My husband and I are plannning a weekend in Helsenki in June. We are looking for ideas for things to do and a great place to stay. I know people out there have super ideas. Thank you.
Posted by
San Leandro, CA, USA
632 posts
I can heartily recommend the Hotel Kamp...right in the center of everything, near the esplanade. We did all of the sights and scenes that RS recommended, and we really enjoyed 3 restaurants. Havis...great seafood and good wine list. The Elite, great traditional Finish food in a Helsinki institution. Much like Kapelli, this is a place to see and be seen, and has been since before WWII. Finally, Restaurant Michael, about a block away from the Hotel Kamp.
Posted by
New Paltz, NY
9100 posts
Make sure you are not going to be in Helsinki June 21-23; this is when the Midsummer Eve holiday takes place. Absolutely everything will be closed: all tourist attractions, restaurants, and shops. On the flip side, in the evening there will be a lot of outdoor activities, that include giant bonfires and lots of drinking :) This holiday coincides with the summer solstice so the sun will go down for only about an hour, the sun will be shining at 2am!
Posted by
Nice, France
49 posts
Well, Kämp is pretty expensive... but certainly nice. There are also Sokos hotels that are not bad at all:
http://www.sokoshotels.fi/SokotelWeb/Sokotel.portal?&siteLang=en
I think you should go to Korkeasaari zoo, on an island next to the town (you take a ferry from main market place). And it's a great place for a piknik.
Then, you might be interested to go and see Linnanmäki amusement park. It's in the middle of the town (believe me, practically in the middle), and go can go in to the area for free.
What would I show else... for example, Seurasaari open-air museum ( http://www.nba.fi/en/seurasaari_openairmuseum ) and certainly Suomenlinna that is a fortress island. ( http://www.suomenlinna.fi/index.php?lang=eng )
Posted by
San Leandro, CA, USA
632 posts
Maria, we stayed there in Jul of 06, paid 183 Euros per night for a very, very nice double. In addition to your suggestions, I would add a visit to "The Church in the Rock" and the Historical Museum on the way out to the Church (via street car).
Posted by
Ypsilanti, MI, USA
233 posts
We stayed at the Holiday Inn (next to the train station) in Helsinki last summer; it was pretty nice, and we got a cheap web rate.
Posted by
Nice, France
49 posts
The "church in the rock" is called Temppeliaukion Kirkko. :D
Posted by
OP
Moline, IL, USA
23 posts
Thanks for all the replies. We are actually going to be in Helsenki on June 27-29. We know it will be light all day AND most of the night! What about Hotel Anna and Marta Hotelli as places to stay? Both look good in Rick's reviews.
Posted by
Nice, France
49 posts
At least all two hotels are centrally located.
Martta hotel is owned by Marttaliitto,
"Marttahotel is owned by the Martha Association which is a non-political home economics extension organization providing cultural and civic education as well as other activities.
The Martha Organization received the site as a donation from a single and childless teacher-journalist Ms. Alli Nissinen in 1925. There used to be a prep school led by Ms. Nissinen on the site of the Martha building.
After the Second World War the Marthas finally decided to build their headquarters and a hotel on the site. The purpose of the hotel was to make profit for the organization. On May 17th 1957 the foundation stone of the Martha building was laid and the hotel was born."
That quite fun in one way.. at least in their restaurant you could find some really typical finnish food :D