Eight to twelve is when a week of camp starts to feel like their own thing. This list pulls together the camps we track around Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa that take kids in that age band: sports, circus, art, science, animals, music and a few overnight stays. Open any card for its dates, price and how to book.
A scout-style day camp in Helsinki for the winter break, open to any child, scout or not. Groups of up to 25 kids with three paid leaders spend much of the day outdoors: exploring places nearby, playing games, building and crafting, and cooking their own lunch on camp stoves.
It suits kids happy outside in any weather. The organizer says it can't offer extra one-to-one support at day camps.
Circus training in Circus Helsinki's big hall in Suvilahti. Kids try floor and aerial acrobatics, handstands, trampoline and juggling, with strength and flexibility work, games and creative exercises in between.
Beginners and kids who already train both fit: teachers make each skill easier or harder for the child in front of them. Led in Finnish, but kids who speak other languages join in fine.
A multi-sport day camp at Urheiluhallit's sports halls in Helsinki. Kids try different sports indoors and outdoors: ball games and exercise in the halls, time in the pools, and outdoor activities around the swimming hall. Groups of about 20 have two trained instructors and are split by age and friendships, and lunch is eaten together at the hall café. Suits active kids who like variety more than one sport.
Folkhälsan's holiday day clubs give primary-school kids company and a plan for the winter sports break. Each club runs on a theme, and the days are built around moving and playing outdoors. There is no overnight stay: kids are there in the daytime and home in the evening.
The clubs are led in Swedish, so they suit kids who speak it at home or at school.
Three days of football in the Töölön kupla, an air-dome sports hall in Töölö. There are two camps. The full-day football camp has two coached sessions a day, with football games and outings in between, and suits any child who enjoys football, no club or experience needed. The morning competitive camp is for players on competitive-level teams, with small-group skill and technique work in the HJK coaching style.
Winter break football camps from HJK Juniorit, the youth section of the HJK football club, held indoors in the Töölö bubble hall (Töölön kuplahalli) near Bolt Arena. Kids pick a full-day football or sports camp, open to beginners and players from any club, or a half-day competitive camp for kids already playing at a higher level. Groups are split by age, and lunch is in the Bolt Arena restaurant.
Two-day science camps at Heureka, the Finnish Science Centre in Tikkurila. Kids pull on lab coats and try experiments in the laboratory and workshops, with a nod to the mysteries of space. It suits curious kids who already count Heureka as a favorite outing.
Camp is led in Finnish, so it suits kids who follow Finnish easily. After the camp day, kids can stay on in the exhibitions.
A football camp over the Christmas break at Lehto Areena in Tapuli sports park, run by coaches Jude and Abdi. Mornings are skills training with position-specific coaching, afternoons are futsal. Groups stay small, at most 12 players per coach, so each kid gets individual pointers. Meals are eaten together at the arena. It suits girls and boys who want to train hard and have fun doing it.
Helsinki YMCA's holiday day camps keep primary schoolkids busy through the winter break. Days mix sports, games, outdoor play and crafts, indoors and out, with lunch included. Sports and education professionals plan and lead the groups at sites across the city, so most families can pick one near home.
Suits active kids who like being part of a group; less so a child after one focused skill.
A play-and-sport week at the local primary school in Paloheinä, run by the trained staff of the Peuhis after-school club. Days mix games and activities indoors and out, with trips around the neighborhood.
It suits active kids who are happy outside in winter. It is a general play camp, not ski or skating lessons.
A week-long day camp at Linnanmäki Circus School in Helsinki. Kids work with professional circus instructors on floor acrobatics, trampoline, balancing, aerial acrobatics and juggling, with outdoor play mixed in. On the last day they put on a camp show of what they've learned.
It suits active kids who like to tumble and try things, beginners included.
Sleepaway camp at the Kiljava camp center in Hyvinkää, north of Helsinki. Kids sleep indoors and spend the days playing games, making crafts and making new friends, with a safe walk out onto the frozen lake, sledding, skiing on their own skis and marshmallows over the campfire. Staff dress up for story-driven show programs. Supported small groups and camp assistants make room for kids who need extra help.
Week-long themed day camps at city youth centers and schools around Helsinki. Each week follows a story, like last winter's chameleon detective mystery, with crafts, games, puzzle trails and a lot of time outdoors, and kids help shape the program.
Groups run 10 to 20 kids and are led in Finnish. Best for kids at ease in a big group: there are no extra assistants for one-to-one support.
An overnight winter camp in the Finnish countryside near Helsinki, run in English for kids from any country. The sample program spends the days on snow and ice: snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, sledding, ice fishing and building snow shelters, plus sauna, Finnish baking and culture workshops. Kids sleep two to a hotel room with all meals included. It suits kids who are ready for nights away from home.
A relaxed floorball camp run by M-Team, a Helsinki floorball club, over the February ski holiday. Kids play and compete on the rink and off it, with passing, shooting and dekeing drills between games, then wind down in the clubhouse with quizzes and PlayStation.
It is open to beginners as well as club players. Kids are split into small groups, and each day is planned around their ages and skill.
A holiday day camp at the Linguajoy Language Centre in Lauttasaari where kids learn English by using it: games, art, drama, music, science projects and outdoor play, led by native-speaking teachers. Kids are grouped by level, so a beginner and a native speaker are each pitched right. There is an optional Finnish track, plus short daily tasters of other languages such as Spanish or Japanese.
A week of language immersion at the Linguajoy Language Centre in Lauttasaari. Kids learn through music, drama, art, science projects, games and outdoor play, led by native-speaking teachers, with English as the main language. Along the way they explore other cultures and their celebrations, from fiestas to festivals.
A school-holiday day camp at EVS, the tennis club based at Cherry Arena in Espoo's Martinkallio. Kids split the day between tennis in the indoor hall, led by the club's coaches and camp leaders, and other sports and outdoor games around it. Full-day campers get a home-cooked lunch made at the hall. Half-day places, morning or afternoon, keep the focus on tennis.
A holiday circus camp at Circus Helsinki, the circus school in the old Suvilahti power plant. Kids try floor and aerial acrobatics, handstands, trampoline jumps and juggling, plus strength and flexibility work, games and creative exercises.
First-timers and kids who already do circus or acrobatics both fit: teachers make each exercise easier or harder for the child. Led mainly in Finnish, and kids with any language join in.
Eight to twelve is when a week of camp starts to feel like their own thing. This list pulls together the camps we track around Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa that take kids in that age band: sports, circus, art, science, animals, music and a few overnight stays. Open any card for its dates, price and how to book.
A scout-style day camp in Helsinki for the winter break, open to any child, scout or not. Groups of up to 25 kids with three paid leaders spend much of the day outdoors: exploring places nearby, playing games, building and crafting, and cooking their own lunch on camp stoves.
It suits kids happy outside in any weather. The organizer says it can't offer extra one-to-one support at day camps.
Circus training in Circus Helsinki's big hall in Suvilahti. Kids try floor and aerial acrobatics, handstands, trampoline and juggling, with strength and flexibility work, games and creative exercises in between.
Beginners and kids who already train both fit: teachers make each skill easier or harder for the child in front of them. Led in Finnish, but kids who speak other languages join in fine.
A multi-sport day camp at Urheiluhallit's sports halls in Helsinki. Kids try different sports indoors and outdoors: ball games and exercise in the halls, time in the pools, and outdoor activities around the swimming hall. Groups of about 20 have two trained instructors and are split by age and friendships, and lunch is eaten together at the hall café. Suits active kids who like variety more than one sport.
Folkhälsan's holiday day clubs give primary-school kids company and a plan for the winter sports break. Each club runs on a theme, and the days are built around moving and playing outdoors. There is no overnight stay: kids are there in the daytime and home in the evening.
The clubs are led in Swedish, so they suit kids who speak it at home or at school.
Three days of football in the Töölön kupla, an air-dome sports hall in Töölö. There are two camps. The full-day football camp has two coached sessions a day, with football games and outings in between, and suits any child who enjoys football, no club or experience needed. The morning competitive camp is for players on competitive-level teams, with small-group skill and technique work in the HJK coaching style.
Winter break football camps from HJK Juniorit, the youth section of the HJK football club, held indoors in the Töölö bubble hall (Töölön kuplahalli) near Bolt Arena. Kids pick a full-day football or sports camp, open to beginners and players from any club, or a half-day competitive camp for kids already playing at a higher level. Groups are split by age, and lunch is in the Bolt Arena restaurant.
Two-day science camps at Heureka, the Finnish Science Centre in Tikkurila. Kids pull on lab coats and try experiments in the laboratory and workshops, with a nod to the mysteries of space. It suits curious kids who already count Heureka as a favorite outing.
Camp is led in Finnish, so it suits kids who follow Finnish easily. After the camp day, kids can stay on in the exhibitions.
A football camp over the Christmas break at Lehto Areena in Tapuli sports park, run by coaches Jude and Abdi. Mornings are skills training with position-specific coaching, afternoons are futsal. Groups stay small, at most 12 players per coach, so each kid gets individual pointers. Meals are eaten together at the arena. It suits girls and boys who want to train hard and have fun doing it.
Helsinki YMCA's holiday day camps keep primary schoolkids busy through the winter break. Days mix sports, games, outdoor play and crafts, indoors and out, with lunch included. Sports and education professionals plan and lead the groups at sites across the city, so most families can pick one near home.
Suits active kids who like being part of a group; less so a child after one focused skill.
A play-and-sport week at the local primary school in Paloheinä, run by the trained staff of the Peuhis after-school club. Days mix games and activities indoors and out, with trips around the neighborhood.
It suits active kids who are happy outside in winter. It is a general play camp, not ski or skating lessons.
A week-long day camp at Linnanmäki Circus School in Helsinki. Kids work with professional circus instructors on floor acrobatics, trampoline, balancing, aerial acrobatics and juggling, with outdoor play mixed in. On the last day they put on a camp show of what they've learned.
It suits active kids who like to tumble and try things, beginners included.
Sleepaway camp at the Kiljava camp center in Hyvinkää, north of Helsinki. Kids sleep indoors and spend the days playing games, making crafts and making new friends, with a safe walk out onto the frozen lake, sledding, skiing on their own skis and marshmallows over the campfire. Staff dress up for story-driven show programs. Supported small groups and camp assistants make room for kids who need extra help.
Week-long themed day camps at city youth centers and schools around Helsinki. Each week follows a story, like last winter's chameleon detective mystery, with crafts, games, puzzle trails and a lot of time outdoors, and kids help shape the program.
Groups run 10 to 20 kids and are led in Finnish. Best for kids at ease in a big group: there are no extra assistants for one-to-one support.
An overnight winter camp in the Finnish countryside near Helsinki, run in English for kids from any country. The sample program spends the days on snow and ice: snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, sledding, ice fishing and building snow shelters, plus sauna, Finnish baking and culture workshops. Kids sleep two to a hotel room with all meals included. It suits kids who are ready for nights away from home.
A relaxed floorball camp run by M-Team, a Helsinki floorball club, over the February ski holiday. Kids play and compete on the rink and off it, with passing, shooting and dekeing drills between games, then wind down in the clubhouse with quizzes and PlayStation.
It is open to beginners as well as club players. Kids are split into small groups, and each day is planned around their ages and skill.
A holiday day camp at the Linguajoy Language Centre in Lauttasaari where kids learn English by using it: games, art, drama, music, science projects and outdoor play, led by native-speaking teachers. Kids are grouped by level, so a beginner and a native speaker are each pitched right. There is an optional Finnish track, plus short daily tasters of other languages such as Spanish or Japanese.
A week of language immersion at the Linguajoy Language Centre in Lauttasaari. Kids learn through music, drama, art, science projects, games and outdoor play, led by native-speaking teachers, with English as the main language. Along the way they explore other cultures and their celebrations, from fiestas to festivals.
A school-holiday day camp at EVS, the tennis club based at Cherry Arena in Espoo's Martinkallio. Kids split the day between tennis in the indoor hall, led by the club's coaches and camp leaders, and other sports and outdoor games around it. Full-day campers get a home-cooked lunch made at the hall. Half-day places, morning or afternoon, keep the focus on tennis.
A holiday circus camp at Circus Helsinki, the circus school in the old Suvilahti power plant. Kids try floor and aerial acrobatics, handstands, trampoline jumps and juggling, plus strength and flexibility work, games and creative exercises.
First-timers and kids who already do circus or acrobatics both fit: teachers make each exercise easier or harder for the child. Led mainly in Finnish, and kids with any language join in.
