Lonely Planet Pocket Helsinki

By Catherine Le Nevez and Mara Vorhees

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher

Lonely Planet Pocket Helsinki is your passport to the most relevant, up-to-date advice on what to see and skip, and what hidden discoveries await you. Explore the World-Heritage listed Suomenlinna, admire the artwork at the inspiring Ateneum, or discover history at the island-set Seurasaaren Ulkomuseo -all with your trusted travel companion. Get to the heart of the best of Helsinki and begin your journey now!

Inside Lonely Planet Pocket Helsinki:

• Full-colour maps and images throughout
• Highlights and itineraries help you tailor your trip to your personal needs and interests
• Insider tips to save time and money and get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spots
• Essential info at your fingertips - hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, transit tips, prices
• Honest reviews for all budgets - eating, sleeping, sight-seeing, going out, shopping, hidden gems that most guidebooks miss
• User-friendly layout with helpful icons, and organised by neighbourhood to help you pick the best spots to spend your time
• Covers City Centre, Kruununhaka & Katajanokka, Punavuori & Ullanlinna, Kamppi & Toolo, Kallio and more

The Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet Pocket Helsinki, a colorful, easy-to-use, and handy guide that literally fits in your pocket, provides on-the-go assistance for those seeking only the can't-miss experiences to maximize a quick trip experience.

About Lonely Planet: Lonely Planet is a leading travel media company and the world's number one travel guidebook brand, providing both inspiring and trustworthy information for every kind of traveller since 1973. Over the past four decades, we've printed over 145 million guidebooks and grown a dedicated, passionate global community of travellers. You'll also find our content online, on mobile, video and in 14 languages, 12 international magazines, armchair and lifestyle books, ebooks, and more.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lonely Planet
• Release date: Apr 1, 2018
• ISBN: 9781787019188

Catherine Le Nevez

El espíritu viajero de Catherine Le Nevez nació cuando, con cuatro años de edad, realizó un viaje por Europa desde París, y desde entonces viaja a la menor oportunidad. Ha visitado unos 60 países y ha completado un doctorado en Escritura Creativa, un máster en Escritura Profesional y cursos de posgrado en Edición y Publicación. En los últimos 12 años ha escrito numerosas guías y artículos sobre París, Francia, Europa y otros lugares para Lonely Planet. Su trabajo también ha aparecido en muchas publicaciones impresas y en línea. El mejor consejo de Catherine para viajar es hacerlo sin expectativas.

Book preview

Contents

QuickStart Guide

Welcome to Helsinki

Top Sights

Local Life

Day Planner

Need to Know

Helsinki Neighbourhoods

Explore

City Centre

Kruununhaka & Katajanokka

Punavuori & Ullanlinna

Kamppi & Toolo

Seurasaaren Ulkomuseo

Kallio

Porvoo

Tuusulanjarvi

Best

The Best of Helsinki

Architectural Stroll

Green Helsinki

Eating

Drinking & Nightlife

Entertainment

Shopping

History

Art & Architecture

Outdoors

Saunas

For Kids

For Free

Tours

Survival Guide

Survival Guide

Before You Go

Arriving in Helsinki

Getting Around

Essential Information

Language

Behind the Scenes

Our Writers

Welcome to Helsinki

Spectacularly entwined with the Baltic's bays, inlets and islands, Helsinki's boulevards and backstreets are awash with magnificent architecture, enticing eateries and groundbreaking design. This modern city by the sea is less flashy than the other Nordic capitals, but rivals them for accessibility, creativity and quirkiness.

Sibelius Monument © Eila Hiltunen/KUVASTO | KIEV.VICTOR/SHUTTERSTOCK © LICENSED BY VISCOPY, 2017

1

Helsinki

Top Sights

Suomenlinna

Finland's mighty island-set fortress.

SILVANBACHMANN/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Design Museum

A showcase for Finnish design.

GRISHA BRUEV/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Seurasaaren Ulkomuseo

Historic wooden-building-filled outdoor museum.

KKULIKOV/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Ateneum

Finland’s premier art gallery.

MAURO CARLI/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Kiasma

Avant-garde art and cultural hub.

GRISHA BRUEV/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Kansallismuseo

Finland’s blockbuster historical museum.

IGOR GROCHEV/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Kajsaniemi

Helsinki's harbourside botanic gardens.

JOAO INACIO/GETTY IMAGES ©

Helsinki Top Sights

Tennispalatsi

Cultural centre and art museum.

GUIZIOU FRANCK/GETTY IMAGES ©

l

Helsinki

Local Life

Insider tips to help you find the real Helsinki

It won't take long to discover what Stadilainen (Helsinki residents) love about their hometown when you explore its rich maritime heritage, its super-cool design district, its offbeat outskirts and its happening nightlife.

Maritime Helsinki

y Icebreakers

y Harbourfront warehouses

JOAQUIN OSSORIO CASTILLO/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Design District

y Design shopping

y Designer dining

Marimekko store | EQROY/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Creative Kallio

y Public art

y Industrial spaces

ESTEA/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Helsinki by Night

y Glow-in-the-dark minigolf

y Live music

AIJA LEHTONEN/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

Other great places to experience the city like a local:

Jääpuisto

La Torrefazione

Kauppatori

Löyly Sauna

Konepahalli

Hietaranta

Kotiharjun Sauna

Kallio Block Party

R

Helsinki

Day Planner

Day One

MIf you're arriving by rail, Helsinki's central train station gives you an immediate feel for the city's stunning National Romantic art nouveau architecture. From here it's just footsteps to Kiasma to catch modern and contemporary Finnish and international art in striking contemporary surrounds. More art is on display at the nearby Ateneum, Helsinki's – and Finland's – premier showcase for the country's ‘golden age’ from the late 19th century through to the 1950s.

RLunch at the Karl Fazer Café is a Helsinki institution. Afterwards, stroll through the city's central strip of green, Esplanadin Puisto, and visit central Finnish design shops. Continue your stroll through the city's beautiful botanic gardens, Kajsaniemi, and its 10 interlinked greenhouses.

NBook ahead to take in a concert at the Musiikkitalo, which hosts everything from classical to jazz, rock and pop. Even if you don't catch a performance, its bar is a great place for a nightcap.

Day Two

MGet an early start to beat the crowds at Helsinki's Lutheran cathedral, Tuomiokirkko, a masterpiece from architect CL Engel, then head to another resplendent church, the Finnish Orthodox Uspenskin Katedraali, built as a Russian Orthodox cathedral and still topped by its distinctive gold onion domes.

RMake reservations ahead for Michelin-starred modern Finnish cuisine at Olo. After lunch, make your way to Helsinki's main market square, the kauppatori, and board a local ferry bound for Suomenlinna, the 'fortress of Finland', set over a series of islands in Helsinki's archipelago. Spend the afternoon exploring its fortifications, bunkers and numerous museums. Highlights here include scrambling through the Vesikko, the only WWII-era submarine remaining in Finland.

NFor dinner, feast on game platters and house-brewed beers at Suomenlinnan Panimo. Return by ferry to the kauppatori. Take in a stunning panorama of Helsinki aboard the Sky Wheel then finish with a swim and/or a sauna at waterfront swimming complex Allas Sea Pool, which also has dazzling skyline views.

Day Three

MTake a ferry from the kauppatori to the island of Seurasaari. Its delightful open-air museum, Seurasaaren Ulkomuseo, shelters a collection of 87 historic wooden buildings relocated to the island from around Finland. Bring provisions for a picnic lunch on the island, or head to a cafe here.

RReturn by bus and make your way to the rock-hewn church Temppeliaukion Kirkko with its stunning copper roof and sublime acoustics (check the agenda to try to align your visit with a concert). Afterwards wander through the Kansallismuseo to learn about Finnish history or check out contemporary-art exhibitions inside the Tennispalatsi at the Helsinki Art Museum.

NEnjoy a post-dinner glass of wine at Vin-Vin or a sensational cocktail at steampunk-themed Steam Hellsinki, before catching a film at the art deco Orion Theatre or jazz at Helsinki's best jazz club, Storyville.

Day Four

MKick-start your day with a coffee and pastry at Helsinki's historic market hall, Vanha Kauppahalli, before making your way to the city's Design Museum. Glassware by Aino Aalto, a Paimio bent birch plywood chair by Alvar Aalto and a semi-spherical fibreglass Ball chair by Eero Aarniio are among its iconic designs. Be sure to get a combination ticket for the neighbouring Museum of Finnish Architecture.

RLunch is designer Finnish dishes at Juuri. Then flex your credit card at the Design District shops. While away the afternoon in the seaside park Kaivopuisto and relax afterwards with a sauna at Löyly Sauna.

NFor dinner, check out more of Alvar and Aino Aalto's work while dining at the Savoy. Then make your way to the creative neighbourhood of Kallio to check out its nightlife – the streets of Helsinginkatu and Vaasankatu in particular have plenty of buzzing bars. End the night at top Helsinki club Kuudes Linja, famed for experimental beats.

Need to Know

Currency

Euro (€)

Language

Finnish, Swedish (official); English widely spoken

Visas

Generally not required for stays of up to 90 days; some nationalities will need a Schengen visa.

Money

Credit cards are widely accepted. ATMs (bearing the name 'Otto') are prevalent. There are currency-exchange counters at all transport terminals; visit www.forex.fi to locate others.

Mobile Phones

Purchasing a Finnish SIM card at any R-kioski shop for your own phone (provided it's unlocked) is cheapest. Top the credit up at the same outlets, online or at ATMs. Roaming charges within the EU have been abolished.

Time

Eastern European Time (EET; UTC/GMT plus two hours)

Tipping

Service is considered to be included in bills, so there’s no need to tip at all unless you want to reward exceptional service.

1Before You Go

Your Daily Budget

Budget: Less than €120

A Dorm bed: €25–35

A City Bike per 30 minutes: free

A Lunch buffet: €8–14

Midrange: €120–250

A Standard hotel double room: €100–160

A Two-course meal with wine: €50–80

A Public transport day ticket: €9

Top End: More than €250

A Suite in boutique hotel: from €185

A Degustation menu with wine: from €80

A Taxi ride across town: €25–40

Useful Websites

Visit Helsinki (www.visithelsinki.fi) Excellent tourist-board website.

City of Helsinki (www.hel.fi) Helsinki City website, with many useful links.

Lonely Planet (www.lonelyplanet.com/finland) Destination information, hotel bookings, traveller forum and more.

HSL/HRT (www.hsl.fi) Public-transport information and journey planner.

Advance Planning

Three months before Book your hotel, especially if you'll be visiting at peak times or during festivals.

Two months before Check entertainment calendars to see what's on and buy tickets for anything that looks appealing.

Two weeks before Make dinner reservations at your must-eat restaurants.

One week before Reserve boat cruises and/or guided walking or cycling tours.

2Arriving in Helsinki

A Helsinki-Vantaa Airport

The airport–city rail link (www.hsl.f; €5, 30 minutes, 5.05am to 12.05am) serves Helsinki's train station. The airport is also linked to central Helsinki by bus, including fast Finnair buses (€6.30, 30 minutes, every 20 minutes, 5am to midnight), and taxis; a Taksi Helsinki cab costs around €45 to €50.

J Kamppi Bus Station

International and long-distance domestic buses arrive at Kamppi bus station in Kamppi, at the city centre's southwestern edge, which has its own metro station (Kamppi stop).

L Helsinki Train Station

Helsinki’s central train station, serving international and domestic trains, is linked to the metro (Rautatientori stop).

N Ferry Terminals

Helsinki's five international ferry terminals are all served by tram (or bus and metro).

3Getting Around

H Bicycle

Helsinki's shared-bike scheme, City Bikes (www.hsl.fi/citybikes), has some 1500 bikes at 150 stations citywide.

N Boat

Local ferries serve Suomenlinna and Helsinki Zoo, among other