Winter here is long and dark, and Finnish families spend it outdoors anyway. Kids skate on city rinks, sled down lit hills after school and learn to ski on beginner slopes close to town. Here's what we checked, from the indoor ice at Pirkkola to the children's slopes at Serena, with rental skates, free hills and cross-country trails along the way.
A Christmas market on Manta, the square around the Havis Amanda statue next to Kauppatori. This year Manta gets its own covered ice rink, with a small winter world of food, market stalls and a program built around it.
It works as a come-and-go stop: a skate, a snack and a wander between the stalls. Kids who like skating will get the most out of it.
An indoor ice rink inside Pirkkola Sports Park, run by the City of Helsinki. Clubs book most of the ice, but public skating sessions let anyone come in and skate, with separate sessions for skaters with hockey sticks and for plain skating.
The entrance, rink and dressing rooms are all on one floor, and a heated room by the door holds strollers and wheelchairs.
A city-run outdoor rink on the Brahenkenttä sports field, with cooling pipes under the ice that keep it skateable through the winter once the season opens.
During public skating, one half of the rink is kept for skaters and the other for kids and adults playing with hockey sticks. Café Braku, in the main building by the entrance, sharpens skates and rents skates, sticks and helmets during its opening hours.
Paloheinä is the northern end of Central Park (Keskuspuisto): forest paths, four lit fitness trails covered in mulch, and a hiking lodge with toilets, changing rooms and lockers.
Winter brings dozens of kilometers of lit ski trails and a large sledding hill. A kota campfire hut is open every day, and the Niskala arboretum has a tree trail with illustrated boards made for kids.
Kontulan kelkkapuisto is a public park shaped from earth mounds, with pine woods on the slopes and leafy trees around the edges. In winter the main hill is a busy sledding run.
The rest of the year, kids head to the skate park, the basketball court and the open lawns, or climb to the sculpture at the top of the hill.
Kaivopuisto covers 16 hectares on the southern tip of the peninsula, with winding paths, old trees, rocky outcrops and sea views. The playground has a large wooden dragon, with an owl, cormorant and kingfisher on poles, and a giant chess set next to it.
Kids can climb narrow steps cut into the cliff, look for four sculptures carved from dead trees, and spot the Ursa Observatory at the highest point.
Serena Ski is a compact downhill area with nine slopes and seven lifts over a 60 m drop; the five main runs are floodlit. Beginners start on three children's slopes with a platter lift, magic carpet and rope tow, while older kids head for the snowpark, moguls and the 4b jump line.
A free sledding hill sits alongside, and a ski school and rental office work on site.
Talma Ski has ski slopes, a snow park and a chairlift. Werneri Park, a snow play area of almost a hectare, has a tube chute, sleds and sliders to borrow, a magic carpet lift and carousels, plus a gentle slope parents can walk in boots.
In summer the hill runs an adventure park: a rope course with two 200m zip lines, minigolf and a kids' ATV track.
Oittaa sits on the southern shore of Lake Bodom, with one of Espoo's most popular summer beaches, an Angry Birds playground, adventure minigolf, outdoor gyms and a disc golf park with a children's area.
Marked trails loop through spruce forest, including an easy nature trail with information boards. In winter, part of the running route becomes a cross-country ski track.
Central Park (Keskuspuisto) is a century-old city forest that runs about 10 km from Töölönlahti bay to Haltiala at the northern city border. Trails cross spruce forest, meadows and fields, and the southern end is more like a city park.
In Haltiala, kids can walk duckboards through primeval forest past farmland. Many trails become ski tracks in winter, and a 16 km mountain bike trail is open to all.
Winter here is long and dark, and Finnish families spend it outdoors anyway. Kids skate on city rinks, sled down lit hills after school and learn to ski on beginner slopes close to town. Here's what we checked, from the indoor ice at Pirkkola to the children's slopes at Serena, with rental skates, free hills and cross-country trails along the way.
A Christmas market on Manta, the square around the Havis Amanda statue next to Kauppatori. This year Manta gets its own covered ice rink, with a small winter world of food, market stalls and a program built around it.
It works as a come-and-go stop: a skate, a snack and a wander between the stalls. Kids who like skating will get the most out of it.
An indoor ice rink inside Pirkkola Sports Park, run by the City of Helsinki. Clubs book most of the ice, but public skating sessions let anyone come in and skate, with separate sessions for skaters with hockey sticks and for plain skating.
The entrance, rink and dressing rooms are all on one floor, and a heated room by the door holds strollers and wheelchairs.
A city-run outdoor rink on the Brahenkenttä sports field, with cooling pipes under the ice that keep it skateable through the winter once the season opens.
During public skating, one half of the rink is kept for skaters and the other for kids and adults playing with hockey sticks. Café Braku, in the main building by the entrance, sharpens skates and rents skates, sticks and helmets during its opening hours.
Paloheinä is the northern end of Central Park (Keskuspuisto): forest paths, four lit fitness trails covered in mulch, and a hiking lodge with toilets, changing rooms and lockers.
Winter brings dozens of kilometers of lit ski trails and a large sledding hill. A kota campfire hut is open every day, and the Niskala arboretum has a tree trail with illustrated boards made for kids.
Kontulan kelkkapuisto is a public park shaped from earth mounds, with pine woods on the slopes and leafy trees around the edges. In winter the main hill is a busy sledding run.
The rest of the year, kids head to the skate park, the basketball court and the open lawns, or climb to the sculpture at the top of the hill.
Kaivopuisto covers 16 hectares on the southern tip of the peninsula, with winding paths, old trees, rocky outcrops and sea views. The playground has a large wooden dragon, with an owl, cormorant and kingfisher on poles, and a giant chess set next to it.
Kids can climb narrow steps cut into the cliff, look for four sculptures carved from dead trees, and spot the Ursa Observatory at the highest point.
Serena Ski is a compact downhill area with nine slopes and seven lifts over a 60 m drop; the five main runs are floodlit. Beginners start on three children's slopes with a platter lift, magic carpet and rope tow, while older kids head for the snowpark, moguls and the 4b jump line.
A free sledding hill sits alongside, and a ski school and rental office work on site.
Talma Ski has ski slopes, a snow park and a chairlift. Werneri Park, a snow play area of almost a hectare, has a tube chute, sleds and sliders to borrow, a magic carpet lift and carousels, plus a gentle slope parents can walk in boots.
In summer the hill runs an adventure park: a rope course with two 200m zip lines, minigolf and a kids' ATV track.
Oittaa sits on the southern shore of Lake Bodom, with one of Espoo's most popular summer beaches, an Angry Birds playground, adventure minigolf, outdoor gyms and a disc golf park with a children's area.
Marked trails loop through spruce forest, including an easy nature trail with information boards. In winter, part of the running route becomes a cross-country ski track.
Central Park (Keskuspuisto) is a century-old city forest that runs about 10 km from Töölönlahti bay to Haltiala at the northern city border. Trails cross spruce forest, meadows and fields, and the southern end is more like a city park.
In Haltiala, kids can walk duckboards through primeval forest past farmland. Many trails become ski tracks in winter, and a 16 km mountain bike trail is open to all.
