E18

E18 is a European route from the United Kingdom, moving north-east across the North Sea towards Scandinavia, and from there continuing east across the Sea of Åland to Finland and along the Gulf of Finland to Saint Petersburg on the Russian side. It connects the capitals of Finland, Norway and Sweden.

The E18 is the main east-west route in southern Norway and central Sweden; about 1000 km of the E18 run through the two countries. The route connects Oslo and Stockholm, and is the main east-west road through Oslo. Likewise, the E18 is the main road of Finland's southern coast (which historically was the richest part of the country), and is a main route from Saint Petersburg to the West.

The road's route through the UK crosses Northern Ireland, southern Scotland and northern England. A ferry crossing is made between Larne (NI) and Cairnryan (Scot.). The E18 is not signed as such anywhere in the UK, and there is no direct ferry connection from Great Britain to Norway. An overland purist would have to make a long detour via the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and southern Sweden; alternatively, you could fly from Edinburgh to Oslo.

While the Nordic countries of Norway, Sweden and Finland all belong to the Schengen Area and thus a visa for one country is good for all, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Russia are not part of it, and separate visas are required. The UK, Norway and Russia are not part of the European Union (and Åland not of its tax union), so there are customs borders between those and their neighbours.

The customs arrangements between Ireland and the UK are peculiar, because of Ireland's EU membership and the complex relationships between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, and between NI and Great Britain. There are no customs checks on the roads from the Republic into NI, nor on the ferry crossing from NI to Scotland. However, if you have anything to declare, you should still do so online. See the UK Government website for more information on what you must declare and how to do so. Just to complicate matters further, there are physical customs inspections on ferry traffic crossing from Scotland to Northern Ireland.

There are no ferries along the official E18 route across the North Sea, so you must find an alternative route. There are ferries from Newcastle-upon-Tyne to IJmuiden, near Amsterdam. From here, you can drive to Sweden through the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark, all of which are part of Schengen and the EU.

The border between Norway and Sweden is also odd, as there is a customs border, but mostly no checks. If you have goods to declare, you must take action yourself to visit the customs. The same applies to Åland.

The relations between Russia and the rest of the countries on the itinerary are hostile, so check the current situation regarding visas and border crossing.

If you have a pet, check requirements. Ireland, the UK, Norway, Finland and Sweden are strict on certain treatments.

Money-wise, Ireland and Finland use the euro, otherwise the countries (including Denmark) have their own currencies. However, until the Russian border, you will mostly be able to pay any expenses with your credit card. In Sweden you may even have difficulties spending any cash. Russia, on the other hand, is closed out from most bank cooperation, so don't rely on a Western credit or debit card working there.

See Northern Ireland for the western end and Saint Petersburg for the eastern one. For joining the route halfway, Norway and Sweden are well connected to Denmark, while the Stockholm region (Nynäshamn and Stockholm), as well as Helsinki, have some ferries across the Baltic Sea.

In the United Kingdom, E-route numbers don't appear on road signage or on most maps, so you will need to follow local route numbers.

The route starts in Craigavon ​​in Northern Ireland. Craigavon is between Portadown and Lurgan, just south of the island's largest lake, Lough Neagh. It runs along the M1 motorway via Lisburn to Belfast. It continues along the M2, forks off by the A8 (M) and follows the A8 to the port of Larne. P&O Ferries operate across the North Channel from Larne to Cairnryan on the Scottish side, and the E18 follows suit. For a non-P&O alternative, Stena Line operate a competing route to Cairnryan from Belfast.

Once cleared of the port in Cairnryan, take the A77 south a few miles to Stranraer. From here, the E18 follows the A75 to Newton Stewart, passes north of Kirkcudbright and continues via Castle Douglas to Dumfries. Still along the A75, the route goes via Annan to Gretna, where it leaves Scotland for Cumbria in England.

In England, the route first follows the M6 to Carlisle. From there, it runs along the A69 via Brampton, Haltwhistle, Hexham and Corbridge to Newcastle-upon-Tyne on the east coast of North East England.

At Haltwhistle, Hadrian's Wall, as well as Northumberland National Park, are only a few miles away. Housesteads Roman Fort, 7 miles (11 km) east of Haltwhistle, is the most complete Roman fort in Britain. Also, the old Roman road known as the Stanegate passes near the town.

As there are no ferries from the UK to the Nordic Countries, you will have to deviate from the official route here. DFDS operate ferries from North Shields, near Newcastle, across the North Sea to IJmuiden on the outskirts of Amsterdam. The drive from here to meet up with the E18 at Örebro will add around 1,500 km (930 mi) to your journey; more if you plan to 'backtrack' to Kristiansand. If this all sounds like too much hassle, and you don't need to take your car with you, Norwegian Air Shuttle flies daily year-round between Edinburgh and Oslo Gardermoen.

The E18 picks up in Norway from Kristiansand via Arendal, Porsgrunn, Larvik, Sandefjord, Tønsberg, Horten, Drammen and Oslo (the capital of Norway) to Ørje on the Swedish border and onwards east from Töcksfors via Karlstad, Örebro, Västerås and Enköping towards Stockholm, the capital of Sweden.

With a ferry connection from Kapellskär in Norrtälje (you could also use the ferries from Stockholm), the route goes via the Åland Islands over the Archipelago Sea to Naantali by Turku (from Stockholm: via Åland to Turku) on the south-west coast of Finland. From here, the road continues east via Helsinki (the capital of Finland) to the border between Finland and Russia. The Finnish leg of the E18 is motorway except for a few short stretches. The south coast, along which the road runs, is characterised by towns and agricultural landscapes with a legacy from medieval times.

Most ferries to Finland are floating palaces, similar to cruise ships, with entertainment, restaurants and shopping options. If you skip Åland, the passage takes about 11 hr, depending on route, mostly through archipelagoes – you will want to spend some time enjoying the views. The passage across the Sea of Åland itself, from Norrtälje to Eckerö, is considerably shorter.

The E18 goes from Kapellskär to Naantali, but you could use any of the ferries to Åland or via Åland to mainland Finland. Many of the ferries call at Mariehamn, Åland's capital and only town. You might want to do the town and continue with the next one (in the small hours of the night or the next day). An alternative is to take a ferry to Eckerö and do more of Åland.

Naantali has a nice wooden old town full of cafés and souvenir shops. There is a Moomin theme park. The E18 leads straight away from the town, along the Turku bypass.

Turku is one of Finland's major cities, founded in medieval times and until the 1850s bigger than Helsinki. Turku is also a good base for tours to the Archipelago Sea.

In Piikkiö, 15 km past Turku city centre, the E18 joins Highway 1 between Turku and Helsinki. Alternative roads between the cities include road 110 (former Highway 1 and E18) and the historic Kings Road. If you want to see the towns and landscapes, these are better than the motorway, and road 110 is not too much slower. Much of the time they run quite close to one another.

The road continues via Paimio to Salo, former headquarters of the mobile phone company Nokia. Then, it's on to Lohja by Lake Lohjanjärvi, near Nuuksio National Park, which despite its small area features many of Finland's typical natural landscapes, and to Espoo and Vantaa via Helsinki.

After Helsinki, the E18 joins Highway 7 and leads to Porvoo, another of Finland's oldest cities; Loviisa, with Finland's first nuclear plants; Pyhtää, through which the border between Sweden and Russia ran between 1743 and 1809; Kotka, an important port city; Hamina, also once a border town, and to the current border crossing at Vaalimaa. All of these towns are by the coast, with nice archipelagoes in sight. Off Pyhtää, Kotka and Hamina is the Gulf of Finland National Park.

On the Russian side, the route joins Highway M10 and continues by Vyborg, founded in Swedish times and one of Finland's most important cities when ceded to the Soviet Union, over the Karelian Isthmus to the western border of Saint Petersburg, where it ends.

There are no major dangers along the route, although you should respect the elk and deer warnings.

From October to April you should check weather forecasts and be prepared for winter driving if there may be frost in the night or snow on the road. While you don't want to drive in a wintry blizzard, the biggest risk is black ice: an invisible very slippery ice cover on the road.

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