Top Things to Do in Helsinki, Finland: Ultimate Travel Guide
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Best Things to Do in Helsinki, Finland
Helsinki is an easy city to explore. It is compact, walkable, has excellent public transportation, and combines historic architecture with waterfront scenery and easy day trips.
I visited Helsinki with my son after taking the ferry from Tallinn, Estonia. As a travel photographer and watercolor artist, I was primarily looking for interesting architecture, city views, and locations that might eventually become paintings.
Some did.
My favorite places in Helsinki included Helsinki Cathedral, Uspenski Cathedral, Suomenlinna, Helsinki Central Station, Kallio Church, and a rooftop viewpoint that eventually inspired one of my award-winning watercolor paintings.
If you have limited time, these are the Helsinki attractions I would put near the top of the list:
- Helsinki Cathedral and Senate Square
- Uspenski Cathedral
- Suomenlinna Sea Fortress
- Helsinki Central Station
- Kallio Church
- Sokos rooftop viewpoint
- Helsinki waterfront
- Day trip to Porvoo
Helsinki is relatively compact, so many of these can easily be combined into a few days without spending half your vacation getting from one place to another.
Helsinki Cathedral & Senate Square
Helsinki Cathedral is probably the city’s most recognizable landmark.
The huge white cathedral and green domes dominate Senate Square and can be seen from numerous places around downtown Helsinki. For me, that made it much more interesting photographically than simply walking up the steps and looking at the building.
I kept finding the cathedral appearing between buildings and rising above the Helsinki skyline.
Those less-obvious views were ultimately more interesting to me than the classic straight-on photograph from Senate Square—and several eventually became watercolor paintings.
Photography tip: Don’t just photograph Helsinki Cathedral from the front. Walk the surrounding streets and look for views where the dome appears above the older buildings.
Purchase this original painting and fine art prints
Kallio Church
Kallio Church is north of the main tourist center and has a very different feel from Helsinki Cathedral.
The gray granite church was completed in 1912 and rises dramatically above the surrounding Kallio neighborhood.
This was another location that interested me primarily because of the architecture. Helsinki has several churches worth photographing, but they don’t all look remotely alike—which makes wandering around the city much more interesting.
Helsinki Central Station
Normally, I don’t recommend train stations as major tourist attractions.
Helsinki Central Station is an exception.
Designed by Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen, the massive granite station is one of Helsinki’s most recognizable buildings. The giant stone figures holding illuminated globes at the entrance are particularly hard to miss.
More importantly, you’re probably going to pass through this area anyway.
The station sits right in central Helsinki, so there’s no reason to create a special expedition just to see it. Walk through, look around, take some photographs, and continue exploring the city.
Uspenski Cathedral
Uspenski Cathedral, the main cathedral of the Orthodox Church of Finland, is an Eastern Orthodox landmark in Helsinki. Dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, its name originates from the Old Church Slavonic word uspenie, meaning Dormition. As the largest Orthodox church in both Northern and Western Europe, it holds significant religious and cultural importance.
My Favorite Helsinki Photo Spot: Sokos Rooftop
This was my favorite view in Helsinki.
From the rooftop of the Sokos building, you can look across downtown Helsinki and get the elevated city views I am always searching for when I travel.
And conveniently, those elevated views often seem to come with a bar.
Pure coincidence.
I could photograph the city, order a drink, and relax for a while—which is significantly more enjoyable than climbing another church tower.
More importantly, one of the photographs I took here eventually became the basis for a large watercolor batik of Helsinki.
That painting was later selected for the 159th American Watercolor Society International Exhibition in New York City.
So yes, I am slightly biased toward this viewpoint.
Purchase this 24×36″ framed painting and fine art prints
This watercolor batik on Japanese rice paper was recently selected for inclusion in the 159th Annual American Watercolor Society International Juried Exhibition in New York City
Visit Suomenlinna Sea Fortress
My son re-imagining warfare on Suomenlinna (easy day-trip from city).
If you have several days in Helsinki, make time for Suomenlinna.
The historic sea fortress sits on a group of islands just offshore and is an easy ferry ride from Helsinki.
My son and I spent time wandering around the fortress, exploring the old fortifications and enjoying being somewhere that felt completely different from central Helsinki.
It is also a good place to slow down.
You can walk around the islands, explore the defensive structures, photograph the coastline, or simply find somewhere to sit and enjoy the scenery.
For photography, I particularly liked the combination of historic stone fortifications, water, vegetation, and views back toward Helsinki.
Would I go again? Absolutely.
Purchase this original painting and fine art prints
Best Day Trip From Helsinki: Porvoo
If you have another day available, get out of Helsinki and visit Porvoo.
Porvoo is about 50 km from Helsinki and is one of Finland’s historic medieval towns. My son and I took the bus from Helsinki and spent several hours wandering around the old town and surrounding trails.
It was one of my favorite parts of the trip.
The historic center is filled with colorful wooden buildings, narrow streets, old architecture, and views toward Porvoo Cathedral.
One of my Porvoo photographs later became this watercolor of the cathedral rising above the old town.
Purchase this original painting and fine art prints
Next: 1 Day in Viljandi, Estonia
Helsinki Travel Resources:
Hotel
Located north of downtown, this was a super basic no-frills hotel. Simple and clean rooms. Self-check in. Laundry room. Really close to tram routes and supermarket. Food hall in basement of building was surprisingly good (even if their idea of a taco was a little off :)).
I never spend much money on a hotel- all I ask is a clean and quiet place to sleep. There was a TV. I have no idea if it worked- I never turned it on.
Other Helsinki Hotels:
If I HAD the money, I would have stayed in this hotel:
https://expedia.com/affiliates/helsinki-hotels-clarion-hotel-helsinki.A9IVKos
Coffee
Helsinki bakeries and coffee shops open early (7-8am). We (my son and I) were able to get coffee early- which is a necessity
Tours
Find things to do in Helsinki- day trips, and more:
https://expedia.com/affiliates/expedia-home.1hGmSO4
Travel Guides
Here is a link to the Lonely Planet Guide. This is what I used to plan the trip (in conjunction with the all-beloved internet):
Another travel guide available for Helsinki (Lonely Planet pocket guide)
Getting Around (Transportation)
Bus/tram/ferry tickets are easily purchasable at most stations in the city with credit cards. I bought several 24 hours passes for my son and me.
Flights:
My son and I flew from Raleigh-London-then Tallinn. We took the ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki.
https://www.directferries.com/helsinki_ferry.htm
Our flights were purchased on Expedia:
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Ryan Fox Painting
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