“Convince me of Helsinki” – Day 1 – the basics

Last week I had visitors from home. It took me quite a while to convince them to travel all the way up North – I think it’s actually their premiere in a Nordic country. Commonly I get to hear things like “whaaat, summer? Don’t you have to wear your winter gear all year round?!” (not seriously, but, hm, maybe a little).

According to the Finnish weather service, this summer we had 38th “helle” day in a row – meaning, temperatures over 25°C – amazing! Not necessarily in an exclusively good way, I’ve suffered more from this heat than all the previous summers. In the end we were lucky with the weather – consistently around 20°C and only little rain – very pleasant indeed to discover a city! So, here’s where I took them.

DAY 1 – the essentials

City centre walk – Kauppatori – Temppelinaukion kirkko – Verkkokauppa sightseeing terrace/ship-spotting – Hietalahden kauppahalli – Teurastamo Street Food Thursday

We got everyone a 3-day-travel card, in prior planning we decided not to focus on museums and such, but rather enjoy the nature and take it all casually and walk about.

Every Helsinki visit starts with a walk around the city centre, a stroll along Esplanadi and around Kauppatori, gaze at the mighty Tuomiokirkko. I made them try some sweet peas, deliciously healthy Finnish snack, reactions were rather mixed, though. Continuing to Temppelinaukio church, the famous church built in rock, and the must-have chocolate cake of Helsinki at Café&Eepos at the corner of Sammonkatu.

At request of my guests we took a short detour with Tram 9 to Jätkäsaari to check out the cruise ships docking and while there, quickly took the elevator up to the sightseeing terrace of Verkkokauppa. A short stopover in Hietalahti market hall is a must when in the area! The market hall has only recently been renovated and

To end the day we took tram 6 from Hietalahti to Lautatarhankatu to Teurastamo. In their abattoir they celebrated another Street Food Thursday – we had some delicious Pulled Pork from BBQ on wheels.

As my friends had really not much of an idea of what to expect, the first impression they got was apparently already quite positive – and I only got this started.

More details on the map!

On day 2 we heard nature calling at Seurasaari – take a look at awesome squirrel shots!

The last day was spent almost entirely by the water – we walked around Eiranranta and went on a Sunset cruise – so beautiful!