Overview
** HELSINKI, FINLAND TOURS **
Read travel tips for Helsinki, Finland from our amazing community of BLACK AND BROWN TRAVELERS that will help you find some of the best places to visit Helsinki, Finland.Our variety of travel tips will definitely help you plan your next trip. Our tips range from best places to visit in Helsinki, Finland, affordability, nightlife, local food, where to stay and even what it is like Traveling While Black. Lastly, we are working diligently to create a comprehensive city guide for Helsinki Tours . Stay tuned! But in the meantime, scroll down to read tips below!
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Message to self: Do not go to Scandinavia in the winter. I was in Helsinki, Finland in 2019/2020.
When I tell you night fall came EARLY — in the afternoon, and it was biting cold — I was not ready.
Like other Nordic countries I’ve been to, namely Iceland, Denmark, and Norway, I repeat: THERE ARE NOT A LOT OF BLACK PEOPLE. If that makes you uncomfortable, don’t go. There are Black people, but they are predominantly from Africa. Brown folks are mostly from the Middle East.
What’s there to see and do?
If you’re outdoorsy, in the winter, you can go sledding, skiing, and camping. They decorate the city center with lights. It is not big AT ALL. So, if you’re coming from a large city like a New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, you can do all the touristy things in a couple of days. And nothing was “Wow” tbh. They had a church built into a rock and their main cathedral was ablaze in a light show. Those were about the only wows, and that’s all in lowercase.
Getting into the city center was easy — a train from the airport.
Finns are antisocial and blunt.
Helsinki is one of those places you either love or heavily dislike. I feel like it’s one of the most “devoid of life cities” I have ever been to but it’s pretty in its own dull way. I think it was very relaxing more than anything only because it felt like the only things to do were eat and walk around.
As soon as we left the airport, our Ghanaian taxi driver told us the best thing to do in Helsinki was “get out of it”. And we took his advice and took a ferry to Tallin, Estonia which I highly recommend. Although we only stayed in Helsinki for a few days, we did find that the beer scenery was pretty nice and there are some good restaurants around. There’s also a nice little market where you can go and get interesting food in Market Square.
Ultimately, out of a lot of European cities, I would say that this was my most dull experience only because there wasn’t a lot to do or see. But the Uspenki Cathedral was very pretty!
I was in Helsinki in March 2024 for a day before I returned to the USA. I took the ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki. It was a very pleasant ride and the ferry felt like a cruise ship! When I arrived in Helsinki, I was able to walk from the port to my hotel, the Noli Katajanokka. My room was like a studio apartment. It was very clean, had a kitchenette, a washer and dryer, sitting area, small dinette, and a queen sized bed. It was just down the block from a grocery store. I had fun just wandering the streets and taking pictures. I saw the Helsinki cathedral and several other churches. I found a second hand store where I was able to buy some souvenirs. I found a bakery that sold the best cinnamon rolls I had on my trip. The clerk was extremely friendly! I think the name of the bakery is Gateau Ullanlinna.
I definitely need to go back and spend more time. I didn’t feel awkward as a person of color. In fact, I ran into many people of color in Helsinki.
I had a 13-hour layover in Helsinki, Finland. I might as well explore Finland. The train system was very easy to follow. There’s a screen that displays the time you will get to your destination. There are a lot of ports, so you will be able to charge your electronics.
I can’t have a lot of input on what to do because most of the stores were closed because it was Sunday. I was able to walk around and get on the trams around the city. I did go to a breakfast buffet and I went to a coffee shop. The historical building, I saw was the Helsinki Cathedral. There was a marketplace if you want to buy souvenirs and food. Helsinki is a bit pricey. I wasn’t uncomfortable or felt out of place, and people were friendly. If it wasn’t a Sunday, then I might be able to do more things.
Stayed here for a few days before heading to Ivalo.
Beautiful city, people were very friendly and welcoming. Didn’t once did I feel uncomfortable or ‘out of place’.
Not a great deal of things to do during the day once you’ve visited the historical points of interest such as ‘Helsinki Cathedral’ which is amazing.
It’s quite expensive so be prepared for that.
Overall, good place to visit for a few days max.
I got to visit Helsinki Finland and I must say the one thing i took from it was that I wish i went in Summer time. On the bright side I got to see full on snow for the first time in my life so that was a fun experience.
But it is very cold there and very hard to plan days out during November/December time when i went because some days were raining and dark and other days i almost froze my fingers off.
I stayed in the outer city for the facts of being close to my marine BF who was stationed there .But Finland was a country i never thought i would visit and i was glad to have other traveler friends who gave me advise on things to see and do in Helsinki without losing my fingers. Everything is easily accessible by the trains and trams which i completely loved. I love the public transport system in Europe
I visited the Suomenlinna Fortress Island which is a UNESCO World Heritage site as a “unique monument of military architecture”. As I am highly intrigued by architectural sites I am highly interested in visiting this site, especially from a historical perspective. They were an enjoyable excursion with the walking trails across the park lands between popular highlights of the King’s Gate drawbridge and Suomenlinna Museum.
Other architectural sights I visited were the National Library of Finland, Johannes Church and the Finnish National Theater (Suomen Kansallisteatteri). I ventured to the Museums as they highly peeked my interest such as the Artenuem Art Museum, Natural History Museum (Luonnontieteellinen Museo), Rock Church and the National Museum of Finland.
From Helsinki you can take a ferry to Estonia , which i did not have time to do , Finland you can also make a trip to see the Northern lights. Things i plan on doing when i return there.
Stay at the Clarion Hotel. It’s gorgeous, quiet and has an amazing rooftop bar. There is also a tram stop right in front of the hotel that takes you into the heart of downtown in 8 minutes.