Hello there. My first voyage will lead me north of Europe. Does any one have tips on how to find the right ferries. Or do I have to look for the single companies and where they go to, and if they have access for a 6m van? Thank you
That is a bit broad question.
Where do you want to go to? It is possible to just drive from Gibraltar to the northernmost part of europe thru Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway.
Taking a ferry across the Baltic Sea will shorten many trips and there are multiple routes.
Haha, yes, that is true. The route is kind of in my head, but did not manage to get out in writing.
I’ll travel from southern Switzerland to North of Scotland, probably taking a ferry from Amsterdam to Newcastle. Over to Ireland, back through Scotland to Norway, zig zag through Scandinavia and Finland up North, stay in some places listed as Wwoofing (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms), find other jobs on the way and get new inspiration for the next steps in my life.
So, how could I get some infos on which are interesting routes, and maybe not the most expensive ones? I don’t need to rush.
I’ve ridden trains through much of what you describe, and there were also trucks, cars, and vans on the same ferries. It’s just a matter of cost - worth researching it through the road departments or tourist info for each country. You won’t be saving much money in Scandinavia - everything is expensive there!
Zigzag is hard, there is a small mountain between Norway and Sweden and a sea between Sweden and Finland 
It would be like up the norway, down sweden, over the sea to finland and maybe towards the lake part in the eastern finland and towards north from there?
A quick search about ferries, using Silja Line from Stockholm to Turku is 12e/person and 60e for a van under 7m length one way trip. Also you need to choose early morning departure, evening (party cruise) is almost 10x more expensive. During the day cruise you don’t need to book a suite either, just hang around the ship. It takes about 10-11 hours one way.
There is also ferry route between Stockholm and Helsinki but the route is longer. Silja Line and Viking Line both operate those routes.
Frankly I have no idea what I would like to see in Sweden… 
In Norway there is beautiful scenery on the route to the north and people say it is worth visiting Lofoten. Also I’ve learned that Norwegian roads are littered with vanlife friendly stops. Somebody else has to cover these countries better 
Some tourist friendly info about Finland can be found here https://www.visitfinland.com/
Feel free to poke me about extra details about places you find interesting.
Regarding timing, unless you really love mosquito bites best time usually to visit Lapland (or above arctic circle in general) is at the end of July, early august. Then it is still warm up there but you don’t need a beekeeper’s outfit outside.
Also visiting Nordkapp (the famous northernmost part of europe) in Norway is best done during the late summer I believe. It might be inaccessible in winter and early summer it might still be snow covered.
Yes, I just read elsewhere that Norway is really expensive! I’ll have to take care to not outrun my budget. I’ll stock up on supplies, so I can be mostly self-sufficient.
I haven’t thought about the problematics of Zig-Zagging Scandinavia, Good point! And also about the mosquitos! Thank you for putting that in my way.
Sweden… I have worked a few times in Sweden and have some friends I would like to visit. That is always a good reason.
I’ll probably take you up on your offer to poke you more on details in that area.
Take care.
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