A Winter Weekend in Helsinki

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Finland is famous for huskies, snow, northern lights and being Baltic. Helsinki is the capital of Finland, and the area is home to around 1.5 million people. It’s a sustainable capital, made up of beautiful islands and seems quite relaxed with a focus on food, architecture and, of course, sauna!

We visited Helsinki in February from the UK and arrived to snow and frozen over rivers. It was absolutely beautiful. Spending 2 days in the city was a perfect amount of time to scratch the surface and see the main sights. The whole city had a really nice feeling and we wished we had longer than a weekend to explore a tiny part of the country. We will definitely return one day to explore further North.

If you’re visiting Helsinki, here are 10 things to do in the Finnish capital.


Helsinki Cathedral was built as a tribute to Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, and is truly beautiful. It’s simple but beautiful inside, and the square it sits in is lovely to walk around and have a drink or some food.

The cathedral as the snow fell

Built in the 1860s, Uspenski Cathedral is an Eastern Orthodox cathedral. Interestingly, the cathedral used to house a famous and valuable icon, St Nicolas – The Wonder Maker, but in 2007 it was stolen from the cathedral in broad daylight whilst the cathedral was full of hundreds of tourists! It still hasn’t been recovered to this day.

One of my favourite spots in Helsinki is the Rock Church, or Temppeliaukio, which was built in to solid rock in the 1960s – making for a really unique place. You can even walk over the top of it!

You can’t come to the home of the Moomins and not visit their namesake cafe. Sit in the Moomin themed cafe as you sip coffee out of a Moomin mug – a perfect spot for breakfast.

Outside the Moomin Cafe

The most famous market in Finland, Helsinki’s Market Square is one of the city’s main tourist destinations. Here you’ll find charming market stands that sell a everything from fish freshly caught from the harbour, fruits and vegetables, coffee, and local arts and crafts. Traditional salmon or fish soup is a must-try when dropping by the market!

View from the Market

This museum tells the story of the history of Finland, from the Stone Age through to the modern day. Exhibits include how the area now known as Finland came to be formed, the Independence era and Finland’s maritime history. There’s even a section with a sauna that you can sit in! It was really fascinating to learn more about the history of the country, and the museum is well worth a few hours of your time.

This is a fun one if you’ve got kids – or if it’s just wayyy too cold outside, like it was in our case. The flying cinema is a 4d experience which takes you flying around the attractions of Helsinki without leaving your seat. Though be warned, if you suffer from motion sickness it might not be for you!

At the Flying Cinema

You can visit the Parliament of Finland on a guided tour on Saturdays at 11:00 and 12:30 and on Sundays at 12:00 and 13:30. In the summer months (July and August) tours run every day. It’s also possible to watch Parliament in session on Tuesdays and Fridays from the public balcony.

At the Parliament building

Helsinki railway station was designed in 1919. I wouldn’t normally put a station on a to do list, but this one really is beautiful – it was even chosen as one of the world’s most beautiful railway stations by the BBC in 2013.

Fun fact – Sauna is one of the only Finnish word to make it in to the English dictionary! Even better, did you know there are 2 million saunas in Finland? Pretty impressive when there are only 5 million people in Finland!

Unsurprisngly, Helsinki isn’t short of saunas. The capital’s Burger King even has one!!! The sky wheel in Helsinki also has sauna pods – including a hot tub and a sauna. Madness. One of the most famous saunas in Helsinki is Löyly, right on the the Baltic Sea. Here you can enjoy the sauna, jump in the icy sea, whip yourself with birch branches and then chill out by the open fire in the lounge.

Now – fair warning, a lot of Finns do go to the sauna naked, but there is absolutely no requirement too; a lot of people also wear swimsuits. I actually didn’t see anyone naked so that was a win.


And that brings my post on Helsinki to a close. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for reading. Stay safe and happy travelling!

21 responses to “A Winter Weekend in Helsinki”

  1. So pleased to read that you have also visited Helsinki, one of my all time favourite cities. I’ve spent more time in Finland than anywhere away from home as I love the country so much. Let’s hope we can both get back there soon and sip coffee whilst tucking into those delicious cinnamon pulla buns!

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    1. It’s such a great city isn’t it! Oh wow, I’ll have to have a read of some of your Finland posts, as I’d love to go back there 🙂 Oh those buns are good – and the fish soups are perfect for a cold winter’s day! Have a good day 🙂

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      1. I think their creamy salmon soup is the best ever! Hope you have a good day, too!

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  2. We haven’t been to Finland. Helsinki looks like a really nice city with beautiful buildings.

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    1. It’s such a beautiful city, and Finland is a lovely country. I hope you get to visit one day 🙂

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  3. I can’t believe I never made an effort to visit Helsinki while I lived in Latvia for twenty years, especially being the biggest fan of The Moomins. I grow up reading Swedish-speaking Finnish illustrator Tove Jansson and along the way fell in love with Moomin family adventures. I am glad to see you had a great time exploring the city, it looks quite charming during the winter. Thanks for sharing and take care. Aiva 🙂

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    1. Oh wow that’s crazy when you lived so close! I haven’t been to Latvia yet, but have Riga planned for later in the year (all being well of course!). The Moomins are the best!! I also love them and was one of my main reasons for wanting to visit 🙂 Have a lovely day Aiva, and thanks for stopping by.

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  4. I visited Helsinki over eight years ago, albeit in the summer. I didn’t have a ton of time to check everything out, but I remember it was a sunny day with air so fresh that it smelled almost sweet (surprising, as it’s a big city)! I’ve honestly never heard of Moomin, but it looks cute, and it’d be cool to check out the cafe. Thanks for documenting your time there, especially during a magical part of the year!

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    1. Ahh it’s a shame you didn’t get longer to visit as it’s an amazing city. That’s a nice memory of a big city to have – I think it is very eco friendly and well looked after! Ahhh the Moomins are an institution here in the UK and across a lot of Europe (especially Scandinavia). They are a family of white, round fairy tale characters with large snouts that make them look like hippos (but they are actually trolls!). They started off as books, but then became a really popular children’s TV show!! have a great day, and thanks so much for stopping by 🙂

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  5. Finland is definitely on my travel bucket list. I love the picture you captured of the cathedral with the snow falling. Looks magical.

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    1. It’s such a beautiful country – I have a couple more posts on it coming soon as well. I can’t wait to get back when we can travel again, perhaps to head north and see the Northern lights. Have a lovely day and thanks for stopping by 🙂

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  6. Love this! Went last year and it was such an amazing place – what I’d do to be at Loyly right now!

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    1. It’s such a beautiful city isn’t it! Oh me toooooo. I am seriously missing exploring 😦 Hope you’re staying safe and well!

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      1. Me too – hopefully this year! Thanks lovely, same to you!

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  7. jasonlikestotravel

    Wonderful read. I only visited Helsinki & Finland for the first time in 2019 and was really hoping to return in 2020. Obviously it didn’t pan out but you’ve given me a couple of extra things to check out next time 🙂

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    1. Oh great, I’m glad you enjoyed it. It’s definitely one of my favourite city break locations and I also can’t wait to go back and explore more of Finland soon 🙂

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  8. A Moomin cafe … wow! Here in South Africa, our Moomin characters were talking in Afrikaans (one of our official languages) – until today, I never knew they actually originated from Finland 😜

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  9. Han, this is so cool to see (no pun intended). When we were in Helsinki it was in the height of summer, with daylight most of the night and a buzzing marketplace. Seeing the chunks of ice in the water, the snow on the cathedral steps – it’s so different!

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    1. Ahh I’m glad you like it! I bet in the summer it looks a completely different place; I think it’s one of those cities that is amazing to visit any time 🙂 Have a lovely evening

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  10. Wonderful blog. I loved my time in Helsinki a few years’ back. If you have time, please do take a read of my blog. 🙂

    Helsinki… sauna time in the world’s happiest city

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  11. […] is a sea fortress built on 8 islands just south of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. It’s a UNESCO world heritage site, and people still live on the […]

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About the author

Hi! My name is Hannah, I’m a travel blogger from the UK who fits travel around a full time (and full on) job. In this blog I share my adventures around the world and hopefully help you to find some inspiration for destinations, things to do or places to stay. Thanks for stopping by – stay safe and happy travelling.

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