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Helsinki Card Review 2021 – Is the Helsinki Card Worth Buying?
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Helsinki Card Review 2021 – Is the Helsinki Card Worth Buying?

Last updated: . Written by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

If your travels are taking you to Helsinki Finland, we recommend that you take a look at getting a Helsinki Card.

This is a sight-seeing card that offers free and discounted entry to a number of attractions across the city, as well as travel on all the local public transport options in the city.

We’ve used the Helsinki Card on various trips to Helsinki, and based on our experiences using the card, we wanted to share a full Helsinki Card review so you can decide if the Helsinki Card is worth buying.

We’re going to go through everything you need to know, including the benefits of the card, where to buy a Helsinki Card, how much the Helsinki Card costs, and our experiences buying and using the Helsinki Card ourselves.

What is the Helsinki Card?

The Helsinki Card is a sightseeing pass for Helsinki that gives you free entry to more than 20 of the most popular attractions in Helsinki.

It also includes discounts for a number of other attractions and restaurants, as well as unlimited public transport within the city limits, a free sight-seeing bus tour, a Hop of Hop off bus tour (seasonal), and a free guidebook to the city.

Canal Cruise Helsinki

What’s Included on the Helsinki Card?

The Helsinki Card includes over 20 of the major attractions in (and around) the city. Some of the top attractions which are included are as follows:

  1. Suomenlinna Sea Fortress
  2. Hop on Hop off Bus Sightseeing Tour
  3. Canal Route Cruise
  4. Temppeliaukio Church (Rock Church)
  5. SEA LIFE Helsinki
  6. Finnish Nature Centre Haltia
  7. Ateneum Art Museum
  8. Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma
  9. National Museum of Finland
  10. Amos Rex

As you can see, this list has a lot of different attractions, from sight-seeing tours to museum entry.

The card also has the option to include unlimited public transport inside the Helsinki city limits and various discounts on other major attractions in the city.

These discounts are varied, but cover a great many excellent activities and sights. These include the Tallink ferry to Estonia (a great day trip from Helsinki), discounts on the Tallinn Card and St. Petersburg Card, a discounted day trip to Porvoo, discounts on the Helsinki Skywheel, Zoo and aviation museum, and discounts at a number of restaurants and shops.

You can see a complete list of included attractions and discounts, plus buy your Helsinki Card on the official site here.

Moomins National Museum of Finland

 

What’s Not Included on the Helsinki Card?

The Helsinki Card includes a lot, but it doesn’t cover everything. For example, whilst it offers discounts to the Skywheel and the Korkeasaari Zoo, these are not free with the card.

In addition, while the Helsinki Card does include many of the city’s museums, there are some notable exceptions, like the Botanical Gardens and the Natural History Museum.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that not all Helsinki attractions are open year round. For example the Hop on Hop off bus tour and Canal cruise only operate from May – September, and a number of the museums in Helsinki, especially those on Suomenlinna island, are not open in winter either.

In addition, whilst this isn’t relevant to the card inclusions, it’s worth being aware that many museums in Helsinki, and Finland in general, are closed on Mondays.

We have used the Helsinki Card in both winter and summer, and found it to have value at both times, but it is definitely worth being aware of which attractions are operational when, so you can make a decision for yourself.

We recommend taking a look at our detailed guide to things to do in Helsinki, which also has information on which things are open when.

Sibelius Monument

 

Types of Helsinki Card

As of the time of writing, the Helsinki Card is offered in a number of different versions, which cover the age of the user, the duration of the card, and the public transport it includes. I’ll walk you through the options.

The first thing you have to choose is how long you want the card to be valid for, with cards available in 1 day, 2 day and 3 day durations.

The second thing you have to choose is whether you want travel, and if so, what region you want the travel card part of the Helsinki Card is valid for.

The most basic card Helsinki card doesn’t include any travel, and is entirely mobile, meaning you get a QR code rather than a physical card. This means you can start using it straight away as soon as you buy it without having to pick it up.

There are then two Helsinki Cards that include travel.

The first of these is the Helsinki Card City. This is valid for all public transport in Helsinki city, which includes Trams, Buses, the Metro, local trains and the ferry to Suomenlinna.

It does not include transport from the airport, but in our experience, unless you plan on visiting a lot of sights outside the city, it will suffice for most journeys.

There’s also a Helsinki Card Region. As well as including the above transport, it also includes public transport to and from the airport, as well as public transport in the Espoo, Kauniainen, and Vantaa regions.

There is also an adult (age 17+) and child (age 7 to 16) version of each pass available. Children under age 7 travel for free within Helsinki using public transport, and many attractions are also free for children under 7.

The various Helsinki passes all offer the same attractions, discounts, and benefits like the guide book. The only difference is how long the Helsinki pass is valid for, and the travel component.

You can see all the versions of the Helsinki passes here.

Helsinki Tram

 

How Much Does the Helsinki Card Cost?

The price of the Helsinki Card varies depending on the duration of the card and the transport option. The latest pricing (as of January 2021) is as follows:

Helsinki Card Mobile

  • 1 Day Pass: €44 for adults, €22 for children
  • 2 Day Pass: €52 for adults, €26 for children
  • 3 Day Pass: €59 for adults, €29 for children

Helsinki Card City

  • 1 Day Pass: €51 for adults, €25 for children
  • 2 Day Pass: €63 for adults, €31 for children
  • 3 Day Pass: €74 for adults, €37 for children

Helsinki Card Region

  • 1 Day Pass: €55 for adults, €27 for children
  • 2 Day Pass: €69 for adults, €34 for children
  • 3 Day Pass: €82 for adults, €41 for children

You can always check the pricing on the official website here.

Ateneum Art Museum

 

Where to Buy the Helsinki Card?

The easiest place, and our recommended way for buying the Helsinki Card, is online from the official website here.

When you buy, you have the option to have the card shipped to you for a fee, or you can choose to pick it up at one of four locations in Helsinki. Two of these locations are open 24 hours, including the one at Helsinki Airport.

The collection points for the Helsinki Card are as follows:

Helsinki-Vantaa Airport Airpro Travel Service
Address: Airpro Travel Service, located in the Terminal T2 ground level (P-floor). Go down the escalator from arrival hall 2A.
Opening hours: 24 hours/7 days a week

Hotel Seurahuone Helsinki
Kaivokatu 12, next to Helsinki Central Railway Station
Opening hours: 24 hours/7 days a week
Closed: Sat 22 Dec – Fri 28 Dec 2018

Department store Stockmann Helsinki
Address: Stockmann, Service Point 8th floor, Aleksanterinkatu 52
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 9:00-21:00, Sat 9:00-19:00, Sun 11:00-18:00
Closed: Tue 25 Dec, 2018

Panorama Sightseeing departure point
Address: Esplanade Park, Fabianinkatu (beside Restaurant Kappeli)
Collect your Helsinki Card from Panorama bus daily at 10:40-11:00, 20 min before the departure (closed Dec 24-26).

You can also buy your card from a number of locations across Helsinki, Espoo, and Vantaa. All of the above collection points sell the cards, plus there are over 30 retail locations, including on the Tallink ferry.

Whilst we do suggest buying your card online prior to arriving into Helsinki so that it is done (cards can be purchased up to a year before activation), there are plenty of options in the city for in-person purchase as well.

Helsinki Card

 

How Much Money Will You Save With the Helsinki Card?

Obviously, this is not a straightforward question to answer as the amount you can save will vary depending on which attractions you visit and how many attractions you visit.

If you opt for the card with public transport included, you obviously have to take advantage of the unlimited public transport to make this worthwhile too.

In our experience, it is possible to make some significant savings with the Helsinki Card, especially for the two and three day versions of the card.

All the prices are valid as of April 2019, and we will endeavour to keep this post updated as prices change. Please do always check the official websites for the latest pricing information.

Note, for all the comparisons below we’ve chosen the Helsinki Card City, which includes transport in the city. If you don’t need public transport, you can save even more by skipping this component and getting the mobile only version of the card.

1 Day in Helsinki with the Helsinki Card City

Helsinki has a lot of attractions, and 1 day will not be enough to see everything. However, we think you’d be able to see a number of the attraction in the city in 1 day.

Note that these attractions will vary depending on if you visit in winter or summer, so we have put together a different itinerary so you can see the different options.

1 Day in Helsinki in Winter

This would make for a fairly easy day of sight-seeing in Helsinki, with the morning spend exploring Suomenlinna Island, and the afternoon seeing some sights in Helsinki.

I wanted to put together a barebones itinerary to show how quickly the Helsinki Card starts saving you money, and as you can see, even with only four attractions visited (plus transport), the total entry fee would be €74 without the Helsinki Card.

The 1 day Helsinki Card is €51, so you are already saving €23! Plus you may have time left in the day for another attraction or two.

 

1 Day in Helsinki in Summer

In summer I’ve replaced the public transport with the hop on hop off tour as this will take you around the city and the audioguide will tell you a lot about what you are seeing.

There are also more museums open on Suomenlinna in the summer, and the Canal Route Cruise is a really worthwhile experience.

Overall, the day would cost you €111 for individual tickets, meaning that with a 1 day Helsinki Card you would save €60.

Suomenlinna Sea Fortress

 

2 Days in Helsinki with the Helsinki Card

2 Days in Helsinki in Winter

With an extra day, you can fit a lot more in. The Museum of Photography, Hotel and Restaurant Museum and Theatre Museum are all in the same building over three floors, so visiting them all together makes sense.

We also think you could fit in the year round panorama sight-seeing bus tour, which runs once or twice a day depending on the time of year.

Overall you’d be looking at €140 in costs for this Helsinki itinerary in winter. The 2 day Helsinki Card is €63, so you’d save €77 on this trip.

 

2 Days in Helsinki in Summer

  • Suomenlinna Island (€38 if you do all museums and take tour, including boat ride)
  • Canal Route Cruise (€25)
  • Rock Church (€4)
  • Ateneum Art Museum (€17)
  • Hop on Hop off Bus tour (€30)
  • National Museum of Finland (€14)
  • Tamminiemi/ Urho-Kekkonen Museum (€10)
  • Seurasaari Open-Air Museum (€10)
  • Four rides on public transport (€8 for a day ticket)

In summer, we suggest you head to the open-air museum Seurasaari. This is found on a little island a few kilometres by public transport from the city centre, and is home to over 80 buildings from different regions of Finland, spanning four centuries of living.

It’s a great place to learn about rural life in Finland, and makes for a lovely day out from the city centre.

It’s also close to the Tamminiemi museum, former residence of three Finnish prime ministers. Note that these two items aren’t on the hop on hop off bus route, so I’ve include public transport in the costs as well.

Doing all the above would cost you €156 without a Helsinki Card. The 2 day Helsinki Card is €63, so you’d save €93 on this itinerary.

Temppeliaukio Church Helsinki

 

3 Days in Helsinki with the Helsinki Card

3 Days in Helsinki in Winter

  • Suomenlinna Island (€31 if you visit all open museums and take tour, including boat ride)
  • Ateneum Art Museum (€17)
  • National Museum of Finland (€14)
  • Rock Church (€4)
  • Four rides on public transport (€12 for a two day ticket)
  • Museum of Photography (€10)
  • Hotel and Restaurant Museum (€10)
  • Theatre Museum (€10)
  • Panorama Sightseeing bus tour (€32)
  • Day trip to Tallinn (~€56 voyage, card saves you 20%)

With three days in Helsinki, we’ve added on a day trip to Tallinn in Estonia. This is only a 2 hour ferry ride away from Helsinki, and the Helsinki Card saves you 20% on the ferry ride. We’ve done this trip in winter from Helsinki, and loved that we got to explore a whole new city.

Of course, there are lots of other things to do in Helsinki too, so if you’d prefer to stay in the city you could visit the Zoo, the Aquarium, or one of the many other museums.

If you stick to our suggestions, you’d be looking at a total price of €196 including the ferry. With the Helsinki Card, it would cost you €74 for the 3 day card, and ~€45 for the ferry to Tallinn, totalling €119, giving you a saving of €77.

 

3 Days in Helsinki in Summer

  • Suomenlinna Island (€38 if you do all museums and take tour, including boat ride)
  • Canal Route Cruise (€25)
  • Rock Church (€4)
  • Ateneum Art Museum (€17)
  • Hop on Hop off Bus tour (€30)
  • National Museum of Finland (€14)
  • Tamminiemi / Urho-Kekkonen Museum (€10)
  • Seurasaari Open-Air Museum (€10)
  • Four rides on public transport (€8 for a day ticket)
  • Day trip to Porvoo (save €31)

In summer, whilst you could also head to Tallinn, our suggestion is to take advantage of the half price day trip to Porvoo. This is a beautiful old town along the coast from Helsinki, which is famous for its old wooden houses.

The tour includes transport and a guided tour, and lasts four hours, giving you time to see more of Helsinki, and squeeze in a few more attractions if you want.

With our suggestions, the total price you’d be looking at would be €218.

With the Helsinki Card, you’d be looking at €74 for the three day card, and €31 for the Porvoo day trip, totalling €105. So a total saving of €104.

 

Conclusion on Saving Money with the Helsinki Card

As you can see, all three of our itineraries will save you money if you use the Helsinki Card, even if you only visit a relatively small number of attractions.

Attractions in Helsinki are, for the most part, quite expensive. Even visiting two or three museums can quickly add up, and we think that once you factor in the other benefits like the easy to use travel card and sightseeing bus, the Helsinki Card is fantastic value.

Helsinki Streets

 

What to do in Helsinki with your Helsinki Card

There’s a lot to do in Helsinki with attractions ranging from art museums to UNESCO world heritage sites.

We would definitely suggest having a visit to Suomenlinna Island near the top of your to-do list. The Helsinki Card gets you a free boat ride to the island, as well as access to all the museums on the island and a free guided tour.

It is worth bearing in mind that other than the boat ride though, you can visit Suomenlinna Island without paying anything as access to the island itself is free. But we would suggest visiting the main Suomenlinna Museum at the least, as this explains the history of the island a little bit.

If you’re visiting Helsinki in summer, a Canal cruise is a lot of fun. These last for around two hours and will let you see a different side of the city. It’s relaxing, and you can even enjoy a drink or snack onboard.

There are lots of other highlights of the city. Art lovers will love all the art museums, plus there are loads of other museums you can visit – seemingly on every topic! From photography to hotels to architecture to Moomins, Helsinki really has you covered.

Obviously, you’ll want to try some local Finnish cuisine whilst you’re in Helsinki, and the Helsinki Card can help you with that as well, as it offers discounts at some of the cities popular restaurants and cafes – don’t forget to take advantage of these during your stay!

We can also recommend a trip to the unique rock church, the SEA LIFE aquarium, and the Seurasaari Open-Air Museum. However long you visit for and at whatever time of year, we don’t think you’ll run out of things to see and do in Helsinki!

 

Tips for Using your Helsinki Card

To make the most out of your Helsinki Card, you will want to do some forward planning.

  • Look up opening hours for attractions. We’d suggest figuring out which attractions are important to you, and looking up their opening times. Many attractions are not open on Mondays for example, and opening times vary through the week for many attractions, with closing times varying from 5pm to 8pm in our experience.
  • Visit Suomenlinna Island. One attraction we definitely recommend is a visit to Suomenlinna Island. The Helsinki Card gets you a free boat ride to and from the island, free entry to all the museums on the island – and a free guided walking tour – make sure to take advantage of all of these to make the most of your card!
  • Be aware of limited opening hours. Some attractions in Helsinki are only open for very short periods of time. For example, the Reizt collection is only open two days a week, from 15.00 – 17.00. This is not commonplace, but is worth being aware of. Others might not be open in Winter, or have different hours in winter compared to summer.
  • Use the guidebook. The Helsinki Guidebook that comes with your Helsinki Card lists all the attraction opening times as well as tips on nearby public transport routes.
  • Don’t forget to show your Helsinki Card. Some attractions in Helsinki have extra bonuses if you show your Helsinki Card. For example, some museums will give you a free postcard if you show your Helsinki Card.
  • Plan your days effectively. Whilst Helsinki is not huge, and the public transport is very efficient, you will still want to spend more time sight-seeing and less time on public transport. We suggest using a tool like Google Maps, and/or a paper map, and planning an overview of your route so you are efficient with your time, and visit attractions near to each other.
  • Remember the Helsinki Card activates on a 24 hour basis. An advantage of the Helsinki Card over many other city passes is that it activates on a 24 hour basis. So if you arrive late into Helsinki, and use your card to get a discount on your Finnair airport bus transport for example, you don’t lose a whole day as you might with other cards.
  • Save time with public transport. If you opt for the version of the card with public transport, make sure to use it to make getting around Helsinki easier and fit more in to your day. Whilst most parts of Helsinki are very walkable, there are loads of public transport options, and riding them is easy with your card.
  • Make sure to scan your card on public transport. It’s really important to scan your card each time. You have unlimited rides, so there’s no reason not to, and if you don’t, you’ll technically be riding without a ticket. When you board the vehicle, find the scanner and hold your card near it. A green tick will appear on the screen to show you have a valid ticket.
  • Take advantage of the extra discounts. Don’t forget to check all the discounts and offers that come with the Helsinki Card to take advantage of all the savings. You can see all of these on the official site here.

Helsinki Public transport

 

Our Experience Using the Helsinki Card in Helsinki

We have used the Helsinki Card on a number of trips to Helsinki, including in summer and winter. Most recently we used the card on a trip in winter, where we spent three days exploring the city.

Whilst some things were closed, we still found lots to do in Helsinki in winter. The city is home to a great many museums and indoor attractions, which is ideal in winter especially as it can be quite cold – so indoor attractions are perfect!

We ordered our card online prior to our trip, and picked it up at the Hotel Seurahuone Helsinki. This was easy to find, being directly across from the main train station, and near to where the Finnair airport bus terminates in the city. It’s also open 24 hours a day.

Our first port of call was the Suomenlinna Fortress, which required a boat ride to visit. The boat journey was included with our Helsinki Card (we just had to scan the reader).

Whilst the island itself was free to visit, the museums are not. We visited the military museum and the main Suomenlinna museum, which gave us a full run down of the history of the island. We also explored the whole island ourselves.

From here, we visited the following:

Our second day looked as follows:

Finally, on our third day we visited a few attractions a little further out of town

Having visited Helsinki before we didn’t do absolutely everything, and we definitely could have fit more in had we wanted to, but we saw lots of things we’d not seen before and had a great time. We also took advantage of the public transport every day.

Overall, without the Helsinki Card, our costs would have been €149.5 for the attraction entry, and €16 for a three day travel card, totalling €165.5.

With the Helsinki Card, we spent €74 on the card itself, and then €10 for the discounted Skywheel, totalling €84. So our saving was an impressive €81.5. Definitely worth it in our case!

Skywheel Helsinki

 

Should you Buy a Helsinki Card?

This will depend on your plans, but we would say that for most visitors to Helsinki who want to visit at least a few of the city’s many attractions, we think the Helsinki Card will save them money.

Of course, if you have no intention of visiting any attractions in Helsinki, or just visiting one or two, then the Helsinki Card is probably not for you.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that Suomenlinna Island is free to visit, and it’s only if you want to take a tour or visit the museums on the island that you have to pay.

We think these are worth it for getting an understanding of the island, but it’s up to you of course!

If you agree with us and are planning a trip to Helsinki in the coming year, then click here to buy your card from the official website here.

Sunset Helsinki

 

Further Reading

We’ve visited Helsinki and Finland a number of times, and from those visits we’ve put together a number of posts to help you plan your own trip. We’re always adding to these, so do sign up to stay up to date with latest posts!

And that’s it for our review of the Helsinki Card! We hope you found it useful. As always, if you have any comments or feedback, let us know in the comments below!

A detailed review of the Helsinki Card to help you decide if the it's right sightseeing pass for your trip to Helsinki

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