Helsinki is the capital and most populous city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About 675,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.25 million in the capital region and 1.58 million in the metropolitan area. As the most populous urban area in Finland, it is the country's most significant centre for politics, education, finance, culture, and research. Helsinki is 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Tallinn, Estonia, 360 kilometres (220 mi) north of Riga, Latvia, 400 kilometres (250 mi) east of Stockholm, Sweden, and 300 kilometres (190 mi) west of Saint Petersburg, Russia. Helsinki has significant historical connections with these four cities.
The University of Helsinki is a public university in Helsinki, Finland. The university was founded in Turku in 1640 as the Royal Academy of Åbo under the Swedish Empire, and moved to Helsinki in 1828 under the sponsorship of Tsar Alexander I. The University of Helsinki is the oldest and largest university in Finland with the widest range of disciplines available. In 2022, around 31,000 students were enrolled in the degree programs of the university spread across 11 faculties and 11 research institutes.
The Helsinki Metro is a rapid transit system serving the Helsinki capital region, Finland. It is the world's northernmost metro system. It was opened to the general public on 2 August 1982 after 27 years of planning. It is operated by Helsinki City Transport and Metropolitan Area Transport Ltd for Helsinki Regional Transport Authority and carries 92.6 million passengers per year.
Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi, commonly known as HJK Helsinki, or simply as HJK, is a Finnish football club based in Helsinki. The club competes in Veikkausliiga, the top division of the Finnish football league system. Founded in 1907, the club has spent most of its history in the top tier of Finnish football. The club's home ground is the 10,770-seat Bolt Arena, where they have played their home games since 2000.
Helsinki Halli is a large multi-functional indoor arena located in Helsinki, Finland. It was opened in April 1997. The arena is convertible for various events. The total seated capacity during ice hockey games is 13,349 and as an amphitheatre, it is significantly reduced to between 3,000 to 5,000.
Lauttasaari is an island in Helsinki, Finland, about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) west of the city centre. Together with some surrounding unpopulated small islands, Lauttasaari is also a district of Helsinki. With 23,226 residents as of 2017, the island is Finland's second largest by population, after Fasta Åland. Its land area is 3.85 km2.
Kamppi metro station is a station on the Helsinki Metro. In addition to serving the area around Kamppi in central Helsinki, the station is integrated with the Kamppi Center bus terminal and shopping complex. Kamppi is served by both lines M1 and M2.
The Central Railway Station metro station is a station on the Helsinki Metro. The entrance is located in the Asematunneli main hall, which has an exit to the Helsinki Central Railway Station. It is among the only Helsinki Metro stations whose names are announced in English, in addition to Finnish and Swedish.
Länsimetro is an extension to the Helsinki Metro system in Finland, which opened on 18 November 2017. Länsimetro extends the system's two lines, M1 and M2, from Central Helsinki to the neighbouring city of Espoo. The new stretch continues the lines from the existing Ruoholahti station via the island of Lauttasaari, the Aalto University Otaniemi campus and Tapiola, the terminus of line M2. Line M1 continues further west to Matinkylä. Unlike previous extensions to the Helsinki Metro system, Länsimetro runs entirely underground. The second phase opened on 3 December 2022 and continues the line further west to Kivenlahti, near the municipal border of Kirkkonummi.
Trams in Helsinki form part of the public transport system organised by Helsinki Regional Transport Authority and operated by Metropolitan Area Transport Ltd in Finland's capital city of Helsinki. The trams are the main means of transport in the city center, and 56.8 million trips were made on the system in 2019. In addition to the older tram network, there is a single light rail line that was opened in October 2023. Although technically compatible with the tram network, the light rail line is separate from the city center tram network.
Helsinki Central Station (HEC) is the main station for commuter rail and long-distance trains departing from Helsinki, Finland. About 200,000 people "pass through the station" every day, half of whom are train passengers. The station serves as the terminus for all trains in the Helsinki commuter rail network, as well as for all Helsinki-bound long-distance trains in Finland. The Rautatientori metro station is located in the same building.
Kaisaniemi is a part of the centre of Helsinki, Finland. It is located immediately north of the Helsinki Central railway station and south of Hakaniemi. The most famous part of Kaisaniemi is the Kaisaniemi park, a park covering many hectares right in the city centre. Kaisaniemi is part of the Vironniemi district and neighbourhood of Kluuvi.
Koivusaari is an island and a part of the district of Lauttasaari in Helsinki, Finland. The island hosts two yacht clubs and a former Nokia training centre. The current island of Koivusaari has been formed by combining the island of Koivusaari proper with the island of Leppäsaari to the south of it and expanding it. Since the late 1990s and early 2000s there have been plans to construct a new residential area on reclaimed land in Koivusaari, served by the Koivusaari metro station.
Kluuvi is the commercial centre of Helsinki, Finland, and a neighbourhood in the Vironniemi district of Helsinki. The Helsinki Central railway station, Hotel Kämp and Hotel Arthur, the Helsinki main post office, the Stockmann and Sokos department stores, the Kluuvi shopping centre and the main offices of Finnish banks are located in Kluuvi. Kluuvi includes the central campus of the University of Helsinki, the Ateneum art museum, and the movie theatres Maxim, Kinopalatsi and Bristol. The northeastern part of Kluuvi, which includes the Kaisaniemi park, is commonly called Kaisaniemi, but it is not the official name of any neighbourhood in Helsinki.
Kaisaniemi park is a popular park, in the center of Helsinki, in the region of Kluuvi. The Kaisaniemi Park was named after Catharina "Cajsa" Wahllund. Part of the park was given to the University of Helsinki in 1829, for gardening. The oldest greenhouse was opened in 1889.
Jätkäsaari is a peninsula and a quarter in Helsinki, the capital city of Finland. It is part to the Kampinmalmi district and Länsisatama neighbourhood. It was the site of the main container port in Helsinki until late 2008, when the harbour moved to the new facilities in Vuosaari. The terminals for passenger ferries to Tallinn and Saint Petersburg remain in Jätkäsaari at the West Harbour.
Vironniemi is a district of Helsinki, Finland, forming the core part of the city centre, thus also the central location of the Finnish governmental and financial decision making, and the location of Helsinki's most important churches. Vironniemi is the location of the Presidential Palace, the Palace of the Finnish Council of State, the Senate Square, the Helsinki Cathedral, the Uspenski Cathedral and the main office of the Bank of Finland.
Ruben Jaari was a Finnish businessman and founder of the department store Pukeva.
The Helsinki Lighthouse is a caisson-type lighthouse located in the Gulf of Finland, 22 kilometres (12 nmi) due south of West Harbour, Helsinki.
