Aurora borealis alarm - be alarmed for auroras!

Be alarmed for auroras! Several hotels in Lapland, Finland offer 24/7 Aurora alarm systems! For example at Arctic Snowhotel guests can turn aurora alarm button "on" and in case there are northern lights in the sky, their alarm system will wake you up! Also Hotel Aurora at Luosto, Lapland offers aurora alarm system. Both hotels provide panoramic view rooms with glass ceiling and walls. And do not forget the original glass igloos at Hotel Kakslauttanen, Lapland.

If you are not able to visit Lapland in Finland, Unique Lapland has brought the wonderful Lapland winter into the city of Helsinki. Snow attractions and activities are available in any weather: igloos, ice sculptures, toboggan hill, kick-sledding and tandem skiing. Everything is built indoors of a huge sports hall using snow and ice. Their weather forecast of the day is always -3 degrees Celsius, no wind, steady weather conditions. Indoor cross-country skiing can be done in a same address at Kivikko Ski Hall.

Insideout - real-life room escape game

(image from Insideoutescape / Instragram)

Insideout - the first real-life room escape game is now available in Helsinki, Finland.

It's a real world adventure game which simulates online Room Escape games. In the game, 2-6 players are enclosed in their specially designed theme room. They have rack their brains to solve puzzles and collect clues to escape from the room in a race against time.

More info: www.insideoutescape.com

Anyone can fly or surf indoor @ Sirius Sport Resort

At Sirius Sport Resort anyone can fly or surf indoor. Enjoyably and safely. Sirius is located at Pyhtää, about one hour’s drive from Helsinki in the direction of Kotka.

More info: www.siriussport.fi

Are you ready for Takeoff?

Takeoff offers a highly realistic and fun experience flying a commercial airline. The Airbus A320 simulator is equal size of the real one and with high definition visual screens, realistic sounds and highly detailed cockpit guarantees an unforgettable experience. 

Check out their pre-planned flight experiences from various packages, e.g. Helsinki sightseeing or world's most dangerous approaches course (including Kai Tak (Hong Kong's old airport), Innsbruck, Austria and Gibraltar). 

Address: Takeoff Simulations Ltd., Energiakatu 3, 00180 Helsinki, Finland.

More info: www.take-off.fi

Superpop! in brand new wood pavilion Gösta

(image: copyright by Serlachius museum)

Gösta’s pavilion, a multifaceted wood building, offers modern spaces for art and visitors in Mänttä, Finland. Superpop! is Serlachius Museum Gösta's main exhibition in summer 2014.
The new pavilion shows the international classics of pop art side by side with the Finnish ones.

Superpop! contains about 130 artworks from 23 different artists that represent pop art in many different ways. The artists of the exhibition include Jiri Geller, Damien Hirst, Jani Leinonen, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and many others.

Art museum Gösta will be open in 14 June 2014.

Treasure islands of Helsinki

A new book called (Aarresaaret) Tresure islands of Helsinki by Jarmo Nieminen is out (in Finnish only). The book is about the incredible archipelago of Helsinki. If you can't visit any of the islands you could always browse online the photos by Nieminen.

You can get a touch of Helsinki islands by catching a ferry to some of the islands.
Try island hopping and dinner at some of these island restaurants:

• Särkänlinna (Restaurant in an old sea fortress) 
• Lonna (Every Friday there is a popular Poiju club. Even coast guard boat might be needed to help you out there.)
• NJK (Most popular crayfish restaurant in town) 
• Skiffer (Famous pizzas on Liuskaluoto island)

More info: Island restaurants in Helsinki

Helsinki Allas - new outdoor complex is out there

(image: copyright by Huttunen Lipasti Pakkanen architects)

The 1st phase of Helsinki Allas is ready. Helsinki Allas contains urban garden and picnic area, cafe and Finnair Sky Wheel. Small curiosity of Finnair Sky Wheel is a VIP cabin. When you purchase the VIP package you will receive a bottle of Veuve Clicquot champagne and a prolonged flight experience in the VIP cabin. Cabin features a glass floor, leather seats, music and air condition. A lot of gigs and other events will be organized throughout the summer at Helsinki Allas area.

2nd phase of the project is planned to be open in the spring of 2015. Then the new outdoor sea pool complex with outdoor pools and saunas will be available. See the aerial image of the forthcoming complex in my previous blog post. Helsinki Allas is designed by Huttunen Lipasti Pakkanen architects.

More info:
www.helsinkiallas.fi
finnair-skywheel.com/en

Hotel Tegel invites to Fiskars Village

Brand new Hotel Tegel is situated about 1 hour drive from Helsinki. Hotel is in the middle of old Fiskars Village. 13 brand new rooms in an old building next to river are waiting visitors to Fiskars Village. Today there are over 100 artisans, designers and artists working or living in Fiskars Village.
The company Fiskars was founded in 1649 in Fiskars Village and has since become an international corporation. This year Fiskars is celebrating it's 365th anniversary.

More info: www.tegel.fi

Happy End?

Happy End? is by far the best summer exhibition at the Helsinki Art Museum for many years.

On the museum’s lower floor, nine Finnish and international artists explore the depths of the human psyche and the chasms between luxury and everyday life. The highlights gallery of the exhibition consists definitely of Jani Leinonen’s works from the series of Assanisation. Also Duncan Butt Juvonen's installation which utters 7000 apologies from the wallpaper and Kim Simonsson’s sculptures installations are impressive.

The upper floor of the museum is taken over by AES+F (Tatiana Arzamasova, Lev Evzovich, Evgeny Svyatsky + Vladimir Fridkes), a Russian art collective who have garnered acclaim across the world with their photographs, videos and artworks that merge mythology with harsh contemporary reality.

Happy End?
19 Jun – 25 Aug 2013 Helsinki Art Museum Tennis Palace

Dream job in Finland: Hotel Finn looking for a professional sleeper

Hotel Finn in the heart of Helsinki is offering a dream job in Finland. The hotel is seeking a “professional sleeper” for 35 days to test their rooms and write all about it. According to Associated Press, the hotel manager Tio Tikka came up with the idea to promote the hotel after lengthy renovations.

The Time magazine writes that similar kind of campaigns are becoming more popular amongst tourism and leisure operators.

More info:
www.hotellifinn.fi

Helsinki's battle with the snow

CNN's Richard Quest reports on how the city of Helsinki has won the battle to keep the city moving during heavy snowfall... Well, the battle is not over actually.

Kill Arman in 104 countries worldwide

Kill Arman –martial arts travel show has been sold to 104 countries. The reality television series follows the Iranian-born Finnish tailor Arman Alizad’s confrontations with masters of different martial arts. The tailor has four months to prepare himself for combating ten masters of different martial arts in ten different countries around the world.

Since last year the international distribution of the programme has been handled by Rabbit Films production company and the contract includes ten English language episodes of the series.

At the moment Kill Airman’s largest channels are BBC Africa and BBC Asia covering a total of over 70 countries.

More info:
www.killarman.com (only in Finnish at the moment)
Good News from Finland

Finnish Wooden Boat Center

The Finnish Wooden Boat Center is an integrated 1.5 hectare area in Kotka’s Cultural Harbor, near the Maritime Centre Vellamo. The Boat Center’s appearance is dominated by the copper, arch-shaped roof of the boatyard (designed by architects Lahdelma & Mahlamäki). However, the Center also has a lot more to offer.

What makes the new building unique even on international terms is the fact that it was purpose-built for a wooden boat yard. Modern technology ensures temperature and humidity control as well as sawdust and dust removal. Another unique feature is the idea of a boatyard that is open for the public at no cost. The workshop is encircled by a Visitors’ Bridge at the second floor level, where the public can watch the boatwrights at work and observe the fascinating progress of boat-building. At the moment, the boatyard’s most notable attraction is the 21-meter-long classic wooden racing yacht Blue Marlin.

Don't miss the Wooden boat marina either. There you might see "Smuggler's boat (Pirtuvene)" and other rarities.

Come to Finland

Come to Finland is all about Finnish travel posters and travel history.

It all started with an idea, ten years ago, outside an Antiquarian Book-shop in Helsinki. Today it is a succesful cultural and commercial project.

More info: www.cometofinland.fi

Archipelago Raid

Archipelago Raid is the largest and most extreme orienteering sailing competition in the world.

The race goes through one of the most beautiful places in the world called the Scandinavian Islands. This area consists of hundreds and thousands of islands, islets and rocks, giving a unique character and architecture to the landscape. The Swedish, Finnish and Åland archipelago varies a bit in its expression which gives a unique experience to the sailor and the visitor going across.

More info:
www.scandinavianislands.com
www.archipelagoraid.com

Snow sauna, Arctic Snow hotel

The Arctic Snow hotel in Lapland provides a snow sauna with its uniquely humid atmosphere. Outside the sauna you can dip into a large hot tub under the northern lights and sip a warm drink. Alternatively, you can work up your courage and take a quick snow bath. Whichever you choose, it is bound to make your blood rush!

Ovi lifecasting

With Ovi, you can now keep your Facebook friends up to date where you are and what you are doing in a new way.

Right from your Nokia N97, you can lifecast the street address you are at, and your friends can see your location on a map. You can also share a meaningful location from the nearby places of interest or your favourite place that you have saved on Ovi Maps. To show your friends what a great spot you are exploring, you can take a photo, and attach it to your Facebook post.

More info: Ovi Lifecasting

Enjoy Sauna in a Gondola Lift

Enjoy the hot ride while others are skiing around you. The sauna gondola at Ylläs is the first one in the world.

More info:
Click here.

Madventures III - Behind the scenes

Finnish Madventures is on a quest to explore the most insane and strange destinations in the entire world!
Check out the behind the scenes clips available on Madventures YouTube channel.

Tour skating on natural ice

Skating on natural's ice is a "traditional" way to move on the top of Finnish frozen lakes. Now the 30km route in Rantasalmi is open, rental services available in Holiday Resort Järvisydän.

The most hardcore freaks will try the Ice Marathon in Kuopio.

More info:
http://www.iceway.fi/
http://icemarathon.kuls.fi/
http://www.jarvisydan.com/