The pan-European coach operator Ecolines announced it will launch St. Petersburg – Lappeenranta – Imatra flights as of June 7, 2019. Schedule is composed so that you could take a tour during one day with an early departure from St. Petersburg and a late return before subway closes with a few hours left for strolling in the streets and parks of the Finnish lovely towns.
Buses will be departing from the St. Petersburg Coach Station (36, Obvodny Canal), where Ecolines’s bus stop in St. Petersburg is, at 07.30 and be back at 23.05, which means you can get to the station by subway and go home from here by subway too. With this schedule you will have nearly five hours for Lappeenranta or four hours for Imatra, which is rather enough for a sightseeing tour or shopping here. Consider also staying overnight as both towns are actively working on drawing more tourists and often organize open-air events.
Schedule St. Petersburg – Lappeenranta – Imatra as June 7, 2019 (local time)
| Time | Point |
| 07:30 | St. Petersburg (Central Coach Station) |
| 12:30 | Lappeenranta (airport) |
| 12:45 | Lappeenranta (downtown) |
| 12:55 | Lappeenranta (coach station) |
| 13:30 | Lappeenranta (Holiday Club Saima hotel) |
| 13:40 | Imatra (coach station) |
| 13:50 | Imatra (Imatran Spa hotel) |
Schedule Imatra – Lappeenranta –St. Petersburg as June 7, 2019 (local time)
| Time | Point |
| 17:10 | Imatra (Imatran Spa hotel) |
| 17:20 | Imatra (coach station) |
| 17:30 | Lappeenranta (Holiday Club Saima hotel) |
| 18:05 | Lappeenranta (coach station) |
| 18:15 | Lappeenranta (downtown) |
| 18:30 | Lappeenranta (airport) |
| 23:05 | St. Petersburg (Central Coach Station) |
Ecolines coaches are equipped with individual multimedia devices packed with music, movies and games, free Wi-Fi, individual 220V sockets, air conditioning and WC.
One-way fare is 500 rubles, a round trip ticket costs 950 rubles. Tickets are already available at ticket offices of the St. Petersburg Central Coach Station, at Ecolines’ office in St. Petersburg (3, Pod’yezdnoy pereulok) and on the Ecolines’ website.
If you are not an EU-citizen, then check out if you need a visa to enter Finland.