The title of this article is slightly misleading as there are no longer multiple ferries to Scandinavia from the UK. There is just one remaining ferry connection from the UK to Scandinavia, namely the service operated by DFDS seaways from Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark.
With Denmark being the closest of the Scandinavian countries to the UK as well as being the only Scandinavian country attached to mainland Europe, if your planning on driving from the UK to somewhere in Scandinavia then you’ll most likely be looking at a fairly long drive which will include some time in Denmark. Depending on where your heading a second ferry may well be the best option for you.
If you are traveling from the UK to Denmark, then the Harwich to Denmark ferry will most likely be the quickest and most convenient option for you. If however your traveling from Scotland or the North of England it may well be worth while considering taking one of the ferries to Holland departing from Newcastle or Hull. For example if you live near Newcastle you will be looking at a 5 hour drive to Harwich to catch the Denmark ferry, though if used the Newcastle to Amsterdam ferry, then it’s a 5 hour drive to Denmark through Holland and Germany. If you’ve never driven through the north of Holland or Germany it may offer a much nicer drive then one through England.
Mærvoll in Lofoten, Norway
If you are heading for Norway, then once in Denmark, you could catch a ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo. Copenhagen is about a 3 hour drive from Esbjerg, which is about the same time it would take you to get to Copenhagen from the Denmark Germany border. Alternatively if you were not wishing to catch another ferry, it would be a bout a 9 hour drive to Oslo from Esbjerg.
The south of Sweden is about 3-4 hour drive from Esbjerg, you can reach the city of Malmo in just over 3 hours and Helsingborg is just a 4 hour drive. The two major cities of Gothenburg and Stockholm are a little further. Gothenburg is 6 hours drive from Esbjerg and Stockholm is 10 hours away.
If you are trying to drive your car to Finland, then the best option for most journeys will be taking a second ferry from Sweden to Finland. If you were not doing this you would be looking at over 30 hours of driving to reach Helsinki in Finland from Esbjerg. The only journeys that would not be suitable to for a second ferry crossing is for locations in the far north of Finalnd, like Rovaniemi. If you were traveling here then it would be almost 24 hours of driving from Esbjerg.
Regardless of where you are going in Scandinavia, the winters are very cold and there is lots of snowfall, driving times are significantly extended during the winter months. If you have never driven in extreme snowy and icy conditions, do not even attempt to drive some of the above suggested routes.
