Travel Man: Helsinki, Finland
- X
Explore Helsinki
Welcome to the capital in the south of the country, a city renowned for the beauty of its natural landscapes, its art of living and its architecture. You'll love strolling along its coastline to Kauppatori market square, right in the heart of the capital. The air is filled with the scent of fresh dill and wild berries, and you can admire the fishermen's fresh catch of the day. We can't miss the Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral, with its Byzantine-Slavic style, which leaves us speechless both for its architecture and for the view it offers from its esplanade. Then there's the Lutheran church of Temppeliaukio, built right into the rock! The fortress of Suomenlinna, built on a group of islands in Helsinki Bay, is quite simply exceptional. Save time for shopping, in one of Europe's design capitals, from small old-fashioned stalls to trendy boutiques. And don't forget the many coffee and pastry breaks that are an institution in Finland.
Helsinki is the capital of Finland, a harbor city on the Gulf of Finland with islands scattered just offshore. It was named a World Design Capital in 2012, and it blends clean modern design with old market halls, wooden saunas and a waterfront that is part of daily life. In the Travel Man episode, Richard Ayoade and Paul Rudd fit it into a quick trip. They look down over the harbor from the Hotel Torni tower, go sea kayaking in the archipelago, try reindeer jerky at Hakaniemi Market, sit in a sauna that shares space with a Burger King and put salty licorice to a taste test. This itinerary gives the city more time, from market mornings to sauna evenings. The link below opens the full trip, and you can change any part of it.
Start at the Market
The trip opens at Kauppatori, the market square on the harbor, where stalls sell salmon sandwiches with dill and wild berries by the punnet. Eat standing at a counter like everyone else, then walk up the hill to Uspenski Cathedral, a red-brick church whose gold domes are visible from the water. From there, head a little farther north to Hakaniemi Market, the stop from the episode. Its covered hall is packed with stalls and food counters, and it's the place to try reindeer jerky if you want to recreate the moment.
Sweat, Then Swim
Saunas are part of everyday life in Finland, and Helsinki has public ones that welcome visitors. A typical session runs through heat, a plunge into the cold water and then heat again. At the harbor, you can finish with a swim if you're feeling brave. The episode's Burger King sauna is a curiosity, but the traditional version is simpler and just as memorable. For a version that belongs to Helsinki, some operators run sauna boats, floating saunas that carry you out into the archipelago. You can sweat in the cabin, step onto the deck and cool off with a swim in the sea.
A sauna boat on the water off Helsinki, where the sauna and the archipelago come together.
Take a Day on the Water
The sauna boat is one way onto the water, and the islands are the reason to go. A half-day sea kayaking trip in the archipelago, which you can book, takes you out among them and shows how the city and its coast fit together. Suomenlinna is the other highlight. This sea fortress is spread across six linked islands, and the ferry from the harbor takes only minutes. Once there, you can walk the ramparts, visit the museums and find a quiet cove for a picnic. The episode also stops at Seurasaari, an island you can add to the trip.
Sea kayaking in the Finnish archipelago.
If you want more than one capital, the ferry crossing to Tallinn in Estonia turns the trip into a visit to two Baltic cities. The link below opens the full trip. Add the Tallinn crossing, linger on the islands or slow everything down to local speed, then click through and shape it into your own.
Explore Helsinki
Welcome to the capital in the south of the country, a city renowned for the beauty of its natural landscapes, its art of living and its architecture. You'll love strolling along its coastline to Kauppatori market square, right in the heart of the capital. The air is filled with the scent of fresh dill and wild berries, and you can admire the fishermen's fresh catch of the day. We can't miss the Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral, with its Byzantine-Slavic style, which leaves us speechless both for its architecture and for the view it offers from its esplanade. Then there's the Lutheran church of Temppeliaukio, built right into the rock! The fortress of Suomenlinna, built on a group of islands in Helsinki Bay, is quite simply exceptional. Save time for shopping, in one of Europe's design capitals, from small old-fashioned stalls to trendy boutiques. And don't forget the many coffee and pastry breaks that are an institution in Finland.
- X
