Finland, Helsinki: sights, photos and reviews of tourists

The capital of Finland, the city of developed tourism in Helsinki, whose attractions amaze with its diversity, is located in the southern part of the country.

Social structure

Helsinki is the administrative center of the province of Uusimaa and, together with its satellite cities Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen, forms a region inhabited by more than 1.5 million people. Big Helsinki consists of 12 communes, on the territory of which there are 8 universities, many social institutions and technology parks. The population is actively migrating to the capital, and this makes Helsinki the fastest growing municipal area in Europe.

In Finland, the main international airport is Helsinki-Vantaa, which is only 20 kilometers from the center of the capital. From the air harbor fly around the world the most modern airliners.

Rating

In 2014, the city of Helsinki, whose attractions are of interest to hundreds of thousands of tourists from different countries, ranked fifth in the ranking of the best cities in the world, according to the British magazine Monocle. And according to the newspaper "New York Times" among the cities that are worth visiting, the capital of Finland is in second place, after Panama. In addition, Helsinki is recognized as one of the safest cities in the world - an international consulting company put it on the fourth place in this list, the championship was given to Luxembourg, the second and third positions were Zurich and Bern.

Tourists in Finland

The city of Helsinki, whose attractions leave no one indifferent, is an ideal place for tourists who come to the Finnish capital from all over the world. Architectural masterpieces, historical monuments, rarities, as an integral part of world culture - all this attracts travelers.

Helsinki sights with a description of their history are included in numerous sightseeing tours. Guidebooks, which can be purchased at any kiosk, will help to draw up a plan of visits. The city of Helsinki, whose sights can be inspected again and again, is a friendly and hospitable place. Impressions after the excursions will stay for a long time. And since one visit is impossible to see all the exhibitions, museums, fairs and many other events in Helsinki, a second visit to Suomi is quite possible as part of the tourist trip.

Helsinki sights with a description of their history, architectural masterpieces and much more have made the capital of Finland a kind of mecca of tourism. Most of the cultural sites are located in the heart of the city, getting acquainted with them does not present difficulties related to movement, as it does in other European cities.

In case you need to visit tourist sites in the out-of-the-way blocks, then to the services of travelers public transport, an ideally organized service for quick movement. Trams in the capital of Finland and in other cities of the country are subject to a per-minute schedule along the route, which is never violated. Comfortable cars will deliver you to destination, quickly and comfortably. Public transport trips are quite expensive, but if you purchase a ticket for several landings, the cost of travel is significantly reduced. In addition, a group travel system operates on transport in Helsinki, when several people travel by one common ticket, and this method is also costly and inexpensive.

History and modernity

Finland, Helsinki, sights, cultural values, the way of life of the population - everything that the country lives in arouses a keen interest among visitors, many do not have a two-week tour to get acquainted with the history of the state and see memorable places.

Travel agencies offer fascinating travel through the centuries, to the ancient Finnish civilization, when architectural masterpieces were erected, distinguished by northern restraint, minimalism and refinement. The ancient buildings, churches and cathedrals of Helsinki, attractions, photos of which can be found in guidebooks, booklets and special editions, are wrapped in the mystery of the past centuries, but nevertheless are available today for the general public.

Architecture

In Finland, a lot of buildings were built in the style of modernism, but a special impression leaves a visit to the architectural ensemble in the style of Jugend, the most holistic throughout the Northern Europe.

In the center of the city, especially within the Senate Square, there are unique masterpieces of neoclassical architecture. The largest Orthodox church - the Assumption Cathedral - reflects the Byzantine-Russian architectural traditions.

Architectural masterpieces of Helsinki, attractions, reviews about which for many decades leave grateful tourists, occupy the first positions in the ranking of world architecture. Many buildings in the cities of Finland combine several styles at once, but the combination of neoclassicism and, for example, modernism is so organic that it gives the impression of some new architecture. Later directions of architecture are represented by the High-Tech Center in Ruokholahti, the Sanomatalo building and the contemporary art museum Kiasma.

Finland, Helsinki sights in winter

Scandinavian countries have a number of northern continental characteristics. Sweden, Norway and Denmark - three Scandinavian countries (in geographical location). When Scandinavia is mentioned together with Finland, it is already called Fennoscandia.

Helsinki sights in winter are special tourist trips around the country. Dog sleds, light sleighs under the control of a horse, deer running - all this constitutes an interesting spectrum of winter pastime. What is the residence of Santa Claus in Lapland, the northernmost province of Finland, which is open to anyone wishing to visit the magical Santa Park. And after the ride on the attractions you can go to the gingerbread kitchen of Mrs. Klaus and taste fragrant biscuits.

In Helsinki sights in winter (reviews of tourists are exceptionally positive) look in a special way, snow-white plains around, dazzling purity of snow fascinate. Even architectural masterpieces look unusual under the snow.

Main Attractions

In the center of Helsinki, on Senate Square , the main attractions are: the Presidential Palace, the National Library, the St. Nicholas Cathedral Lutheran Cathedral, built in 1852. Well-preserved merchants' mansions, nowadays there are souvenir shops, restaurants and cafes.

And in the center of the square stands the monument of Alexander II, the Russian emperor, thanks to which the Finnish people gained independence. Twelve times the king visited Finland, participated in the decision of state affairs of the country, hunted, retired to the Valaam Monastery, which was located on the territory of the Grand Duchy of Finland. Under Alexander II, the country built a railway linking Helsinki and St. Petersburg.

Helsinki today

It is impossible to see the city in a short time, the capital of Finland is all in old buildings, parks, museums and entertainment centers. For the smallest tourists there are excellent entertainment complexes, among which the Amusement park called "Linnanmäki" dominates. For adults, in addition to city excursions, a lot of sea entertainments and excursions on the ships are offered.

Visiting historical memorials begins with the medieval fortress of Sveaborg, for many decades defending Helsinki from enemies from the sea. The next historical exhibit is the Church of Temppeliaukio, located directly in the thickness of the rock.

Tourists who prefer landscape beauty can visit the zoo, winter garden and marine center "Marine Life". Lovers of wildlife will have an unforgettable experience of visiting the island of Seurasaari, entirely populated by restless squirrels.

Visitors of any age will be satisfied with the visit to the popular scientific center "Eureka", which opens the way to the amazing secrets of the universe. Hundreds of exhibits from the field of astronomy, chemistry, biology, physics instantly capture the attention of tourists.

Particularly interesting is the unusual in style monument to composer Jan Sibelius. Monument, where the maestro is depicted in profile, against the background of stylized organ pipes. The great Finn represents his country.

Fine Arts of Finland

As in any other country, in Finland there are exhibition halls that open genuine national creativity to visitors. The central institution of this profile is the art museum in Helsinki called "Athenaeum", which together with the exhibition center "Kiasma" represents the Finnish gallery of national art. In the halls there are huge collections of paintings, sculptures and other items of Finnish fine arts.

National Museum

The history of any state needs material reflection. In Helsinki, the National Museum, in which the cultural heritage of the country is collected, plays the role of the repository of historical artifacts. Numerous expositions cover the period of Finland's development from ancient times to our days.

In addition to permanent exhibitions, exhibitions of local lore are held periodically in the museum, telling about the ethnography of the past and the prospects for the development of Finnish society. The service of tourists is conducted in different languages, including Russian. At the museum there is a bookstore with literature about Finnish culture, and also in different languages.

The museum's collection is the national wealth of the Finnish people, the entire evolution of the country can be traced through the expositions, the collections are divided into thematic sectors, each of which is in a separate hall.

The largest department is the historical one, which is represented by archaeological artifacts found during excavations in Finland. The extensive exposition covers several eras and cultural periods, it is represented by numerous objects of the past. These are household items, weapons, ornaments, clothes, shoes, ceramics and bronze utensils.