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Travel guide
Helsinki
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to September for the long days, and December for the Christmas markets
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Welcome
Helsinki, in a few days
A capital of about 680,000 people spread over a peninsula and some 330 islands, Helsinki is easy to explore on foot, from the white cathedral on Senate Square to the harbour market and the Art Nouveau blocks of Katajanokka. City ferries reach the Suomenlinna fortress in 15 minutes, and public saunas look straight onto the Baltic.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Suomenlinna Fortress free · half a dayBuilt by the Swedes from 1748 on bridge-linked islands to guard against Russia, it surrendered in 1808 and later held Russian and Finnish garrisons.
- Afternoon · Old Market Hall free · about 1 hFinland's oldest market hall, opened in 1889 on the harbour's south quay: smoked salmon, dried reindeer, rye bread, and salmon soup at Story café.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hotel Helka€130 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Helsinki Cathedral · about 45 minCarl Ludwig Engel's Lutheran cathedral, completed in 1852, crowns Senate Square above a flight of steps that serves as the city's meeting point.
- Afternoon · Ateneum Art Museum · 2 to 3 hFinland's largest collection of Finnish art, opposite the station: Gallen-Kallela, Edelfelt, Schjerfbeck and Simberg's The Wounded Angel.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Original Sokos Hotel Presidentti€140 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Oodi Central Library free · about 1 h 30Opened in 2018 opposite Parliament: music studios, 3D printers and sewing machines free to book, and a top-floor reading room under a rippling wooden ceiling.
- Afternoon · Temppeliaukio Church · about 45 minA church hollowed out of a granite outcrop in Töölö by Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen, opened in 1969; from outside, only a copper dome shows.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Helsinki€150 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Löyly sauna · 2 to 3 hA pine-slatted public sauna opened in 2016 at Hernesaari, with wood-fired and smoke saunas and steps straight down into the Baltic.
- Afternoon · Seurasaari Island free · 2 to 3 hA wooded island linked by a white wooden bridge, home since 1909 to an open-air museum of 89 buildings brought from all over Finland.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Original Sokos Hotel Vaakuna€140 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
Some links are partner links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Salmon and lake fish: perch, whitefish and vendace, smoked, fried or cured.
- Karjalanpiirakka: Karelian pasties, a thin rye crust around rice porridge, eaten with egg butter.
- Lohikeitto: a creamy salmon soup with potatoes and dill.
- Rye bread and forest berries: bilberries, lingonberries and cloudberries, picked in late summer.
- Coffee and korvapuusti: Finns drink more coffee per head than anyone, with a cardamom and cinnamon bun alongside.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Budget ahead: eating out and drinking cost a lot, and most wine and all spirits are sold only in the state Alko shops.
- Mosquitoes are thick in Lapland in summer, above all in July: bring a strong repellent.
- Sauna has its customs: shower first, sit on a towel or paper seat, and expect nudity in single-sex saunas.
- Winter means deep cold and short days: dress in layers and plan time outdoors around the light.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ Finnish
| English | Finnish |
|---|---|
| Hello | Hei |
| Thank you | Kiitos |
| Please | Ole hyvä |
| Yes | Kyllä |
| No | Ei |
| Excuse me | Anteeksi |
| Goodbye | Näkemiin |
| Do you speak English? | Puhutko englantia? |
| I don't understand | En ymmärrä |
| How much is it? | Paljonko se maksaa? |
| Where are the toilets? | Missä on vessa? |
| The bill, please | Lasku, kiitos |
| Help! | Apua! |
| Cheers! | Kippis! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €165 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to September for the long days, and December for the Christmas markets
PlugC/F · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingIncluded in the bill, nothing more expected
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo vaccinations required. Make sure tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date. Ticks carry encephalitis in some coastal areas and on the Åland Islands, so check yourself after summer walks.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/helsinki
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.