What is the Helsinki self-guided walking tour?
The Helsinki self-guided walking tour is a walk you take at your own pace, with audio narration on your phone where a guide would normally be. Set aside about 3 hours: 53 minutes of that is walking, the route runs 4.1 km, and there are 10 stops where you stand and listen. Nothing is on a timetable and nobody leaves without you.
At the cathedral you hear that the white church with the green dome was St Nicholas' Church until Finland became independent in 1917, and that twelve zinc apostles keep watch from its roof. The park around the Old Church was a burial ground after the plague of 1710, which is why locals call it Plague Park. A dent in the granite base of the Three Smiths was left by a bomb fragment in 1944.
- Durationabout 3 hours
- Walkingabout 53 min · 4.1 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch
What you do on the walking tour
Listen
Each stop brings the history of the place, the legends around it and the details that pass unnoticed. The same text is on screen for anyone who would rather read.
Walk on
Google Maps shows the way from one stop to the next: 53 minutes on foot over 4.1 km, at the pace you like.
Break off
Stop for a coffee or spend an hour in a museum, then take the walk up again, that day or another.
Eat and browse
The stops come with tips for food and shops near the route. Your starting point and the order of the stops are set in the app.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of people. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Walk when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Who the walking tour is for
A first visit
One walk puts Engel's neoclassical centre, the harbour and the Design District in order and explains what you see.
Anyone who avoids groups
Nothing to follow and nobody to wait for: you stay where you want to stay and move on when you choose.
One day in Helsinki
3 hours covers the centre, so the ferry to Suomenlinna or a sauna still fits into the afternoon.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Groups of up to 5 work best; larger groups split up, one ticket per person.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
The walk stop by stop: the National Theatre, Senate Square, the harbour, the Three Smiths
10 stops · about 53 min walking · start: Finnish National Theatre · finish: Three Smiths Statue
Railway Square opens the walk at the Finnish National Theatre, with the Ateneum across the way. From there the route goes to Helsinki Cathedral above Senate Square, down to Market Square and the Old Market Hall at the South Harbour, and up Observatory Hill to The Shipwrecked. The Design District follows, with the Design Museum and St John's Church, then the Old Church and its park, and the Three Smiths Statue brings the walk to an end. A different first stop or a different order takes one tap in the app, and no stop needs a ticket.
Open the route map ↗
1Finnish National TheatreStart
The granite building on the north side of Railway Square was designed by Onni Tarjanne in the National Romantic style and opened in 1902. The company itself was founded in 1872 as the first professional theatre performing in Finnish. In front of it sits a statue of the writer Aleksis Kivi.
2Ateneum
This neo-Renaissance palace on Railway Square was completed in 1887 to a design by Theodor Höijer and is now part of the Finnish National Gallery. Look at the facade, where caryatids carry the balcony and busts of great artists of the past decorate the walls. Inside hang classics of Finnish art by painters such as Akseli Gallen-Kallela and Helene Schjerfbeck.
3Helsinki Cathedral
Carl Ludvig Engel designed the white Lutheran cathedral with its green dome as the crowning piece of Senate Square, and it was built from 1830 to 1852. Until Finland's independence in 1917 it was called St Nicholas' Church, after Emperor Nicholas I. Zinc statues of the twelve apostles stand on its roof.
4Market Square (Kauppatori)
Until the early 19th century this was a muddy bay with fishing piers, and it was filled in after Helsinki became the capital of Finland in 1812. Today stalls sell fresh food and souvenirs by the South Harbour, and ferries leave for the sea fortress of Suomenlinna. The Presidential Palace and the City Hall face the square.
Read the full story →
5Old Market Hall
Helsinki's oldest market hall, Vanha kauppahalli, opened in 1889 on the waterfront next to Market Square. Gustaf Nyström designed it in red brick on a cast-iron frame. Its stalls sell fish, cheese, bread and Finnish specialities, and it is a good place to try local food.
Read the full story →
6The Shipwrecked
Robert Stigell's bronze group The Shipwrecked, Haaksirikkoiset in Finnish, was unveiled in 1898 on Observatory Hill above the South Harbour. It shows castaways on a raft, one of them waving desperately for rescue. From the park around it you look out over the harbour and the islands.
7Design Museum
Founded in 1873, the Design Museum collects Finnish design and applied art, from glass and ceramics to furniture and fashion. It occupies a neo-Gothic former school building from the 1890s in the Design District, the area of studios, galleries and design shops in the southern centre.
8St John's Church
With its two spires 74 metres high, St John's Church is one of the tallest buildings in central Helsinki and, with seats for about 2,600 people, the largest church in Finland. The Swedish architect Adolf Melander designed it in the Gothic Revival style, and it was completed in 1891.
Read the full story →
9Old Church
Carl Ludvig Engel designed this wooden church, built from 1824 to 1826, to serve the parish while the cathedral was being built, and it is the oldest surviving church in central Helsinki. The park around it was once a cemetery where victims of the plague of 1710 were buried, which is why locals call it Plague Park.
10Three Smiths StatueFinish
Felix Nylund's bronze of three smiths hammering on an anvil was unveiled in 1932 at the corner of Aleksanterinkatu and Mannerheimintie. It is one of the best-known meeting points in Helsinki. A dent in the granite base was left by a bomb fragment during the Soviet air raids of 1944.
Read the full story →
Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.
Barbara– Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Sehr informativ ich fände es gut wenn auch etwas über das heutige Hesinki erzählt würde
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
It was a nice walk but the price is still high for what it is and costumer support very poor!
Germany –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Es war informativ und hat viel Spaß gemacht. Wer ohne Guide eine Stadt im eigenen Tempo erkunden möchte,hat hier das Richtige ^^
Austria –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Prinzipiell eine witzige Idee, die Routenplanung über eine andere App fand ich aber mühsam. Wenn so eine Führung angeboten wir, wäre es fein, wenn innerhalb der App auch gleich die Navigation möglich ist….
Denmark –
Collected on GetYourGuide
Smart ide med gå selv rundt.. Kunne dog godt ha tænkt mig flere punkter at vælge imellem, så man evt selv kan bestemme ønsker og derfra appen vælger ruten for dig. Godt koncept.
Colombia –
Collected on GetYourGuide
me parecio muy divertida la actividad. es una buena forma para conocer algo de la ciudad, de su historia y puntos de interes.