Visit Finland
Finnish Tourist Board’s official travel guide to Finland. On this site
you’ll find information about how to make the most of your trip, whether you are
visiting for pleasure or business. Finland has a clear Nordic identity, but offers the
best of both East and West. Its unspoilt natural environment is the perfect setting for
all kinds of activity, whether you are seeking excitement or relaxation. Finland has a
vibrant cultural life, with a busy calendar of festivals and events to suit every taste.
Also, Finnish congress, conference and incentive travel services are acclaimed throughout
the world. The Finnish Tourist Board, MEK, was established in 1973 under the Ministry of
Trade and Industry to promote tourism. It is allocated a special appropriation from the
State budget to finance its operations: 16,218,000 euros in 2004. In addition the Finnish
tourist industry contributes approx. nine million euros. MEK works in close cooperation
with and for the Finnish tourist and travel industry, implementing and financing marketing
projects jointly with the industry. One of the joint goals is to develop more enticing,
competitive products for tourists. Over 4.6 million passengers living in other countries
visited Finland in 2002. Of them 90 per cent came from Europe. The total number of
visitors grew by 10 per cent from the year before. As in the previous years, the highest
number of visitors were from Russia and the second highest from Sweden. The busiest month
for visiting was July, when over 785,000 foreigner visitors came to Finland. The majority
of visitors to Finland in 2002 were on a leisure trip, good one quarter on a business
trip. Visitors spent EUR 57 per day and good EUR 291 per visit while in Finland. The total
amount spent in Finland was altogether nearly EUR 1.3 billion.
Efinland
Efinland is built and maintained in co-operation with Ministry of transport and
Communications, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, National Technology
Agency (Tekes), Finnish National Fund for Research and Development (Sitra) and Finnish
Information Society Development Centre. Below you can find brief descriptions and the
contact details of each of these organisations.
Suomi.fi
A portal for Finland's public sector services and related information. It contains
e.g. an alphabetical directory of public administration
organisations and departments.
Welcome to Finland
Our site aims to provide you with the most valuable information for your travel needs.
Whether you are interested in Helsinki art and culture, Finland Architecture, culinary
travel, family and adventure travel, Santa's Workshop, Scandinavian holidays or Baltic
cruises, the Finnish Tourist Board can be of assistance to you. A Northern European
experience is enriching. The information available on the site also includes Finland hotel
information, including Helsinki hotel options.
SeaCompanion
Rapidly developing marine information hub on the Internet. The objective of
SeaCompanion is to provide the marine industry with a contact platform for efficient and
easy information retrieval, and for establishing business and other related relationships.
Today, SeaCompanion is the one of the largest marine web sites with more than 3,000
searchable marine links, and extensive searchable company and product databases
continuously being amended with more information.
Finlex database
The new FINLEX Data Bank is an information system available free-of-charge on the
Internet. The following materials are available in foreign languages
- A database of translations of Finnish acts and decrees into other
languages (mostly in English) , this section contains appr. 200 full-text translations of
Finnish Acts of Parliament, for the rest of translations it provides reference information
on the availability of a translated text.
- database of international treaties mostly in Finnish, from 1999 in the
Finnish Treaty Series several treaties also in other languages, in PDF.
- A database of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights - the cases concerning
Finland are available in English
FINLEX is owned and updated by the Finnish Ministry of Justice and it
consists of thirty databases
Statistics
Finland
Statistics Finland operates administratively under the Ministry of Finance, but is
fully and independently responsible for its activities, services and statistics.
Statistics Finland has a personnel of around 1,100, of whom 200 are employed as
statistical interviewers. In addition to its head office in Helsinki, Statistics Finland
has regional service offices in Turku, Tampere, Seinäjoki and Oulu. Mission: Statistics
Finland combines collected data with its own expertise to produce statistics and
information services for the needs of society, promotes the use of statistics and develops
national official statistics.
Finnfacts
Finnfacts is an independent media service unit that operates as an interface between
foreign media and Finnish Industry. Finnfacts' mission is to help journalists get to know
Finnish industry, companies and business life. Finnfacts publishes information material
concerning Finnish industry, and the Finnfacts staff members are experts in organizing
visits for reporters to Finnish companies. Finnfacts has a solid network of domestic
and international contacts that operates an interface between international media and
Finnish companies. Finnfacts' target groups are journalists in national and local
newspapers, financial and trade magazines, as well in TV, radio, and other electronic
media.
Invest in
Finland
Finland has one of the best performing economies in the EU and Europe. This success has
been driven by global demand for electronics, especially information technology and mobile
communications. Although Finland's outstanding concentration of intellectual capital is
often cited as the reason for this development, Finland's true strengths are much broader:
a highly educated population, sophisticated infrastructure and a national consensus on
problem solving.
Kauppalehti
Online
Kauppalehti has been the most read Finnish daily business and financial newspaper
already for over 100 years. The audited circulation of Kauppalehti is at the moment over
80 000 copies with more than 300 000 Finnish business readers. Kauppalehti Online is the
biggest business online-medium in Finland with over 75 000 regular weekly visitors. Users
can access Kauppalehti Online services free of charge, although user registration is
required. The English version contains e.g. 15 minutes delayed share quotes from Helsinki
Stock Exchange, indices, stock exchange bulletins, press releases sorted by industry,
mutual funds quotes as well as currency exchange rates and interest rates.
Finlandexports.com
Leading database and information source on Finnish export industry.
Enchanting Finland
Information site with articles about the Finns, origins, forest, water and activities
etc
Finnish hostels
directory
Finnish hostels are comfortable, environmentally aware places for budget-minded
travellers to stay for one night or longer. They are friendly people-oriented places
providing various services. There are 88 hostels in SRM-network serving travellers of all
ages, families and groups.No matter where you want to spend your holiday - in towns,
countryside, farms, near water - you will always find a suitable hostel. Hostels also
offer many opportunities for activities such as fishing, trekking, berry/mushroom picking,
skiing, weaving and - of course - visiting the genuine Finnish sauna!
Camping Sites in
Finland!
Here you will find information on camping sites in Finland.
Finland Festivals
Finland Festivals is a cooperation organisation for the principal cultural events in
Finland.The range of choice is very wide indeed, with multi-arts festivals, concert and
vocal music festivals, chamber music, jazz, folk music and dance, rock and pop, dance,
theatre, literature and visual art festivals. These 73 member festivals attract a combined
annual audience of almost two million visitors to events involving more than 20,000
performing artists. Finland Festivals was founded in 1968. Finland Festivals is involved
with lobbying, marketing and PR as well as research, training and development. Finland
Festivals acts in the field of the arts and tourism.
Factsheet Finland
Finland is situated in northern Europe between the 60th and 70th parallels of
latitude. A quarter of its total area lies north of the Arctic Circle. Finland's
neighbouring countries are Sweden, Norway and Russia, which have land borders with
Finland, and Estonia across the Gulf of Finland. Much of the country is a gently
undulating plateau of worn bedrock and boreal forests, presenting a striking mixture of
wooded hills and waters. High rounded fells form the landscape in Finnish Lapland, the
most northerly part of the country. The climate is marked by cold winters and warm
summers. The mean annual temperature in the capital, Helsinki, is 5.3 degrees Celsius. The
highest daytime temperature in southern Finland during the summer occasionally rises to
almost 30 degrees. During the winter months, particularly in January and February,
temperatures of minus 20 Celsius are not uncommon. In the far north, beyond the Arctic
Circle, the sun does not set for about 73 days, producing the white nights of summer. In
the same region, during the dark winter period, the sun remains below the horizon for 51
days, creating the polar night known in Finnish as kaamos.
Virtual Finland
If you've never been to Finland before use these pages for some helpful advance
preparation. Visit these sites before you visit Finland and enjoy your trip all the more.
Finnish
authorities
The Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authoritiesis made up of the towns and
municipalities in Finland. The Association's goal is to promote the opportunities for
local authorities to operate and co-operate and to promote their vitality for the benefit
of the residents. On this website, you will find more information about the Association
and its activities.
Finland''s national parks
The national parks include many unique natural sights, such as rapids, rift valleys and
eskers. Localities with outstanding picturesque scenery or panoramic views have also been
selected for preservation. In yet other places the aim has been to preserve landscapes
affected by human habitation and bygone ways of life. There is a total of 35 national
parks in Finland. They are managed by Metsähallitus with the exception of the Koli
National Park which is managed by the Finnish Forest Research Institute Metla. The total
surface area of Finland's national parks is 8,150 sq.km. An important role of national
parks is to provide opportunities for recreation, hiking and similar outdoor pursuits.
Provided certain basic rules are adhered to, anyone may wander freely inside a national
park. Many parks now feature nature trails, as well as information boards pointing out
facets of interest. Many parks also have cooking places and tent sites. Some parks even
boast a large camping site, complete with rentable cabins or unlocked huts.
Lapland portal
Multilingual internet service aimed at consumers, partners and travel companies. The
Lapland portal is maintained and developed by Lapland Marketing Ltd. Lapland’s nature
is austere but beautiful. The different parts of Lapland are clearly distinct. The south
and the west are maritime, they have rivers and rich flora. Central and eastern Lapland
are known for their tree-covered fells. Northern Lapland is more barren, and only stunted
deciduous trees and bushes grow above the tree limit. The domes of the fells are bare and
easy to cross. Pine, usually accompanied by lichen, dominates Lapland’s forests.
Nature, forests, waterways and the landscape have had a profound effect on the lives of
Lapland’s inhabitants. The shamans, who are also known to have dwelled in Lapland,
based their beliefs on natural phenomena and the course of life and nature.
Travel Finland
Travel in Finland is a portal where are various travel-related companies are takes
place. A site is visited about 20 million single users per year. From them Finns are 65%
average, and all of the rest 35% are visitors from up to 60 various countries around the
world. Visitors leaves more than 30 000 feedbacks, comments and additional information
requests in one year. Travel in Finland published in the net in Finnish and Russian
language versions as well. Many of companies present in both language versions. Companies
that have their own Internet pages are not always getting high traffic since visitors have
to search untill they get the pages. Information finds faster and easier when it published
between related category of visitor's interest. Travel in Finland offers a plenty of
information about travel regions and current events and news. Users of portal have
possibility to use online accomodation booking system. This service is spreads very fast
trough various regions of Finland during the last time. In portal are published homepages
of various travelling companies and cities (like Kuopio and Lappeenranta). Pages are
professionally publishied and our clients getting powerful advertising tool. Texts updates
as frequently as requires the client.
King's
Road
Do you like medieval castles and grey stone churches, romantic old ruins and elegant
manor houses? Are you interested in 18th century sea fortresses and defence lines from the
Second World War? Or perhaps you like old, carefully restored iron works milieus with art
galleries and craft workshops. And the narrow lanes of the old towns, and the heritage
landscapes of the countryside, and the many specialist museums? All these are available
along the King's Road, a route comprising some of the oldest roads in northern Europe,
starting at Bergen by the Atlantic Ocean and Ending at St Petersburg by the Gulf of
Finland. Since the 14th century Kings and Merchants, artists and pilgrims, have travelled
the King's Road. The Meeting of East and West have created a unique cultural treasury,
waiting to be discovered by you. For Finland's part, the King's Road is the first northern
European route to carry the white-brown signs denoting sights of interest. It is the first
official tourist trail in Finland. It runs along the main roads of the southern coastline,
that is, on both sides of the E18 in the easterly direction form Helsinki, and along roads
51, 52 and the E18 from Helsinki towards the west.
Central Finland
Central Finland has it all. Enchanting lake scenery, the beat of the city, top-class
conference and congress services, a wide choice of entertainment and adventure. All this
and much more in Central Finland! Forest has been and is today a vital source of
livelihood in Central Finland. The region's cultural and business centre, Jyväskylä, is
home to Finland's most popular university, research centres in natural sciences and
culture which have won international recognition, and strong basic industry, whose
flagship is the manufacture of paper machines. Jyväskylä is one of Finland's most
popular cities for conferences and congresses - thanks to strong language proficiency and
some of the best services in the branch. Meeting venues range from cosy function rooms
right through to Jyväskylä Paviljonki, an international congress and trade fair centre.
In Central Finland, all within a few hours drive, you'll discover several downhill skiing
centres, spas and golf courses, three national parks complete with primal forest, riding
stables, high class holiday cottages and farm holiday locations as well as Europe's
largest area of inland watercourses for fishing, hiking and paddling.
Altavista Finland
Altavista searchengine Finland database
Finnish road
weathercams
Check out the Finnish weather on roads throughout Finland right now
Archipelago
Internet Guide
The Archipelago is a unique travel destination situated in the island area in south
west Finland. Here you have the choice of enjoying complete peace and privacy or engaging
yourself in many activities. Or perhaps a little of both? The Archipelago Internet Guide
will wet your appetite for exploration. Here you can learn about our services, our sights,
activities end events for both children and adults, communications and the nature.
Fishing
in Finland?
If you plan to fish in Finland then check out their fishing laws here
Thousand Lakes
The Thousand Lakes area covers all the most significant tourist-related businesses in
the Finnish lake district. It is the biggest single tourist attraction in Finland.
SnowFinland
This site informs you about Finlands most important skiing-centers. The map to the right
shows you the actual amount of snow, measured as kg per square meter. The Finnish climate
favours skiing, both alpine and cross-country. We have long periods of frost-weather,
clean white snow and a long season. This year 2001 first snow fell in Oktober, and it will
grow till the end of march, but lasts out till may. The ski-resorts furthermore apply
artificial snow when necessary. Avalanches are very rare indeed. The slopes and tracks are
kept in excellent condition. With the start of spring the daylight-period spans soon 20
hours and more due to the high latitude. In April Lapland often enjoys the highest
afternoon temperatures in all Europe!
Polar Travel
Polartravel.net is the first travelling portal in the Nordic Scandinavia and Finland
covering all key tourism destinations in the Nordic Areas. Polartravel.net is a versatile
travel service search portal that helps you to plan, book and pay your trip independent
from time and place.
Culture in
Finland
Kulttuuri.net aims to include all Internet links related to Finnish culture: artists,
associations, media, organisations, specialist services and so on. Kulttuuri.net is the
product of a working group set up by five cultural organisations: Finland Festivals, The
Finnish Museums' Association, The Association of Finnish Symphony Orchestras, The Artists'
Association of Finland and The Finnish Theatre Information Centre.
Museums in Finland
There are over 1000 museums in Finland. One third of all the museums are professionally
run. and open all year round. Most museums are local history museums and open only in the
summer. Finnish museums have been primarily established thanks to the activities of
individuals and groups. The first collections were already displayed in the 1700s in
connection with the University of Turku. The first museum was founded in Raahe in 1862.
The National Gallery (Ateneum) was opened in 1888 and the National Museum of Finland 1916.
Helsinki
city guide
In the post-war years agrarian Finland was rapidly transformed in only a few decades
into a modern industrial land. People left the rural regions in large numbers to settle
abroad, in the towns of Southern Finland and the Helsinki Region. Under pressure to
provide housing for the steadily expanding population, Helsinki quickly founded suburbs,
such as Herttoniemi and Maunula in the 1950s, Pihlajamäki in the 1960s. The
best-known modern Finnish architect is Alvar Aalto, whose works in Helsinki include the
Social Insurance Institution building, the Academic Bookstore, the House of Culture and
Finlandia Hall (completed in 1971). The new Opera house by the architects Hyvämäki,
Karhunen and Parkkinen was opened in 1993, and the Museum of Contemporary Art,designed by
architect Stephen Holl, was opened in 1998. Helsinki has ample experience of hosting major
political conferences. In 1975, Helsinki hosted the Conference on Security and Cooperation
in Europe (CSCE). The first U.S.-Soviet summit took place in Helsinki in 1990, when
President George Bush met President Mikhail Gorbachev. Finland became a member of the
European Union in 1995, once again marking the start of a new era for the capital.
Helsinki was one of the nine European Cities of Culture for the year 2000. In that year
Helsinki celebrated its 450th anniversary, too.
Finnish
Port directory
Find contact information and websites of ports in Finland here
Golfcourses
in Finland
Like to golf during your holiday in Finland? Find a long list of fields here
Finland for birdwatchers
As the easternmost country in Europe, Finland has many species of birds that are not
easy to get to see elsewhere, e.g. Blyth´s Reed Warbler, the Red-flanked Bluetail, the
Arctic Warbler, the Pine Grosbeak, the Yellow-breasted Bunting or the Little Bunting. The
fact that Finland is located in the coniferous forest zone means that there are good
chances of seeing many of the northern forest species. Of the game birds, the
Capercaillie, Black Grouse, Hazel Hen, Willow Grouse and Ptarmigan are frequently to be
seen, and of the woodpeckers one finds the Grey-headed, Three-toed Woodpecker,
White-backed Woodpecker and Black varieties. The most interesting species of all, however,
are owls, of which there can be as many as 10 species nesting in Finland in a good year,
ranging from the tiny Pygmy Owl to the huge white Snowy Owl. The pine forests and mountain
birch zone of Northern Finland have numerous species with a markedly northern
distribution, such as the Parrot Crossbill, Lapland Bunting, Siberian Jay and Siberian
Tit. Many birds of field habitats, e.g. the Ortolan Bunting, have become rarer in other
parts of Europe but are still relatively common in Finland, while the largest of our
terns, the Caspian Tern, is an example of the impressive range of seabirds. The waders
that nest on our bogs are also of interest, as many of them are seen in other parts of
Europe only in the course of migration or in their winter plumage. These include the
Broad-billed Sandpiper, the Red-necked Phalarope, the Jack Snipe, the Wood Sandpiper,
Temminck´s Stint and the Ruff.
Finland maps
Find useful maps of Finland here
Fishing in
Finland
Useful information site provided by Juha Vaino
Fishing
guide by Erik Herlevi
Hi, I’m Erik Herlevi, experienced sea angler. I am qualified both as a fishing
guide and as a skipper. My company has general liability insurance cover. I will look
after all your fishing trip arrangements. When required I can also assist in finding
suitable accommodation.
Airports
in Finland
Finnish road
administration
The Finnish Road Administration maintains public roads and provides for safe and
convenient traveling in Finland
Finland
city guides
