How to sail on an icebreaker in Finland: experience, prices

Before doing our recent trip to Finnish Lapland We did not imagine that it was possible for tourists sail on an icebreaker through the icy waters of Baltic Sea.

But I can tell you that it is possible.

One of the things that surprised me most about my first trip to Rovaniemi in winter many years ago was to discover during the flight that the Baltic Sea it freezes completely.

To such an extent that from the plane you could see how the trucks crossed the waters on very long roads over the ice.

Does the Baltic Sea freeze in winter?

It was logical to think that the great icebreaking ships They do an important job during the winter in the Baltic to open certain sea routes.

You have to take into account that Finland It is the only country in the world in which the waters of all its seaports freeze over during several winter months.

Logical if we know that it is common for temperatures to drop to -20 degrees Celsius, with the record set at -51 degrees.

But the truth is that I did not know that in Kemi, On the banks of Baltic, you can sign up for one very exclusive activity, sail aboard the Sampo icebreaker.

In fact, this activity has become the great tourist attraction of said city of the finnish lapland, sharing the interest of visitors with the leisure complex of the Snow Castle.

Curiosities from the history of the icebreaker Sampo

El Sampo icebreaker It was built in Helsinki in 1960 along with two other icebreaker ships, as part of the reconstruction plan of the Finnish icebreaker fleet.

El Sampo It had a predecessor whose origins date back to 1898, which was operating for 50 years.

The current Sampo he finished his icebreaker activitys in 1987, and was then acquired by the Kemi town hall to give it a second life starting a new one tourist activity.

This project was an example of the creativity of the mayor who was then managing this Finnish city.

Although this acquisition initially caused rejection, the truth is that since then the Sampo it became the great tourist attraction of Kemi, followed years later by the aforementioned Snow Castle.

After the adaptation that was carried out on the boat for its new function, the Sampo tourist activity It begins every year in December and lasts about four months, during which about 15 tourists sail aboard the icebreaker.

Characteristics of the Sampo icebreaker, dimensions, how it can navigate

This icebreaker It has a length of 75,7 meters and a beam of 17,4 meters, with a total weight of 3.541 tons

The function of icebreaker is carried out thanks to the special weight and thickness of its sheet metal, so that with its weight it opens the route.

And another basic feature is its diesel engine that, if it encounters excessive thickness of ice, can reverse quickly to get back on the route.

Its four engines allow it to reach a speed of 16 knots in the open sea, and in the frozen sea it navigates at between 6 and 8 knots, with a cutting capacity of up to 1,20 meters deep in solid ice.

This is the experience of sailing on an icebreaker

With a crew of nine people, plus guides and restaurant staff, during the winter months various activities are carried out every day. cruises on the Sampo, all lasting about four hours.

These cruises are included in tours departing from Rovaniemi, Kemi, Haparanda and Tornio.

Some of these cruises take place at dusk, which, if you're lucky, allows you to see northern lights.

What is the visit of the icebreaker Sampo like?

At the boarding bridge you will be greeted by a guide in spanish who will assist you during the four-hour cruise.

In it you will meet tourists from all over the world, so in our case we did the excursion, for example, with Chinese and Uruguayan tourists.

At the outset they will give you a presentation of the history and characteristics of Sampo, and then make a tour of its facilities.

Thus, in this first contact with the ship you will be able to tour from the interior lounges, where you can take shelter in case of bad weather, until the machine room, also passing through the command booth.

Soon it will be time for the tourists who have signed up for the event to board the boat. snowmobile tour that takes them to a point in the frozen sea where they meet the Sampo.

With a schedule already established in shifts, mealtime will arrive in your comfortable restaurant, where you will taste the typical salmon soup.

During the cruise you will be able to move around the interior and exterior bridges of the ship, which for a time will leave the navigable route in the frozen sea to open a New route on the ice, so you can check its effectiveness.

What is the experience of floating in the frozen sea?

Finally one of the peak moments arrives, the possibility of float in the icy waters of the sea Baltic with the protection of a striking and enormous red wetsuit.

According to what they tell us, with this suit you could stay in the water without problems for up to four hours, that is, avoiding water from entering you at all times.

After stopping at a certain point in the sea and going down the ramp, the tourists go down in an orderly manner, and with the help of the guides, go swimming in the Baltic.

From what we could see, there is no one who can resist doing this experience, including older tourists.

After finishing this original and exclusive experience, since in Europe you can only sail on two or three icebreakers, it is time to return to the port of Kemi.

Finally, here you have all the information for the sail on the icebreaker Sampo in Finland.