What should you definently see while in Helsinki,Finland?

Question

I'll be spending a weekend there soon and was just wondering what whould be good things to see.

Answer 1

1. Eat breakfast or just have a cup of coffee at Kauppatori (Market Square)
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g189934-d312162/Helsinki:Finland:Kauppatori.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helsinki_market_square

2. Visit sea fortress Suomenlinna. It's a great place to have picnic or swim if the weather is good.
http://www.discoverhelsinki.com/attraction_details.asp?AttractionID=1
http://www.suomenlinna.fi/index.php?menuid=2&lang=eng

3. Fallkulla Domestic Animal Zoo. Cute animals :-) This is not in the center, but you get there by train or bus.
http://www.hel2.fi/tourism/EN/Ohjelmaa_kohteet_lisa.asp?kieli=en&id=258&aspkategoria=1&aspword2=Muu
http://www.hel.fi/wps/portal/Nuorisoasiainkeskus/Artikkeli?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/fi/Nuorisoasiainkeskus/Nuorisotilat/Nuorisotalojen+yhteystiedot/Fallkullan+kotiel%C3%A4intila

4. Olympic stadium, especially the tower. Great view!
http://www.stadion.fi/index.php?lang=en&areaid=frontpage&PHPSESSID=314660c700c8050ab7c423bc7a123308
http://www.hel2.fi/tourism/EN/Ohjelmaa_kohteet_lisa.asp?kieli=en&id=233&aspkategoria=1&aspword2=Muu

If you are feeling lazy, take a sightseeing tour.
http://www.helsinkiexpert.fi/index_english.html
http://www.scantours.com/helsinki_sightseeing_tours.htm


More ideas:
http://wikitravel.org/en/Helsinki
http://www.hel2.fi/tourism/EN/matko.asp
http://www.europe-cities.com/helsinki-tourism.aspx

Answer 2

The Suomenlinna island fortress is definitely a sight I'd recommend. I spend a lot of time there.

Someone mentioned the midnight sun. I'm afraid that's over for this year in the south of Finland. You'd have to go up north to see it now.

Lemme see...it's funny, cos when you live in a city it's hard to see things from a tourist point of view...

Well, there are some nice architectural sites. Then yes, the market square, as some have mentioned. Hmm...I think for a weekend that should do. Then some bars I could recommend...

Answer 3

Helsinki is a BEAUTIFUL city with lots to do. While you are visiting, I would suggest the central marketplace by the harbor. It is a great place to sit, buy a carton of strawberries, and watch the PEOPLE of Helsinki who are also very interesting. Closeby there is also the Helsinki Ice Bar, which is made entirely of ice. Be sure to take a jacket...

There is a great website with lots to offer as far as Helsinki goes. Be sure to check it out... www.helsinkithisweek.com

Also, if you are in Helsinki I would suggest the Helsinki card. Great discounts on the metro and lots of other things including food and the sights.

Answer 4

Hi,

You must see;

300 years of tar distillation

Written for Virtual Finland by Aarne Reunala, Director Finnish Forest Research Institute, Helsinki Research Centre



Tar was Finland’s foremost export product in the 17th and 18th centuries. Europe’s merchant fleets and navies needed large amounts of tar, and its main sources were the forests of the kingdom of Sweden-Finland. In other countries stumpwood and old pines were usually used as raw material for tar, but the Finns made use of young pines.

The bark of the tree and the outer woody tissue were cut to produce wounds, which became resinous. Then, after a few years, the trees were cut down, chopped into small pieces, and placed in a tar pit. The tar was transported to the seaports in barrels and shipped out to the world markets. The tar business meant bread for the people of the inland regions, mostly in south-eastern Finland at first and then in Ostrobothnia and Kainuu towards the end of the tar era.

The felling of 30-40-year-old pines for producing tar was a wasteful practice, especially in the sense that the forests treated in this way never reached sawlog dimensions and were replaced by poorly-growing spruce stands. For the people, however, the revenues earned from selling tar were essential. They had to extract what they could from the nutrient-poor soil.

Tar-distillation continued in Finland for a period of close to 300 years, ending in the beginning of the 20th century, when the demand for tar subsided with the close of the era of wooden ships.

Ref: http://virtual.finland.fi/netcomm/news/showarticle.asp?intNWSAID=25623

Regards

Answer 5

In summer, the midnight sun