Unforgettable events in Finland.

Discover Finland

Finland runs from the Baltic coast and the Archipelago Sea north into Lapland, well above the Arctic Circle, with forest and lake covering most of the land between. The seasons split the year in two: white nights, lake cabins and open water in summer; snow, low light and the northern lights across the north in winter. Sauna runs through both — Finnish sauna culture is inscribed on UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list.

Helsinki is the coastal design capital — Engel’s neoclassical Senate Square, a working harbour market and ferries out to the island fortress of Suomenlinna. Turku, the oldest city and the former capital, sits on the Aura river where the archipelago begins. Tampere is the industrial one, set on an isthmus between two lakes with red-brick mills along the Tammerkoski rapids. Rovaniemi, rebuilt to an Alvar Aalto plan, is the Lapland base just below the Arctic Circle.

Top places in Finland

• Helsinki — Engel’s neoclassical Senate Square, a harbour market, design museums and shops, and sea ferries in every direction.
• Suomenlinna — A UNESCO-listed 18th-century sea fortress spread across a cluster of islands, reached by public ferry from Helsinki.
• Turku — Finland’s oldest city and former capital — a medieval riverside castle on the Aura, at the gateway to the Archipelago Sea.
• Tampere — Red-brick mill buildings along the Tammerkoski rapids, an isthmus setting between two lakes, and a deep public-sauna tradition.
• Rovaniemi & Lapland — The Arctic base just below the Circle — northern lights and snow in winter, midnight sun and fell hiking in summer.
• Lakeland & Lake Saimaa — Finland’s largest lake system: wooded islands, cottage shores and the medieval island castle of Olavinlinna at Savonlinna.