The St. Olav Waterway(Olavinreitti)

Nordic Pilgrim:

  • Offers information
  • Arranges accommodation
  • Arranges meals
  • Arranges (luggage) transport
  • Makes your maps (as PDF)
  • Can follow you during your journey with apps on your mobile phone

St. Olav Waterway

The St. Olav Waterway starts in Turku (Finland) and ends in Eckerö (Åland). It follows the trail pilgrims walked and sailed in the Middle Ages on their way to Nidaros. Olav is the patron saint of Åland and there are Olav churches on both the Finnish archipelago and Åland, which means Olav himself may have passed the area on his way from Novgorod to Sweden. The St. Olav Waterway is the first pilgrim trail connecting Finland and Sweden over the sea. This trail combines beautiful hikes with island hopping and takes about two weeks. The total distance is 340 kilometers, including ferries. However, the distance that you actually have to walk is approximately 215 kilometers.

The average distance of the St. Olav Waterway is 20 kilometers per day and that requires a solid walking experience. The walks lead over forest paths, gravel roads, asphalt or grass paths. There are no height differences.

Nordic Pilgrim

Nordic Pilgrim offers self-guided hiking trips along St. Olavsleden since 2014. Nordic Pilgrim can arrange accommodation, meals, luggage transport, pilgrim passes, roadmaps, English information about points of interest. If you have questions or encounter problems during your trip then there is always an English-speaking contact available – in the region or via an app.

Would you like to take care of food yourself? You will receive a list showing food shops and dining and cooking facilities along the route. Do you just have a short period of time? We will together pick the best option for you. And if you carry your own luggage while walking, traveling can be even more ‘low budget’.

If you have special requests, for example the rental of bicycles or dietary needs, please let us know. We like to deliver customized solutions. We can also assist with booking extra nights in the starting and ending points of your journey and advice how to get there and away.

Pricing

Below are the target prices for the various standard etappes. Prices include accommodation, most meals, (otherwise info about restaurants/shops is included), bed linen, maps and information. The prices do not include travel to and from Finland/Sweden.

Of course it is possible to add walking days and stages together or split stages up, depending on the time and the number of kilometers you would like to walk. We can provide a realistic schedule and make a quotation for you.

Turku-Eckerö (15 days)

Journey through the beautiful Finnish archipelago, from island to island. The St. Olav Waterway starts in Turku (Finland) and ends in Eckerö (Åland). It follows the trail pilgrims walked and sailed in the Middle Ages on their way to Nidaros. The…

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Turku-Kökar (9 days)

Journey through the beautiful Finnish archipelago, from island to island. The St. Olav Waterway starts in Turku (Finland) and ends in Eckerö (Åland). It follows the trail pilgrims walked and sailed in the Middle Ages on their way to Nidaros. The…

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Panorama picture of Kökar island – click to enlarge.