Helsinki Attractions

Korkeasaari Zoo - an island escape

Advantages: Beautiful setting, boat ride, a chance to see animals you wouldn't usually, good facilities
Disadvantages: Not many "events", we didn't see many of the animals

Helsinki’s Korkeasaari Zoo is one of the city’s chief attractions and it’s not just the opportunity of seeing a range of animals that makes it such an interesting place to visit. The Zoo is situated on the island of Korkeasaari, in fact the whole island IS the zoo. It’s an attractive environment and the planting of trees and shrubs from all over the world has been given as much consideration as the presentation of the animals. The fact that this ...
...In that respect, I suppose, Korkeasaari lacks the wow factor some zoos have with exotic beasts from tropical climes. On the other hand, as someone who enjoys visiting zoos, I found that there were plenty of animals I knew much less about so this was a good opportunity to learn about something new. Take the wolverines; I’d heard of them before but I’d never seen one, not even in a photograph. From the name I’d expected them to be a miniature wolf ...

fizzytom 20.08.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Korkeasaari Zoo

A Non-Internet Forum

Advantages: Lots of different shops, helpful staff
Disadvantages: None

The Forum is a shopping centre in the middle of Helsinki. It's only a few hundred metres from another shopping centre, Kammpi, which also houses the bus station and a metro stop. You'd think that two large shopping centres might struggle so close together, but both seem to be thriving. The Forum is built on several floors and has what you'd expect of a shopping centre: a lot of shops. Most of them are clothes shops, generally aiming at the teenage/early ...
...helpful. Beneath the Forum there are tunnels that go to Stockmann (a very large and fairly famous department store) and Sokos (another big shop). This means if you're in Helsinki when its wet or cold (and it gets very, VERY cold in winter) you can do most of your shopping without ever having to set foot outside. I'm not a huge shopper. I go to the shops when I need to buy something rather than for fun, but if you do enjoy shopping then you should ...

87degrees 07.08.2007 · Read full review
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Review of Forum (Helsinki)

Pipe Dreams

Advantages: A stunning sight, a fun but stimulating place to visit
Disadvantages: Can get a bit crazy when Japanese coach parties arrive

...not a particular fan of Sibelius (although I do recognize some of his work) but I had seen photographs of the monument and it had captured my imagination. The memorial is, in fact, one of the most popular "tourist attractions" in Helsinki though I am not sure how many of the people who visit it are familiar with his work. However there are several museums in Finland dedicated to Sibelius so I wouldn't be surprised if many visitors come home knowing ...
...THE MONUMENT Sibelius died in 1957but the monument was not unveiled until 1967. The decision to have a monument at all was that of the Sibelius Society, founded after the composer's death; the money for the project came mostly from public fundraising and the budget for the project was fairly modest. Forty sculptors from all over Europe submitted designs and five went through to the next round. The winning design was by Finnish sculptor Eila Hiltunen ...

fizzytom 18.02.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Sibelius Monument

The best defence... is surrender

Advantages: beautiful sights, old fortifications, lots of museums
Disadvantages: You've got to chose what to see!

...out to the sea fortress Suomenlinna for the day with a picnic. ~~~ Brief History ~~~ The building started on the fortress in 1748 when Finland was still a part of Sweden. The fortress was supposed to defend Helsinki against attack from the Russians, who had a powerful navy at the time. Suomenlinna is remembered for it's rather unfortunate record in war. The Russians captured Helsinki in 1808 and the island surrendered immediately. The next attack ...
...from 1854 to 1846 and Suomenlinna was attacked for 47 hours and was badly damaged. In 1973 ceased to be a military base and was given over to civilian administration. Now, there are about 900 people who live there and it's a regular tourist attraction. ~~~ Wandering round ~~~ You can't wander very far on the islands without seeing fortifications. There are old walls, earthworks, huge cannons and other signs of its military past. There are tunnels ...

87degrees 07.08.2007 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Suomenlinna Sea Fortress

All you need under one roof

Advantages: lots of variety
Disadvantages: expensive jewely!!!

What only can be described as the Selfridges of Scandanavia - Stockmanns provides an excellent afternoon out for any taste. Apart from the fact it will take you a whole afternoon to look around with floors full of everything including half a floor dedicated to pet toys and food - this is a splendid place to relax and browse. The staircase and ceiling alone are worth the trip! The food hall is lovely, not cheap but by the by it's reasonably priced ...
...is just brilliant - you can get any British magazine you want almost! The wide selection of CD's and DVD's mean you can find pretty much anything you are looking for. Clothes range from expensive makes, to the young designer trends of Only, Vero Moda and Villa. It is especially good for an afternoon trying on dresses when it's raining outside. Definatly worth a visit! ...

faerie_em 12.04.2008 · Read full review
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Review of Stockmann (Helsinki)