ÅL:
| ÅLA-123 |
[edit] Sea
The Silja Line and Viking Line ferries operating between Helsinki or Turku and Stockholm call briefly at Åland, at either Mariehamn or Långnäs . As well as providing useful transport links, this also permits the sale of duty-free alcohol on board the ships. This is due to Åland's special constititional status and exemption from normal European Union rules on Value Added Tax and other tariffs, negotiated by Finland as part of talks leading to membership of the EU in 1995. Vessels must call at an Åland port to qualify.
A network of ferries operated by Ålandstrafiken provide inter-island services (and links with Galtby, Finland).
Eckerö Linjen operates a ferry service between Eckerö, Åland and Grisslehamn, Sweden.
[edit] External links
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