Helsinki comes alive at Christmas time, and there is plenty to see and experience all over the city. Visit the traditional Christmas market, enjoy Christmas concerts at cultural centres or spread joy by participating in charity events.
The year-end festive season in Helsinki will offer versatile experiences from culture events to Christmas markets and delicious treats. Families with children will also have plenty to do. Read more about the holiday season programme and find your way of getting into the festive mood.
The several local Christmas fairs and markets are a great way to foster Christmas spirit. The events offer plenty of chances of finding gifts and tasting the season’s best delicacies.
Helsinki Christmas Market is the oldest outdoor Christmas market in Helsinki, open from 29 November to 22 December. For the second time, the American news channel CNN listed the Helsinki Christmas Market on Senate Square as one of the best Christmas markets in the world. The event offers a chance to enjoy the festive feel, find the perfect gifts or sample the taste of Christmas at various restaurant and delicacy stands. The food selection offers organic and local food as well as vegetarian and vegan options. The market also has events such as visits from Santa Claus and music performances. The market’s free carousel ride brings joy to children and adults alike.
Markets are also held indoors. As an example, the Vanhan Joulutori Christmas market 14–22 December is a perfect place to browse the products of artisans and small businesses. The Teurastamo Christmas Market will be held right before Christmas, 21–22 December, offering a great chance to pick up some treats for your Christmas table from a range of both traditional and more exotic delicacies.
Northeastern Helsinki will also have a festive feeling, when a three-day Christmas market is held on Ylä-Malmi Marketplace 12–14 December 2024. The event is part of the OmaStadi project voted for by the city residents, aiming to improve the comfort, inclusion and community spirit in the area. In addition to the market stands of local businesses, the market will offer different free events for the whole family every day.
Cultural centres in Helsinki organise plenty of festive events for children and adults in November and December. The Annantalo Arts Centre for Children and Young People will be taken over by the hugely popular AnnanHouse Dancing Elves disco event on Friday 13 December. Visit the Art Saturday non-stop workshops open to all to make Christmas tree ornaments (Saturday 7 December) and pop-up Christmas cards (Saturday 14 December). Entry to both the disco and the workshops is free.
Visit Cultural Centre Kanneltalo to get in a festive mood by listening to Christmas carols on Wednesday 11 December in the joint ‘Joulun tuoksu’ (scent of Christmas) concert by singer Jore Marjaranta and pianist Olli Ahvenlahti. Tickets €25, lippu.fi.
On Saturday 7 December, visitors are invited to celebrate Family Day at Christmas at Cultural Centre Malmitalo, where they can meet Santa Claus himself, watch Christmas films and make Christmas ornaments from recycled materials. Satu Sopanen and Tuttiorkesteri will also be there to make visitors dance! The family day event is free of charge, but the concert tickets cost €8. Christmas concerts catering to adults are also on the menu, and artists such as Johanna and Mikko Iivanainen (Tuesday 10 December) and the Tapiola Big Band with soloist Anna Inginmaa (Wednesday 11 December) will be performing at Malmitalo.
Elf week at Maunula House offers free-of-charge activities for the entire family from Wednesday to Saturday 11–14 December. You can get in a festive mood by walking the elf path or joining singing sessions. The week will culminate in the Christmas carnival on Saturday 14 December with Christmas ornament crafting, drinking glogg and singing Christmas carols led by Mari Kätkä. Free entry.
The Christmas season will be kicked off to the tune of some comedy at Cultural Centre Stoa. Visitors will have the chance to experience the Christmas party of the popular Itäkuskus stand up club combined with a delicious meze dinner by BOX Stoa (over 18s) on Friday 29 November. Tickets: €42, lippu.fi. The smallest members of the family will be entertained by the Puhuri Christmas concerts by the Mimmit children's music group on Saturday 21 December. Tickets: €6.10, lippu.fi.
Cultural Centre Vuosaari House offers Christmas events in both Finnish and Swedish. The ‘Mamma Mu och Kråkan firar jul’ theatre performance on Friday 22 November and Hämärinkäinen puppet theatre performance on Saturday 14 December are suitable for the entire family. Tickets €6/each, lippu.fi. Vuosaari House will also serve as the venue for the traditional ‘Den mysiga julkonserten’ Christmas concert on Friday 20 December with a lovely mix of new and old Christmas carols, heartwarming stories and some sing-along moments. Tickets: €25/20, lippu.fi.
Learn more about Christmas events in all cultural centres in Helsinki at tapahtumat.hel.fi.
For many, the holiday season means happy times spent together with loved ones, but for others it can be a lonely or financially challenging time. You can offer your help through charity organisations.
The Joulupuu Christmas campaign collects gifts for children and teens in low-income families. You can participate by taking a gift to a local collection point or by donating money for the operations online. The gifts donated to the Joulupuu campaign in Helsinki are distributed to the children and adolescents of Helsinki social services.
The traditional Christmas Kettle collection points by the Salvation Army can be found around the city in December. The funds donated to the Christmas Kettle campaign help low-income people, individuals and senior citizens in Finland. Help is mostly distributed as food packages or vouchers. The Christmas Kettles will appear on the streets on 13 December.
Charity organisations also offer help for the lonely. A Santa Claus campaign for seniors (‘Ole joulupukkina seniorille’) by Kotona Asuen Seniorihoiva allows anyone to delight a senior by buying them a Christmas flower. HelsinkiMissio also offers the chance to donate intangible gifts, such as a walking companion for a senior citizen or crisis help for a young person. The Hurstin Apu charity organisation holds a Christmas celebration serving a Christmas meal for lonely and low-income people at Messukeskus Helsinki.
