Helsinki Finland

Description: Helsinki is the capital and most populous city in Finland. It is located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and serves as the seat of the Uusimaa region in southern Finland. Approximately 0.67 million 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 situated 80 kilometres (50 mi) to the north of Tallinn, Estonia, 360 kilometres (220 mi) to the north of Riga, Latvia, 400 kilometres (250 mi) to the east of Stockholm, Sweden, and 300 kilometres (190 mi) to the west of Saint Petersburg, Russia. Helsinki has significant historical connections with these four cities.

Population: 674,963

Demographics: In 2022, there were 123,676 people with an immigrant background living in Helsinki, or 18.6% of the population. There were 108,919 residents who were born abroad, or 16.4% of the population. The number of foreign citizens in Helsinki was 73,076. Most foreign-born citizens come from the former Soviet Union, Estonia, Somalia, Iraq.

History: After the end of the Ice Age and the retreat of the ice sheet, the first settlers arrived in the Helsinki area around 5000 BC. Permanent settlements did not appear until the beginning of the 1st millennium AD, during the Iron Age, when the area was inhabited by the Tavastians. Helsinki was founded by King Gustav I of Sweden on 12 June 1550 as a trading town called Helsingfors, which he intended to be a rival to the Hanseatic city of Reval (now Tallinn) on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland. Emperor Alexander I of Russia moved the Finnish capital from Turku to Helsinki on 8 April 1812 to reduce Swedish influence in Finland and to bring the capital closer to St Petersburg. By the 1910s, the population of Helsinki was already over 100,000, and despite the tumultuous nature of Finnish history in the first half of the 20th century, Helsinki continued to grow steadily. Finland’s rapid urbanisation in the 1970s, which occurred late compared to the rest of Europe, tripled the population of the metropolitan area, and the Helsinki Metro subway system was built.

Elevation: 34 m

Climate: Humid continental climate. Average annual temperature in Helsinki is 5 C (41 F), the average for July is 77 C (62 F), the average for January is -5 C (22 F).

Attractions: Sea Fortress Suomenlinna, Temppeliaukio Church, Uspenskin Cathedral, Old Market Hall, Ateneum, Senate Square, Kamppi Chapel Of Silence

Airports: Helsinki Airport HEL

Distance To City Centre: 20 km

Commute Length: 35 min

Average Transportation Cost: 55 EUR

Traffic Hours: 7:30 am – 9:30 am, 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm