We travelled by train from Helsinki to Tampere to Turku, and then back to Helsinki during our time in Finland. This allowed us to see more of Finland than just the capital city. We stayed for two nights in both Tampere and Turku. One of our hotel choices was a mistake, and the other one was great!
Tampere, Finland
Tampere is Finland’s third-largest city and grew around the Tammerkoski rapids, where the river links two large lakes. Its old industrial buildings, lively cultural scene and waterfront setting give the city a distinctive character, while its northern location makes the long summer days especially memorable.
This was the farthest north we went on the trip. In mid-June, this meant we experienced nearly 19 hours of daylight! Here’s a photo from our hotel room at 10:54 pm!
Where Did We Stay?
We booked the Scandic Postitalo Hotel for our two-night stay in Tampere. It was right beside the train station and was within walking distance of all the activities we wanted to do. We enjoyed our comfortable room and pleasant staff. The full breakfast buffet was a perfect way to fuel up for the day. Finnish coffee culture is a thing!
Things to Do
Since there were no walking tours available on the days we visited, we took a self-guided tour of Tampere after doing some laundry! Doing our laundry isn’t usually that interesting, but it was the first time we’ve encountered a rug-washing machine for throw rugs. What a great idea! There was an instructional video guide and lockers to keep the rug in as it dries.
Walkable City
The city is quite walkable, with bridges spanning the river in a few places. Many of the buildings were built in Tempere’s industrial era and have been repurposed as university classrooms and museums. I loved the many Art Deco-era buildings as well. There was a small pride parade while we were there. There is a energetic vibe to the city with many pedestrians and cyclists.
Museum Vapriikki
Visiting the Museum Vapriikki is highly recommended! We enjoyed the following exhibits:
- the World Cup
- Ode to a favourite Finnish band
- history of video games
The permanent exhibition of telecommunications, especially old Nokia phones, was a must in Finland! We also enjoyed the history of hockey exhibit, as Finns love hockey as much as Canadians do! The video game exhibit made us feel quite old!! It was a strange feeling to see games from our childhood displayed in a museum! We were able to play many of them!
Tampere Central Library
Another curiously designed building that we enjoyed was the Central Public Library. It opened in 1988 and was designed in the organic architecture style by Reima and Raili Pietila. The granite and glass exterior was designed with Celtic patterns and rounded forms to mimic glacial forms. The interior was refurbished in 2015. One of the coolest parts of the library was the sound booths!
Favourite Foods
One of our favourite lunches was the buffet at the Ravintola Valssi at the Museum. It was cheap and cheerful! We also tried the reindeer pizza at Pizzeria Napoli, and we were not disappointed. The servers were friendly and attentive. Our dinners included a trip to the salad bar while your pizza was cooked.
We also enjoyed a lovely Vietnamese lunch at Ravintola Vientiane
After our two-day visit to Tampere, we took the two-hour train to Turku. It was a pleasant trip through the countryside.
Turku
Turku is Finland’s oldest city and former capital, set along the Aura River on the country’s southwest coast. The city has a long maritime and shipbuilding tradition, with its shipyards playing an important role in the local economy and continuing to build large passenger ships today. While we were there, the Meyer Turku shipyard launched the completed Legend of the Seas for the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line.
We focused our two-day visit along the riverfront and enjoyed the historic buildings. The Turku Cathedral and castle reflect the city’s long history, while cafés, restaurants and cultural attractions give the centre a relaxed, contemporary feel.
Where Did We Stay?
We mistakenly booked our two-night stay at the Holiday Club Turun Caribia. We do not recommend it! We found the rooms sparsely decorated, with dated decor and thin walls! If you have small children, then this might work for you, as there is a large, inviting pool area. There were many families there. At one time, this timeshare hotel was impressive, but it is now past its prime. The one redeeming feature was the expansive breakfast buffet. It was about a 15-minute walk into the city’s historic district via the University of Turku’s campus. Behind the hotel was a lovely old stone church and cemetery to explore.
Things to Do
Walking Tour
We learned a lot about the city’s history on our walking tour with our local guide. We enjoyed seeing some of the older buildings that were built when Turku was the capital city of Finland. Turku continues to be well known for its post and shipbuilding facilities. Our tour began at the Turku Cathedral and ended at the Turku Castle (now the Art Museum). We saw architectural styles from medieval times to harsh modernist designs. The Grand Square is an eclectic mix of building styles. On one of our walks back to the hotel, we encountered an autonomous delivery cart. It was the first time we’d seen this!
Recently, we discovered that GuruWalk has a new AI feature. If there are no scheduled walking tours in the city you are visiting, then try out their itinerary creator. Here’s a sample one I made. It is delivered to your WhatsApp account for convenience
Favourite Foods
We had a delicious hot breakfast buffet at our hotel each morning. After visiting the Museum, we stayed to enjoy the lunch buffet at Ravintola Valssi inside the Museum. It was a great spot to relax and enjoy our lunch.
Our favourite dinner in Turku was at a Chinese restaurant called Aura Yangtze. The restaurant was modern in design with great service, and it overlooked the river.
We found it worthwhile to travel outside of Helsinki and to visit smaller cities in Finland. It gave us a chance to visit cities that cater less to tourists. We enjoyed seeing Finnish families enjoying their summer vacation. Our two-day visits to both cities allowed us to get a sense of the historic district and appreciate the beauty and pride of their residents. These two hockey-loving cities are set to host the World Junior Hockey Games in 2028. These cities will make the event a lot of fun!
Our month-long journey continued…
This post is the last one of a series about our month-long train journey in Europe.
If you missed the earlier destinations, feel free to access them below:
- Tampere and Turku
- Helsinki, Finland
- Tallinn, Estonia
- Riga, Latvia
- Vilnius, Lithuania
- Warsaw, Poland
- Kraków and Auschwitz
- Berlin to Prague
- Train Trip Planning: Berlin to Finland
I took my first flight at 6 months of age and I have continued to plan trips and travel to more than 60 countries. Now as a middle age traveler we have learned some travel hacks and budget saving ideas that we are happy to share. Follow our posts for ideas and tips to stretch your travel budget in your gogo years!
