Heather's Helsinki -

Welcome to Helsinki! Welcome to Heather’s Helsinki! I’m so happy you found me and I’m hoping that you’ll find something here that fits the bill.

Firstly here’s a little about the name behind the face. Born and raised in Tasmania, Australia I am as you can see, and a very long way from home! I have lived in Helsinki for 12 years now and absolutely love it here.

I burn to serve! Hospitality and service is the driving force of my being. I can’t wait to share my Helsinki with you.

Currently I am building a roster of day tours of varying lengths and themes. You’ll get a good feel of ‘my Helsinki’ from the earlier blog posts.

If you have any questions about Helsinki in general, future tours or me, I’m very easy to reach and look forward to hearing from you. Whether it’s the contact form, Facebook or Twitter I’ll be replying to you within 48 hours.

Once again, welcome to Heather’s Helsinki. Let’s have fun out there!

Summer survival kit!

Summer creeps up on you in Finland. One day the trees have no leaves, and the next day a riot of green greets you as you step outside. The weather is very similar to my home state of Tasmania. Some days you get warm sunshine and balmy breezes, other days the temperature plummets, the sky clouds over and rain sets in. Never mind, I have another competition to prepare you no matter the weather! All of these goodies just for you: HSL Day ticket: valid for 24 hours from first validation (Helsinki area only). I <3 Ullanlinna KeepCup: I am a hug fan of KeepCup and want everybody to have their own (courtesy of our very good friends at Kaartin Kotikauppa!) Disposable rain coat. Because it may rain during Finnish summer. Matches: Always useful, and now you have them with you! SPF 20 sunscreen (for the face) and a matching lip balm. Mosquito repellent. A must if you are in Finland. Design District Map. It’s easy to spend hours wandering the neighbourhood. If time is of the essence, grab the map and plan your day! Food Helsinki? HEL YEAH! Map. With Helsinki broken down into 5 easily navigated districts, a neat vocabulary with all the important words and a few tidbits, you have to have this map! Helsinki For Kids: Family friendly map. New in 2015, this map is full of hints and tips, along with some nice discounts at various spots around town. Postcards & stamps: so you can share the love with friends and family back home. Postcards from: Iittala (a gorgeous salmon pink Aalto Vase), Future City (a winning design from WDC2012) and my favourite: a blank white card that you can add your own message or illustration. Helsinki tote bag: stylish black bag, illustrated with Helsinki Cathedral. Perfect for shopping, picnicking or just keeping all your stuff together! To see everything up close just click on the photo!

All this stuff for the winner of our caption competition

All this for the winner of our caption competition

The idea is very simple: check out the Instagram feed and complete the caption:

You know it’s summer in Helsinki when…

You’ll have one week and we’ll be selecting our random winner from the comments. Good luck!!!