Best attractions in Helsinki: Top 30
Content
After reading our review, you will learn what tourists want to see in Helsinki most often. We will tell you about the most visited sights in Helsinki, also taking into account the reviews and recommendations of experienced guides and travelers.
What’s the first thing to see in Helsinki?
Your trip to the hospitable Finnish city will not be unforgettable if you include in your sightseeing itinerary such interesting places in Helsinki as:
1. Senate Square
It is worth starting any “best sights of Helsinki” rating with this site. The architectural style of the square is late classicism. The territory is “filled” with various cultural and historical monuments. Here you can see, for example, the monument of Alexander II, the stone house of Cederholm, created in the 18th century, and a giant St. Nicholas Temple. If you do not know what to see in Helsinki in 1 day, come here and you will definitely find something new and exciting to see.
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2. Temppeliaukio Church
Not all attractions in Helsinki and Northern Europe can boast such originality and even extravagance (both inside and outside). The fact that the Lutheran Church is arranged in a rock: the building harmoniously combines rough rock surfaces, natural landscape and modern high technology. The date of construction of the church was in the 1960s.
Official website: http://www.temppeliaukio
3. Suomenlinna
If you translate the name of this maritime landmark in Russian, we get “Finnish fortress. The building was erected in 1748, when the Republic of Finland was annexed to Sweden. In 1808 the fortress was conquered by the army of Tsarist Russia and owned it for a hundred years. Suomenlinna Fortress is famous for being on the UNESCO list of protected sites - not many sights in Finland can boast that.
Official website: https://www.suomenlinna
4. Sibelius Monument
The monument, created in memory of the famous composer, is located in a beautiful park area. The monument is in the form of a sculptural portrait. Not far from the figure of Jan Sibelius, known worldwide for his symphonies, you can see “pipes of the organ”. Note that you can see smaller copies of this legendary monument at the UN headquarters in New York and UNESCO headquarters in Paris.
5. Assumption Cathedral in Helsinki
Every tourist coming to the capital of Finland should visit this largest in northwest Europe Orthodox Church. Date of construction - late 19th century, the architectural direction - pseudo-Byzantine style. The majestic building, aiming upwards more than 50 meters, rises on a peninsula on a rock. There is an excellent observation deck on the upper level. If you want to make your trip unforgettable through photos, guides in Helsinki will recommend you to come here.
Official website: https://hos.fi/ru/
Check out the beautiful views of Helsinki in this breathtaking video!
6. Ateneum Museum
What to visit in Helsinki for art lovers? The local “Hermitage”, which can rightly be proud of its exhibits. Among the twenty thousand specimens are drawings, drawings, graphs, statuettes and paintings that appeared in the 18-20 centuries. On such excursions to Helsinki it is best to go with an experienced guide, who can tell the stories of the creation of the exhibits.
Official site: https://ateneum
7. Seurasaari Island
Seurasaari is a real outdoor museum. The island is located in the western part of the center of the Finnish capital, and is connected to the continent by a pedestrian bridge. The date of creation of the national park is the end of the 19th century. As many years ago, large-scale festivals and picnics are held here today.
Official website: https://www.kansallismuseo
8. National Museum of Finland
The best option for where to go in Helsinki for fans of history and tradition. The exhibits of the complex (medals and decorations, coins and weapons, jewelry, photos and rare documents) tell about how Finland developed and what its people did in different times. Some samples were obtained thanks to archaeological excavations on the territory of the state. The museum is located in a building from 1910, also of great interest.
Official website: https://www.museovirasto
9. Linnanmaki Amusement Park
When listing the main attractions in Helsinki briefly, we couldn’t forget about this popular amusement park from 1950. The number of attractions here is constantly growing: not without reason, the number of visitors to Linnanmäki every year is estimated at a million or more visitors. On the territory there are not only rides and merry-go-rounds, but also a huge oceanarium with inhabitants from around the world. The income that ticket sales bring to the park is donated to charity.
Official website: https://www.linnanmaki.
10. Natural History Museum
Exhibition specimens are brought to the museum not only from cities in Finland, but also from various countries around the world. The themes of the exhibitions and exhibits are geology, paleontology, zoology and botany. Great value are the objects created over a thousand years ago. The complex is conventionally divided into parts devoted to the nature of the Earth, the history of bones, Finnish nature and the history of life.
Official website: https://www.luomus.
11. Helsinki Zoo
The zoo is open all year round, but that is not the reason for its success. The area of more than 20 hectares in a comfortable environment live about 200 species of animals and birds, including endangered and now unique creatures. The zoo is also known for its rich flora. In the winter months there is an ice sculpture competition, which attracts participants from all over the world.
Official website: https://www.korkeasaari
Helsinki sights: what else is there to see in Helsinki?
If you have already seen all those sights of Helsinki, photos with names and descriptions of which we have now given, go to see such objects as:
12. Serena Aquapark
The spacious entertainment water complex is open all year round. Some water rides for children and adults are outdoors. In addition to the various slides, there is a restaurant and bar on site (food and drinks are served for a fee, including those who buy an all-inclusive ticket).
Official website: https://www.serena
13. Sea Life Sea Center
A modern oceanarium with fifty small aquariums inhabited by all kinds of sea creatures: fish, seahorses, jellyfish, stingrays and sharks. Among the activities offered to guests is watching the feeding of the “inhabitants” of the center. Visiting Sea Life brings joy not only to children of all ages, but also to adults. You can also take unique pictures against a background of schools of exotic fish or huge toothy sharks. Entrance - paid.
Official site: https://www.visitsealife
14. Helsinki City Art Museum
Most of the museum’s canvases were collected by the famous foam drink maker Sinebriukhov. The producer donated to the gallery many works by European artists of the 14th-19th centuries. The City Museum is set up in a building from 1842 that has belonged to the brewer’s family for many years. Therefore, in addition to paintings by English, Swiss, French, Dutch, Spanish and Italian masters, you can look at the room of graphics and the study of miniatures, and get acquainted with the original furnishings of the house.
Official website: https://www.hamhelsinki
15. Central Park
Even the best hotels in Helsinki do not offer such a quiet and relaxing holiday as this beautiful landscaped park. In the warm season, there are concerts and performances, which bring together all the locals. In the eastern part there is a special platform for performances of musical groups.
Official website: https://www.hel
16. Museum of Modern Art
Another name for the attraction is the center of visual culture. The complex is located in a modern building built in the late 20th century. The collections of the center - about 4,000 masterpieces of art. The exhibitions are both permanent and temporary, so it will be interesting to visit the museum even several times.
Official website: https://kiasma.
17. Market Square or Market Square
If you want to eat or drink, or maybe stock up on souvenirs and traditional Finnish goods, come to this bustling and bustling place. It is also known for its beauty: the Market Square is not only a market, but also the obelisk of the Empress with the two-headed eagle, the “Sea Nymph” fountain cast in bronze, the picturesque park, the presidential palace and the sea port.
18. Aleksanterinkatu Street
Soaked in the scent of the sea, impresses with lush green parks, abounds with markets and amazes with unusual architectural creations tourist Helsinki. The route of the traveler should certainly pass through Aleksanterinkatu - one of the main streets of the Finnish capital, where the most interesting places in terms of shopping - there are many stores of different retail chains, as well as banks, cafes and restaurants. All of them are located close to each other, in walking distance, so shopping is easy to combine with a walk through the center. Only cabs, streetcars and pedestrians are allowed. Aleksanterinkatu got its name back in the early 19th century in honor of the Russian Emperor Alexander I. In addition to walking and shopping, you can get into the epicenter of the festivities - the street hosts large festivals and processions, carnivals and the New Year’s Eve.
19. Kallio Church
The Kallio Lutheran Church, towering high on one of the hills of Helsinki, can be seen from almost every corner of the city. This architectural monument, which recently celebrated its centennial, is considered one of the highest buildings in the city - it is said that you can even see Estonia from the top. The austere, symmetrical building is made of gray granite, decorated with modest ornaments and topped with a semicircular dome of pale green copper. The 65-meter tower has seven bells, their chime playing the famous melody of Jan Sibelius. Inside the church looks very light, due to the light whitewashed walls, small windows, minimal decorations and spacious space. The arches of the windows are decorated with floral paintings that shine in the sunlight or in the flicker of candles. The temple has excellent acoustics, which have made it one of the popular venues for chamber music concerts.
Official website: https://www.helsinginseurakunnat
20. St. John’s Church
In the heart of Finland - Helsinki, next to such important shrines as the Cathedral of St. Nicholas and the German Church, the neo-Gothic spires of St. John’s Lutheran Church rises into the air. For a long time, the hill on which the church stands has been the site of the Feast of St. John the Baptist, and today, hundreds of people flock to these walls to pay tribute to the ancient feast. From the outside, the temple is crowned with narrow stained-glass windows and a traditional Gothic rose window, with chimeras perched on the parapets. But while the outside follows classic Gothic techniques, the inside is very bright, which is not typical of authentic Gothic churches at all. Many elements of interior decoration are carved from wood by the best craftsmen - the altar, the balconies and the carved pulpit. Huge marble columns give the building greatness, and on the altar is a biblical story - the appeal of the Apostle Paul to Jesus.
21. Kamppi Chapel of Silence
And where to go when you’re in the heart of the city to see something completely uncharacteristic of this place? Perhaps the best place to go is the Chapel of Silence, an island of tranquility in the midst of the bustling Narinkka Square. This 2012 structure is a special place for quiet prayer, a sanctuary for people weary of the hustle and bustle of everyday life. It can hardly be called a chapel in its classical sense: there are no services or other traditional ceremonies, only occasional small prayers, and psychologists, priests and social workers are on duty all day long, ready to talk to everyone and provide psychological support. The bowl, in the shape of which the chapel is built, is made of bent spruce branches covered in wax, and the only decoration of the inner hall is a silver crucifix on a pulpit.
Official website: https://www.kampinkappeli
22. Eureka Science Museum
It’s hard to call Eureka a museum in its traditional sense - it’s a huge complex for entertainment and scientific learning in the basic sciences, a popular place among tourists, especially with children, because all the exhibitions are interactive and their fascinating exhibits, created by scientific knowledge and human intellect, are devoted to numerous discoveries in the fields of astronomy, chemistry, physics, mathematics and biology. There are 8 pavilions in the museum, the exhibitions in which help you learn about the world and its phenomena not only in theory but also in practice. For example, you can take part in the process of making paper, conduct an interesting chemical experiment, solve complex mathematical problems and much more. The pride of the museum is a planetarium with a spherical screen, which shows popular science films.
Official website: https://www.heureka
23. Design Museum
Despite the fact that at the end of the 19th century design was not yet a distinct artistic movement, the Design Museum in Helsinki at this time already had its own small exhibition of design objects. Having opened its doors to the public in 1873, it remains to this day one of the finest art galleries in Europe. Its exhibits include drawings, drawings, photographs, and other objects in one way or another related to design. And the museum’s archives contain more than a thousand talented artists from all over the world. The collection originated in the years when the National Society of Crafts added design objects from the Vienna World’s Fair to its holdings. Today, the exhibition occupies several floors, on the first of which is shown applied art in its most unique manifestations - here you will find tableware, interior items and creative accessories. The upper floors are devoted to temporary exhibitions related to modern trends in design.
Official website: http://www.designmuseum
24. Amos Rex Art Museum
While most guidebooks suggest taking the standard routes and visiting objects that are well known to all, there are also informal attractions of Helsinki - unusual and less known places that have even more appeal. Lovers of novelty and creativity should go to the art museum Amos Rex - a real portal to the world of dreams and miracles, where you can feel in a fantastic fairy tale. In fact, it’s a “reborn” Amos Anderson Art Museum - a grand new project came to reality in 2013, transforming the look of downtown Helsinki. Several domes in the form of lunar craters peeked out from under the ground, and the Glass Palace building was radically renovated. The exhibition program covers the period from ancient cultures to the present, the images are formed through digital projectors on the ceiling, acting as a screen.
Official website: https://amosrex
25. Sinebrychoff Art Museum
The tourist map of Helsinki simply abounds with cultural and educational sites, among which is the Sinebrychoff Art Museum. This is the only museum in the capital, entirely devoted to European art. It was founded in the 1920s, when an entrepreneur bequeathed his valuable collection of art to the state. The museum occupies the premises of a former manor house, where a married couple Pavel and Fanny Sinebryukhov used to live. Initially the collection consisted of paintings, miniatures, and rarities collected by the family over several generations, and later the collection was enriched with other donations and acquisitions. Today temporary exhibitions are held on the first floor, while the second floor hosts a permanent display of unique items of the Sinebryukhov family - tableware, porcelain and silverware, artful clocks, icons, and furniture.
Official site: https://sinebrychoff
26. Water park “Flamingo”
The largest water park in Finland is located near Helsinki, in the town of Vantaa, near the Jumbo shopping center. Waterpark Flamingo is designed in the theme of the ancient civilization of Maya - a warm and exotic place, which is a true tropical paradise with the largest SPA-complex, swimming pool, all kinds of water slides, souvenir shops, Finnish baths. The vast area of the water park is 2,000 square meters, offering such attractions as a sports pool, a water-flowing pool, a diving pool, a geyser with a Jacuzzi effect, several slides of different levels and sizes, a wellness area, where you can experience the atmosphere of ancient Mesopotamia, and two cafes for those who have worked up an appetite after all the fun.
Official website: https://www.flamingospa
27. Botanical garden
Traveling in different seasons, each season has its own advantages. But what to see in Helsinki in autumn? The solution is easy - autumn in all its splendor, in a riot of autumn colors and with a carnival of colored leaves, you can see, visiting the Botanical Gardens in the heart of the city. This is one of the most picturesque corners of the Finnish capital, which you can get, even without much time - by the way, this is one of the most suitable options, what to see in Helsinki in 6 hours. In the park you can see ponds, sculptures and an abundance of all kinds of plants - there are tropical forests, conifers, mountain vegetation and flora of the savannah - on the territory grows a total of 1300 plant species. Species representing the flora of northern latitudes grow right out in the open, but overseas plants live in local greenhouses.
Official website: http://www.luomus
28. Old Indoor Market
Any experienced traveler knows: visiting malls, boutiques and stores of local designers is not all there is to the concept of shopping. There are other, secret places in Helsinki, where you can not only buy a set of original things, but also feel the unique atmosphere and local color, inherent only to the old places. One of such places is the Old Covered Market, located in an authentic 19th century building. The facade of the structure immediately attracts with its view - there is no usual glass and concrete, but the beautiful brickwork of red and beige colors pleases the eye. Colorful rows of stalls abundant in fish and seafood from the Baltic Sea, as well as berries, smoked meats and sweets are scattered under the ancient arches. Not far outside the market there are stalls with souvenirs and handicrafts with Finnish national motifs.
29. Helsinki Railway Station
The main transport artery and the most important starting point in Finland - Helsinki railway station, where countless tourists arrive and from where trains to neighboring countries depart. In addition to its transport function, the station is also a valuable historical and architectural landmark built in the Nordic Art Nouveau style. Originally the station building was erected in 1862, and at the very beginning of the 20th century in its place has grown more modern, luxurious building of pink Finnish granite, incorporating all the latest achievements of that time. The main decoration is a magnificent arched vault and two statues with ball-shaped lamps, which cozily light up at dusk. Every day about 200,000 people pass through the station, commuter trains and long-distance trains pass through.
30. Esplanade Park
Another symbol of Helsinki, located in the center, is the old Esplanade Park, where numerous hiking trails converge in rays. The main park avenue is crowned with shady trees, pleases with colorful flowers and original landscapes. The atmosphere in the park is almost always lively, especially during the holidays - for example, in winter there is a Christmas market, and in spring there are festivals and concerts. In fact, this place is one of the best options for what to see in Helsinki in the spring. Visitors to Helsinki especially like to relax in the Esplanade in between trips to tourist sites. In the eastern part there is an open area Espa, where in the summer days there are various performances and shows. There are also a number of monuments on the park grounds, the most famous of which is the fountain with the sculpture of Havis Amanda, depicting a sea nymph.
We hope that our review will help you compose an excellent sightseeing itinerary of the Finnish capital.
