A buyer of a ship journey asks how much cancelling a week before departure costs, how much changing the departure costs and how much taking a pet along costs. These decide 50 points out of a hundred.
tallink.com · Tallink Silja Oy (PRH 0114296-7), part of the Estonian AS Tallink Grupp group, a shipping company on the Helsinki–Tallinn and Turku/Helsinki–Stockholm routes whose Ennen matkaa (Before you travel) information bank (additional charges, car spaces, cancellation terms, accessible travel) and business ID (Y-tunnus) are shown; tallinksilja.fi redirects to tallink.com/fi
89.0SCORE
Cancellation fee one week before100
Change fee one week before departure100
Pet travel fee60
Basic metrics · 87.5
Digital quality76
Transparency95
Reachability92
AI quality score87
+ The Before the trip section is exceptionally comprehensive: separate pages for extra charges, transporting a car and a motorcycle, payment methods, age rules, accessible travel and luggage, so the consumer finds the answers without making contact
eckeroline.fi · Eckerö Line Ab Oy (PRH 0967682-4), part of the Åland-based Rederiaktiebolaget Eckerö group, the shipping company on the Helsinki-Tallinn route (m/s Finlandia), whose booking tool, travel terms, S-Etukortti benefit and contact details with opening hours are displayed (eckeroline.fi)
79.8SCORE
Cancellation fee one week before100
Change fee one week before departure67
Pet travel fee100
Basic metrics · 70.3
Digital quality55
Transparency80
Reachability68
AI quality score79
+ Customer service reachability is described in exceptional detail: phone 06000 4300 and +358 9 2288 544, e-mails info@eckeroline.fi and ryhmat@eckeroline.fi, and opening hours Mon-Fri 8.00-19.00 and Sat-Sun 9.00-15.30
finnlines.com · Finnlines Oyj (PRH 0201153-9), part of the Italian Grimaldi group, passenger-car ferry service from Finland to Germany (Helsinki-Travemunde), Sweden and Åland (Naantali-Langnas-Kapellskar); routes, timetables, car package prices and cancellation terms shown (finnlines.com/fi)
47.1SCORE
Cancellation fee one week before0
Change fee one week before departure0
Pet travel fee50
Basic metrics · 82.2
Digital quality71
Transparency90
Reachability82
AI quality score84
+ The payment, change and cancellation terms for Special and Standard fares are collected on a separate page, which states precisely, for example, that a change must be made no later than 7 days before departure and that the difference is charged if the price increases
wasaline.com · NLC Ferry Ab Oy / Wasaline (PRH 2490732-8), the shipping company on the Vaasa-Umeå route (m/s Aurora Botnia), owned by the cities of Vaasa and Umeå, whose company details (NLC Ferry Ab Oy, business ID (Y-tunnus)), travel, cancellation and transport terms and contact details are among the most transparently presented in the industry (wasaline.com/fi)
46.6SCORE
Cancellation fee one week before0
Change fee one week before departure0
Pet travel fee80
Basic metrics · 74.1
Digital quality66
Transparency80
Reachability68
AI quality score81
+ The responsible company is stated fully transparently: the contact details page shows 'NLC Ferry Ab Oy business ID (Y-tunnus): 2490732-8', which is among the industry's best at surfacing company information
Basic metrics: 74.1, rank 3 · ▼ 1 place
– Cancellation fee a week before: No cancellation fees were found: the travel, cancellation and transport terms page refers to special terms for route and cruise trips, the content of which is not in the page text, nor on the prices page.
QUESTIONHow much do I lose if I cancel the trip a week before departure?
Percentage of the ticket price withheld on cancellation 7 days before departure (fixed office fees not included).
0% = 100 points, 50% or more = 0, in between directly proportional.
22 p
Change fee one week before departure
QUESTIONHow much does it cost to reschedule a departure a week before departure?
Change fee in euros when the departure of a standard ticket is changed 7 days before departure.
0 € = 100 points, 30 € or more = 0, in between directly proportional.
16 p
Pet travel fee
QUESTIONHow much does it cost to take a pet along?
The cheapest published pet surcharge in euros one way (cabin or seat fee separate).
0 € = 100 points, 40 € or more = 0, directly proportional in between.
12 p
Basic metrics
Digital quality, transparency, reachability and AI quality score
Basic metrics × 0.5
50 p
Notes
The comparison includes four shipping companies and the terms of their regular (not campaign or Special-priced) tickets. Ticket prices were not scored, because the price depends on the route, departure date and occupancy, and the routes are not comparable.
Where a company's terms vary by route, the most cautious one was scored, i.e. the terms of the most expensive route. Smaller route-specific differences are noted in the remark for each value.
Missing information earns no points. If a term was not found on the company's text pages, the value was left empty and the reason is shown for each company.
About this comparison
We scored the own ticket sales of 4 Baltic Sea passenger car ferry and cruise operators on 20 metrics: technical quality, transparency, reachability and AI quality. The key question: can you see the ticket and cabin class price, extra charges for a car space and cancellation terms before you enter your payment card details?
Scheduled services across the Baltic Sea from Finland to Estonia, Sweden, Åland and Germany are run by a few nationwide shipping companies with their own online ticket sales. The final price of a sea voyage is made up of the ticket, cabin class, car space and possible service and change fees, and the right to cancel varies by fare type. This comparison scores the shipping companies' own ticket sales by how openly prices, extra charges, cancellation terms, timetables and loyalty benefits are displayed before booking.
What transparency means in this category
Ticket and cabin class price displayed without logging in (25), car space and additional fee prices stated (20), right to cancel and change and the fees publicly available (20), routes and timetables clearly displayed (10), loyalty benefit and child discounts stated (10), business ID (Y-tunnus) or responsible shipping company clearly stated (10), independent review source displayed (5)
How to read the comparison correctly: Half of the points come from buyer's questions, i.e. things the buyer finds out before deciding. The other half measures how openly the company publishes its prices, terms and contact details. Clear differences in points indicate a genuine difference: one tells you the price immediately, another only after logging in. Close scores should not be read as a ranking order, because every measurement has a margin of variation. The measurement accuracy and the full calculation formula are open in the methodology.
Customer experience is brought into the assessment separately. We also collect customer feedback and customer experiences about companies through separate surveys. The survey results will be added to the overall assessment later.
Transparency of extra charges and cancellation terms is a pain point in the industry. The final price of a ferry trip is made up of the ticket, cabin class, car space and possible service fees, and the right to cancel and change varies by price type. The comparison rewards shipping companies that openly show the ticket and cabin class price, car space and additional fees, cancellation and change terms, routes and timetables and loyalty benefits before booking.
The market has consolidated. Scheduled Baltic Sea traffic in Finland is run by a few nationwide shipping companies with their own ticket sales. The comparison includes the shipping companies whose website could be measured. Viking Line is a major shipping company, but at the time of measurement its website was behind bot protection on all routes, so it could not be scored reliably and has not been included. Its absence is not a statement about the company's service but a measurement gap.
Comparison guide
What to consider in the comparison
The price of a ticket and cabin class is revealed at most shipping lines only after choosing the route and date in the booking tool, not as a fixed price list on the front page.
The exact prices for a car space and other extra charges are typically shown only at the booking stage, even though the vehicle transport terms are described separately.
Cancellation and change rights often depend on the fare type: the cheapest ticket may have stricter terms than a flexible fare.
Some shipping companies have a named loyalty programme (for example Club One or Star Club), while for others the benefits centre on individual campaigns.
A responsible shipping company's business ID (Y-tunnus) and company name are displayed to varying degrees: some state them clearly, while others show only the brand name.
How Suomen Paras assesses and scores
Every company is measured with the same public formula: half of the points come from buyer's questions and half from basic metrics, which have four pillars: technical quality, transparency, reachability and AI quality score. Ranking cannot be bought, and you can see the origin of each point on the company's profile. Read the full methodology →
Expert tips
Calculate the final price all the way through in the booking tool: add the car space, cabin class and any service fees before comparing shipping lines with each other.
Check the cancellation and change terms before paying, especially if you are booking the cheapest price class ticket.
If you are travelling with a car, check the vehicle transport terms and the price of the car space separately on the route's timetable page and in the terms.
Take advantage of loyalty programmes or campaign prices if you travel the same route regularly.
Frequently asked questions
Is the price of a ship journey visible without logging in?
Yes. With the shipping lines in the comparison, the ticket and cabin class price appears in the booking tool after choosing the route and date, without an account or login. There is usually no fixed price list on the front page, because the price depends on the route, the time and the occupancy rate.
Are the prices of the parking space and extra charges stated in advance?
The terms of vehicle carriage and the payment basis are usually described in the travel or carriage terms, but the exact price of a car space is most often only revealed at the booking stage. The comparison rewards shipping companies that make additional charges as transparent as possible before booking.
Can a ferry ticket be cancelled or changed?
The right to cancel and change depends on the shipping line and the fare type. For example, flexible fares allow changes more easily than the cheapest special fares, and a change may incur a fare difference or a change fee. The terms are published on the shipping lines' cancellation and travel terms pages.
Why is Viking Line not included in the comparison?
Viking Line is a major Baltic Sea shipping company, but its website was behind bot protection on all routes at the time of measurement, so it could not be scored reliably. Its absence is a measurement gap, not a statement about the company's service. The comparison includes the shipping companies whose websites could be measured.
Are you listed and would like to rank higher?
The free pre-analysis shows every item where your company loses points and which rank fixing it is enough for. The paid analysis shows what the items are and how to fix them.
Can't find your company on the list even though it should be there? Get in touch and we will include it in the next measurement round.
