Urban - thisisFINLAND

The return of Lux Helsinki reminds viewers of brighter days ahead

Our photo show samples the glow of a festival of open-air light installations that offset the winter darkness in the Finnish capital.

Life & society Webpick

Helsinki named best city for work-life balance

The 2019 Work-Life Balance Index has listed Helsinki as the best city for work-life balance among 40 of the world’s most attractive cities.

Life & society Nature

Finnish summer in the city: garden getaways

When you hear the words “Finland” and “nature,” you may think of the country’s large expanses of forest and numerous lakes. On a different scale, allotment gardens offer many Finnish city-dwellers a way to spend time surrounded by nature.

Mellunmäki

The world's northernmost metro station, in Helsinki

Arts & culture Slideshows

Lux Helsinki fends off the winter darkness

Full of illuminated surprises, the annual Lux Helsinki light festival uses coloured beams to transform some of the city’s best loved buildings and streets in early January. You can see them in our photos without braving the cold.

Arts & culture Cuisine

Helsinki’s Flow Festival: Great for vegetarians

Flow Festival is known for more than music; it’s also about food – and there’s also plenty for vegetarians to enjoy. But you don’t have to wait for the festival weekend, since almost all the dishes we sample here are on offer all year round in Helsinki.

85.4%

of Finns live in urban areas

Source: UN World Urbanisation Prospects

Life & society Society

Helsinki sees seaside sauna renaissance

Several new sauna buildings have impressively transformed parts of the Helsinki waterfront, increasing the number of public saunas where visitors and locals can go for an authentic Finnish sauna experience – and a bracing dip in the Baltic Sea.

Arts & culture Visual arts

Two Finnish artists walk and talk with the animals

Two of the artworks at the 2016 Flow Festival were just a prelude to another, larger exhibition that plays out weeks after the end of the festival.

Arts & culture Music

Find your way at Flow Fest 2016: Our Top 9 Finnish acts

It’s time for Flow Festival in Helsinki, and the extensive lineup may seem overwhelming. Check out nine of our local Finnish favourites at this very international event.

Helsinki is the city with the best work life balance

Source: Work–Life Balance Index, 2021