Norwegian Cruise Line’s newest home port might surprise you

3 weeks ago 8

Would you sign up for a cruise that starts in Helsinki?

The world's third-largest cruise brand on Thursday unveiled plans for summer voyages from the Finnish capital — something that almost no other line offers.

The sailings, which will kick off in 2026, will be the first Norwegian has offered from Helsinki in the 58-year history of the brand. They will also put it among a small number of lines that have ever offered cruises from Helsinki.

For the coming year, only one small cruise brand, France-based Ponant Cruises, will be operating cruises from Helsinki, and only a handful. One other small cruise brand, Windstar Cruises, plans a short series of three sailings from Helsinki in 2026.

In its announcement, which was posted online, Norwegian said the 1,936-passenger Norwegian Sun would sail Baltic voyages out of Helsinki starting in June 2026 through October 2026.

Ranging from seven to 10 nights, the sailings will mostly be one-way trips to Copenhagen that will include port stops in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Germany.

One of the sailings, at the end of the season, will be a one-way trip from Helsinki to Southampton, England.

Daily Newsletter

Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter

Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts

By signing up, you will receive newsletters and promotional content and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.

Helsinki is often a port stop on Baltic cruises, but it's traditionally not been a home port. Baltic cruises typically start or end in European cruise hubs such as Copenhagen, Southampton and Amsterdam.

Norwegian's launch of Baltic cruises from Helsinki will, notably, allow cruisers to create extended Baltic trips that combine several days of exploring Helsinki and its surroundings by land with a sailing around the region.

The trips will likely appeal to cruisers who want to spend more time in Helsinki and its surroundings than the few hours in the city that are typically included in a Baltic cruise.

The new sailings for the summer of 2026 include:

Seven-night voyages from Helsinki to Copenhagen with calls at Tallinn, Estonia; Stockholm; Klaipeda, Lithuania; Gdynia, Poland; Warnemunde, Germany (from which cruisers can reach Berlin); and Kiel, Germany (for tours to Hamburg, Germany)
Nine-night voyages from Helsinki to Copenhagen with calls at the same six ports
A single 10-night sailing from Helsinki to Southampton with calls at Tallinn, Stockholm, Klaipeda, Gdynia, Warnemunde, Kiel and Copenhagen

In tandem with the new sailings from Helsinki to Copenhagen, Norwegian Sun also will operate one-way sailings back from Copenhagen to Helsinki from June 2026 to October 2026. The sailings will visit the same ports.

The one-way voyages from Copenhagen will allow cruisers to add extra days in Finland to the end of their voyages.

Norwegian Sun will be among eight Norwegian ships operating in Europe for the summer of 2026. The trips will begin and end at 11 different embarkation ports that — in addition to Helsinki, Copenhagen and Southampton — include Le Havre, France; Barcelona; Ravenna and Civitavecchia (the port for Rome) in Italy; and Istanbul.

Other home ports in Europe for 2026 will include Piraeus, Greece (the port for Athens).

Among other unusual new sailings planned for 2026 are 10- and 11-day voyages between Reykjavik and Southampton that will allow passengers to extend their cruise vacations with a land stay in Iceland. The voyages will take place on the 2,348-passenger Norwegian Star.

During some of the voyages between Reykjavik and Southampton, Norwegian Star will stop at Leirvik, Norway — another first in Norwegian's 58-year history.

Norwegian Star's 11-day Iceland sailings also will include an overnight stay in Reykjavik.

Fares for the new Baltic sailings out of Helsinki start at $1,387 per person, including taxes and fees for a seven-night trip.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

Read Entire Article