Our stay couldn’t have been more ideal – we stayed directly at the most popular running route in the city. We really enjoyed the peaceful and picturesque surroundings of the Töölönlahti Bay in the heart of Helsinki and made many, many rounds along the water while running with a view of the Finlandia Hall, the Opera House and the tower of the Olympic Stadium. Helsinki's architecture is breathtaking!
German Oliver Bock and Judith Havers visited Helsinki in spring and published several posts about their stay on Oliver's popular Instagram account oliverbock.
Here follows a short summary of those posts with 5 tips out of their recommendations in Helsinki:
1) We made the most of our short stay and spent many hours cruising around by bike to explore the “Must Sees”. Next time, we might be able to make a “top list” (at least of cafés as we are quite addicted to coffee and did several stops to get one or two). Find out more about biking in Helsinki here.
2) We admit not being big fans of art galleries and exhibitions, but would also like to mention and recommend visiting the island of Seurasaari. Getting insights into the traditional Finnish way of life and seeing houses of the past four hundred years while walking on hilly paths, in a slightly forested, rocky terrain that seems to float above the Baltic Sea… made a visit to a “museum” really fun!
3) Both of us like being in nature, so we also enjoyed spending time in Helsinki's “Central Park” Keskuspuisto. The trails on the soft ground, the smell of pine needles and sweet wood made us feel completely cut off from the hustle and bustle of city life.
4) Stuff your fridge with delicious local treats - that made us really feel at home away from home. See a list of top gifts and souvenirs from Helsinki here.
5) We both love the woolen socks of Helsinki Woolen Sock Factory and the VAI-KO beanies and are currently using them every day.
See all the posts here!