photo: Jussi Hellsten / Helsinki Marketing
ESPOO
HELSINKI
VANTAA
Welcome to the Metropolitan area
photo: Olli Urpela
Urban culture and experiences in nature Located just a metro ride away, Espoo is a vital city, offering each and every one interesting things to see and experience. Espoo has a lot to offer for those craving culture: visit a fascinating museum in Exhibition Centre WeeGee or participate in one of our city’s many events. In 2018 Espoo was named Travel Region of the Year in Finland. Large natural areas are characteristic of Espoo: seashores, the archipelago, the wilderness in nature reserves and the waterways of the lake highlands. The cultural landscapes, constructed environments and natural areas of Espoo are like Finland in miniature. Espoo has twice been ranked as the most sustainable city in Europe. We have also been invited to act as one of the pioneering cities implementing the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in cooperation with Aalto University and companies. In June 2018, we won the Intelligent Community of the Year award. These achievements show that our hard work to build a sustainable future is bearing fruit. We want to ensure that our city will grow in a manner that will provide future generations with equal or better living conditions than those enjoyed by us. Welcome to Espoo! Jukka Mäkelä
photo: Jetro Stavén
photo: Sakari Manninen
Dear reader
Vantaa – wonderful and fun
You've made an excellent decision in coming to Helsinki! Well, I'm the city's mayor, so I would say that, wouldn't I? But indeed, I can back up my statements of Helsinki's excellence with statistics and ratings: During the last couple of years, Helsinki has reached a new level regarding the number of visitors – both leisure and business. And should you wish to stay longer, you might be pleased to hear that we rank #1 in rankings that measure quality of life, satisfaction with the place people live in, as well as honesty – just to name a few. Helsinki is a compact, fun city, where modern urban life meets a beautiful, diverse environment. Helsinki lives and breathes throughout every season of the year. But don't take just my word for it. We believe that locals are the best guides to a city. While we sadly can't assign a personal local for each visitor, as the tech-savvy people we are, we have collected all the best local guides into one service: myhelsinki.fi. It's available in English, Finnish, Swedish, Russian, Japanese and German. Now go and follow in the footsteps of the locals! The strategy of our city begins with the words "Helsinki is for a good life". We don't mean that just for residents, we mean it also for all visitors and other new friends. I hope to see you back soon.
Vantaa is the fourth largest city in Finland – and there’s always many ways to spend a cheerful day! Finnish Science Centre Heureka is an incredible around-the-year attraction for people of all ages. While in Tikkurila, be sure to pay a visit to Vantaa City Museum, situated in the old railway station building. If you find yourself in Myyrmäki, Vantaa Art Museum Artsi’s exhibitions are always an experience with a big E. As is appropriate for a city of culture such as Vantaa, admission to both the museums is free. Vantaa events include the Dance Weeks, the biggest Middle Ages event in the metropolis, as well as memorable music festivals and sports events. Welcome to visit, for instance, Tikkurila Festival, Iskelmä Myyrmäki Festival or the cricket world cup preliminaries. Vantaa’s streetscape is filled with color: people, street art and nature. Vantaa smells like Kuusijärvi’s smoke saunas, Sipoonkorpi national park’s forests or delicacies like Fazer’s sweets and confectioneries. You can really experience the tastes of Vantaa on Vantaa Day, May 15, when restaurants all over the city will be launching their Vantaa menus. Welcome to experience Vantaa with all your senses!
Jan Vapaavuori
Ritva Viljanen
Mayor of Helsinki
Mayor of Vantaa
Mayor of Espoo
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