Helsinki, Finland
Hank Schrader, USMA '71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert
Anne Schrader, Certified Travel Counselor & Certified Luxury Cruise Specialist
In July 2021, Time Magazine ranked Helsinki as one of the greatest places in the world to live. While we don’t live there, we agree it is a great place, especially during the summer, and for you travelers, Helsinki is a great place to visit.
This northern European country has splendid weather for about 3 months or so, and there is a great festival during August in this capital city, called the Helsinki Festival—it is an annual arts and culture event and another great reason to visit this Nordic capital..
So, let’s explore together and learn about Helsinki.
Overview of Finland
As a former World Geography teacher, I just can’t help but tell you about how this country is classified. Finland is not really a part of the Scandinavia region, but this is not clearly defined by all geographers.
Some include only Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Others add Iceland and Finland and define these 5 countries as the Nordic countries. There is lot of the confusion is over Finland, as large portions were once part of Sweden and Russia, and this also has influenced its culture and classification.
I guess it really doesn’t matter how it is classified by geographers—it just is a cool place and worthy of a visit or two.
Get Our Guide to Helsinki
I would be remiss if I didn’t let you know that we have written a guide to Helsinki. Just go to our website at this link and we will send you the guides you request.
Here is the link on our Northern Europe page of our website:
The guide is free and there is no obligation, it is just a service we provide to help you have better travels when visiting this region (this is only part of the 50 cities guides we have for key European cities.)
We do limit our guides to those who haven’t booked with us to only 2 guides, so this is a great incentive to get a trip going with us.
Ok, let’s learn about the capital city of Finland—Helsinki!
The History of Helsinki, Finland
Sweden, Estonia and Russia all have important influences in the development of Finland and especially Helsinki.
King Gustauv I of Sweden, established the town of Helsinki as a trading town to rival the Hanseatic city of Reval (we know this town today as Tallinn, Estonia) in 1550. He named the town Helsingfors.
Sweden lost control of Finland after a war with Russia in 1809 and the Tsar established Finland as the Grandy Dutchy of Finland and Helsinki was designated its capital in 1812.
One of the legacies of this dominance of Russia is the Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral pictured below.
During WW I, in 1917, Finland declared its’ independence. Russia recognized its independence in 1918.
Let’s Explore Helsinki
Helsinki has a population of about 650,000. The city is sometimes called the “Daughter of the Baltic” since it is located on a peninsula surrounded by the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest city of the Nordic countries after Stockholm and Oslo.
Helsinki grew up around its harbor. Helsinki and Finland have one of the world’s highest standards of living. Here are some pictures of Market Square Harbor:
Here is the Esplanade (a great pedestrian walkway and boulevard), and a wonderful place to wander:
Senate Square is dominated by 4 buildings. The stunning Helsinki Cathedral and the government palace are pictured below (not pictured are the main building of ther University of Helsinki and the National Library of Finland):
We have visited twice and really like Helsinki—our favorites are the waterfront market square area and the Esplanade.
Helsinki is rated as the capital city with the 8th cleanest air in the world by the World Health Organization.
A huge emphasis on public transportation, may be one reason, Helsinki makes the list of the cleanest cities. This city wants to make cars obsolete by developing an on-demand-public transportation system.
The current diverse public transportation system consists of trams, commuter rail, bus lines, 2 ferry lines, and some on-demand minibuses. There is also a big emphasis on bikes and developing bike paths. One third of the city is green spaces.
Our Final Thoughts
We hope you enjoyed this report and learned a little about this great city. We would be delighted to help you visit this wonderful place.
We are travel experts, ocean and river cruise specialists, and Europe destination experts. We have first-hand knowledge of almost anywhere you want to visit in Europe. We know our products and the vendors who sell them to you. We have designed special tours for dozens of clients, led several and will continue to find just the right vacation that will exceed your expectations.
When you are spending your hard-earned money for a vacation, you want an advisor who can match you with the right trip. You want someone who will understand your expectations and fuel your anticipation (or excitement) to get you the best possible trip experience. And, you want someone who can help you with the decision making process. We think we have all these qualities.
Whatever your Dream Destinations are, we are here to help you get the best possible vacation based on what is important to you! We will provide you high quality, expertly planned travel. Please give me a call 713-397-0188 (Hank) or email me at hschrader@dreamdestinations.com. We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!
ANNE has earned a degree from the University of Houston in Hotel and Restaurant Management. Serving as the President of Visit Dream Destinations, LLC, since 2016, she is uniquely experienced professional travel advisor with over 26 years’ experience in the travel industry. Among her numerous certifications, she is a Certified Travel Counselor (CTC) by the Travel Institute, considered the gold standard in travel agent certification and she is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC) by the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), as well Luxury Cruise Specialist also from CLIA. Having traveled often to Europe since 1989, she has expanded on her certification as a Destination Specialist in Western Europe (DS) with extensive first-hand experience in luxury vacations. She holds numerous other specialty designations from individual vendors. An expert photographer, she delights in capturing the true essence of destinations to share with all.
HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 50 years. He is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC), conferred by the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). This recognized expert in cruise and leisure travel is a retired Army Officer, and taught World Geography for 8 years. He is a `71 graduate of West Point and has earned 2 master’s degrees. His other Certifications:
AmaWaterways River Cruise Specialist
Viking River Cruise Specialist
Scenic River Cruise Specialist
Emerald Waterways Specialist
Avalon Waterways Specialist
Brit Agent
