Prolonging Winter: Finland and Estonia in March

Fast Facts:

Helsinki:

• Location: Southern tip of Finland near the Baltic Sea.

• Population: ~675,000

• Language: Finnish

• Currency: Euro (EUR)

• Time Zone: Eastern European Time (EET)

Tallinn:

• Location: Northern tip of Estonia near the Baltic Sea.

• Population: ~460,000

• Language: Estonian

• Currency: Euro (EUR)

• Time Zone: Eastern European Time (EET)

Hit the Highlights:

Helsinki:

• Downtown:

  • Helsinki Cathedral: Standing at the end of Senate Square, the bright white Helsinki Cathedral is one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks. The Church is Finnish Lutheran and stands in stark contrast to its darker Orthodox neighbor.

  • Uspenski Cathedral: A stunning reminder of Helsinki’s Russian influence, this Eastern Orthodox cathedral features striking red brick and gold cupolas. The ornate icons and chandeliers on the inside of the cathedral are also beautiful. This Church and Helsinki Cathedral stick out on the Helsinki skyline.

  • Old Market Hall: This cozy indoor market, open since 1889, is the perfect spot to sample local foods like salmon soup, reindeer meat, and fresh pastries. It’s a great place to stop for a relaxed lunch or to warm up on a chilly day and getting there gives you a beautiful walk right along the harbor.

• Suomenlinna Sea Fortress: An UNESCO World Heritage site, Suomenlinna is a massive sea fortress spread across six islands, just a short ferry ride from downtown (the ferry is actually part of the public transit system). Walking through the fortress feels like stepping back in time, with old walls, tunnels, and cannons set against sweeping views of the sea. From the islands, you can look back at the Helsinki skyline. The main islands also features a tall tower-like Church. While exploring the island, it can be easy to forget that this tiny island has year round residents.

• Day trips:

  • Nuuksio National Park: Only about an hour from Helsinki by bus, this national park offers a peaceful escape into Finland’s famous forests and lakes. From the Haltia bus stop, it only takes a few dozen feet to be on a trail (and you could take the bus even deeper into the park). The forest is evergreen, boulders, and moss, and even in the winter was incredibly green. I also took the opportunity while in Nuuksio to stop by Nuuksio reindeer park, where I was able to feed and meet a herd of reindeer.

  • Porvoo: One of Finland’s oldest towns, Porvoo is known for its colorful wooden houses and charming old streets. It’s a great place for a half day trip. You can explore the hill that once housed a medieval fortress, walk around the painted houses, and enter the Porvoo Cathedral, which on the inside feels like a mix between gothic and fantastical.

Tallinn:

• Old Town:

  • Toompea Hill: Climb up to Toompea for panoramic views over the red rooftops and church spires of Tallinn. Here you'll find Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, a grand Russian Orthodox church with onion domes, and Toompea Castle, which now houses Estonia’s Parliament.

  • Town Hall Square:
    The heart of the Old Town, this square is lined with colorful medieval buildings, cafes, and restaurants. Even in the cold March weather, it was bustling, and I watched as people sat outside sipping beer where it had been snowing earlier in the day. You can also visit the Tallinn Town Hall, the oldest surviving town hall in the Baltics and Scandinavia, dating back to the 13th century.

  • Viru Gate:
    These iconic twin towers once served as part of the city’s defense system. Today, they mark the entrance into the Old Town and are a great starting point- one of the main touristy shopping streets of Old Town goes directly through these gates.

• Soviet remnants:

  • Just outside the Old Town, you can walk to the top of a Soviet Olympic stadium used for sailing event for the 1980 Moscow Olympics. From the top of the stadium, you have a great view of the sea, as well as the spires of old town. I felt almost as if I was invading a demolition zone climbing the steps of the concrete structure.

  • Inside a hotel just outside the Viru Gates is a museum about the KGB, which ran surveillance out of the hotel during the Soviet reign, and left many documents behind as they quickly returned to Moscow as Estonia gained independence.

Culture and Tradition:

• In Helsinki, you’ll find Nordic minimalism in design, fashion, and architecture, while Tallinn blends its medieval charm the more modern part of the city surrounding. Sauna culture is hugely important in Finland—many hotels and even apartments have their own saunas and I would definitely recommend looking into a sauna while you're there (book carefully because some saunas are separated by gender while other are not)!

• Food:

  Finland:

  • Salmon soup: Salmon, potatoes, and dill soup doesn't sounds like my perfect meal, but the soup was delicious, warming, and light. The rye bread on the side was the perfect dipping vessel.

  • Reindeer: I thought the reindeer meat I tried was quick similar to venison. I also tries the tubed spread variety from a Finnish grocery store on crackers, which was a good salty cracker spread.

  • Cinnamon rolls: The Finnish cinnamon rolls are delicious- they have large sugar crystals on top rather than the American icing variety.

  • Black licorice: This is a must try while in Finland- you can find many varieties in Finnish stores as it is a much more popular candy. I personally liked the dark chocolate covered version.

  • Runeborg's torte: This cake is popular specifically in Porvoo. It is named after a poet from the area. Its a dense, spiced cake with a bit of icing and jam on top.

• Estonia: unfortunately, I don't have a great profile on Estonian food, as I got a stomach bug the day I arrived in Tallinn.

Practical Tips:

• Transportation: The bus systems in both cities were very easy to navigate and could you everywhere you needed to go (the bus in Helsinki took me all the way from downtown out to the national park). However, make sure you figure out your tickets beforehand, as the ticketing system can sometimes be tricky for foreigners and bus drivers can be strict.

• Where to Stay: In both of these cities the downtown/old town is the place to be. Many of the sites to see are quite centralized in these downtown areas, and the atmosphere to just walk around and take in the city is great.

Photo Gallery: