Finland - Highlights
Finland is thriving with fresh modern culture, from Helsinki's Design Museum and KIASMA contemporary art museum to Tampere's Sara Hilden Art Museum, or Turku's Ars Nova.
Get a historical perspective among the traditional farm houses in Seurasaari Open Air Museum or at the extensive National Museum of Finland. See a large collection of classical paintings and sculptures at the Ateneum Art Museum, or visit the home of early 20th-century composer Jean Sibelius, Ainola, in Järvenpää.
In Helsinki see the natural rock Temppeliaukio Church, or the more traditional Lutheran Cathedral by the Senate Square. Head out to the islands outside the capital for the 18th-century World Heritage site Suomenlinna Sea Fortress, or travel to Turku for the 700-year-old Turku Castle.
Enter the world of Tove Jansson in the Moominworld theme park on the southern island of Kailo, or venture north to snow-capped Lappland to visit the Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi. In the summer, cram the long days with activities in the area around Nilsiä or in Saimaa Lake District. Try kayaking or mountain-biking, go horse-riding, pick berries in the forest or teach the kids to swim in the calm water of one of the thousand lakes.
The Helsinki Card gives free admission to many key sites in the capital as well as unlimited travel on public transport. There is also an equivalent in Turku, the Turku Card. Some museums, including Seurasaari and Ainola are closed during the winter and many museums and galleries are also closed on Mondays.
Listen to Eurovision winner Lordi's Hard Rock Halleluiah in the stone Temppeliaukio Church or wander through the vast forests of East Karelia to the tunes of Sibelius' Karelia Suite.
