Helsingin Kaupunginmuseo is a free museum our tour guide suggested and enjoyed it because they had…read moreclean restrooms, nice seating, and it felt very calm and wasn't crowded. The museum would probably be three stars if they tried to charge for it as the exhibitions are a bit of a let down and don't feel all that engaging, but some of the historical furniture was interesting as was the fridge with historical "food". All in all, if you're in Helsinki and have some time to waste I'd recommend it, but generally keep your expectations low.

Super cool museum smack downtown (I think). It's in the square by the cathedral and was a great…read morespot to both wind down and get some energy out on a long sunny day, and an even better place to hunker down when it was a rainy day later in the week. Our primary purpose was the kids area as we had three kiddos that desperately needed some play and imagination time after walking the city for some time. They've got a whole section for the kiddos with lots of stuff to jump around and climb on, an old kitchen where play food lives and a small stage where they can put on puppet shows. There's another area where they house classic toys - sort of a tease to have them displayed but not let the kids play with them, but they're fun to look at! Entry was free and there appeared to be plenty of other stuff to check out throughout the place. Stroller parking is outside but easily seen from the kids area and there's a coffee shop right off the main entryway. There's really no reason to not be checking this place out, especially if the kiddos are in tow!

I didn't care for Designmuseo…read more Walking into the museum, you are asked to leave any bags (even a small purse) in the provided lockers. But the issue is that the lockers are located in the open floor lobby and it's easy to see the large keypad password if you're seated nearby. My biggest advice is they should move the lockers to an enclosed section and switch to (like most of the other lockers we ran into) keyed lockers for security. In relation to the exhibitions - most of the lobby floor was a waste. If you're a fan of Moomin one corner area is cute, but the rest is just a basic furniture showroom, there's nothing unique or engaging about it. All in all, Designmuseo is nowhere near worth the $26 usd purchase price and I felt extremely uncomfortable leaving my bag here so overall I can't recommend it.

Only part of the museum was open due to installation of a new exhibit, but we still found plenty to…read moreenjoy. There is extensive information on architectural design changes throughout the history of Helsinki which we found very interesting especially as the exhibits were arranged in the context of geopolitical events. We also enjoyed the furniture, kitchen and fashion exhibits.

Ateneum gives a very good overview about Finnish and European art in 1800s and 1900s. The place…read morehouses some of the most important oil paintings of national artists. The cost is well in par with the historic value the expos provide.

Fantastic museum in a lovely historic building. The Kallela and Klimt collections are worth this…read morevisit alone. Helpful staff, worthwhile value of time and money.

Vanha kauppahalli or Old Market Hall, is a smaller food hall that unlike some of the others we…read morevisited in Sweden and Denmark, is shotgun style with two lanes straight up and down. There was very little seating outside of the few shops that have it built in (which can only be used by their customers) and the shops are on the smaller side and a little more touristy than you'd expect. Another friendly reminder that Reindeer jerky can't be brought into the US, so if you do purchase it here, make sure to eat it before you get on the plane to head home. All in all it's a cute little food hall with an okay selection, but we liked the ones in Stockholm and Copenhagen better since they were larger and more of a deli style.

Seriously difficult to rate one stop above others as anything in this market is going to be good…read more Solid bars good options at several stalls and cute shops to hunt for that special item. Bonus that this has restrooms and is inside - a great way to get out of the cold! Though there ARE opportunities to sit a spell, people watching here might be limited (if that's your thing) as the hallway around the market is more narrow and doesn't have much room to sit and only one or two stalls have seating areas. Service at each business is fast as it can be for a popular place and of course the value for your spend might be limited as well because there are tourists everywhere! When in doubt grab a sweet roll!

This is a cool nerd shop! It has everything from manga to figures to art books to board games to…read moreD&D books! Everything was very neat and displayed quite nicely. I was surprised that there was so much variety here. I am from the U.S. and I was impressed that most of the items here were from the U.S. and hence in English. In the front, I even saw a Mass Effect art book which I've never seen before! Great find!

This place was a wonderland for me. All the boardgames and manga! I stumbled upon it whilst…read moreexploring Helsinki. Of course, I had to step in and peruse. They have some great classics like Ranma 1/2 and Mermaid Saga. Unfortunately, they didn't have Bubblegum Crisis as its a collector's item now. Still, this place had A LOT of manga. They also have puzzles and supplies to paint minitures as well as game necessities like di. Loads of collectibles in the form of Pop! and various figurines. You can find a simple deck of cards or an elaborate one. Customer service was good. They were knowledgeable and helped as best as they could. Ultimately, I left with two manga and will come back when possible. Oh, a huge selection (nearly all) of the books were in English as well! Come if you're into any of what I mentioned above!

Love Akateeminen! Not just the best bookstore in Finland, but a great overall bookstore!…read more A place, when living in Helsinki, where I was introduced to Paul Auster (my favorite!) and Thomas Pynchon. Akateeminen - a super selection of English books!

This is a cute bookstore located in Helsinki. There is a Starbucks downstairs…read more Besides ton of books, they also had a lot of cute gifts and art supplies which was neat. The whole store reminded me of some Japanese department stores especially with the stationery parts. I got some washi tape for a friend! I also saw some sale books for like 5 euro which seems pretty cheap especially for Finland! There is also self checkout machines which I appreciate!

I was drawn in my the "souvenirs" sign in the window and so instead of waiting for the tram at the…read morestation across the way, I decided to check it out. Not quite what I was expecting but very interesting none-the-less. Soviet and Russian propaganda posters, lots of Russian-language books and postcards, magnets, and definitely unique for seeing all of this here in Finland as opposed to Moscow. Prices seemed fair (capitalism!) and the lady who rang up my purchase was nice enough. [Review 10065 overall, 1650 of 2018.]

Give yourself 3 hours to fully enjoy this art museum. The architecture is fabulous both inside and…read moreoutside. The Extinguished match pop art sculpture made of Latex and urethane is interesting, there was a humorous video on the upper floor comparing a toothache due to inflamed wisdom teeth and miniature cave people living in the mouth of the pain stricken woman. We didn't have time to visit one of the major exhibits relating to a journey through the human body as the museum was near closing time.

Very solid and interesting modern art museum. I liked how there was an overarching theme to the…read moremuseum. Im not sure if this is something they update annually. I also liked the flow of the museum, easy to navigate and each exhibition rolled into the next. As with any modern art museum, some things are weird and unsettling and some things are simply stunning. I really liked the Shoplifter exhibit and the interactive elements in the Your on the Stage( I think that's what it's called) exhibit. Great way to spend a couple of hours while in Helsinki.