This year, Helsinki promises remarkable cultural programs celebrating Finnish design, art, architecture and storytelling. The city will be filled with an extraordinary number of exhibitions, celebrations and international events throughout 2025.

© Anni Koponen

The newly renovated Finlandia Hall, a masterpiece of modern architecture, reopened in January  with exciting new exhibitions where visitors can explore themes of identity and creativity. Designed by Alvar Aalto and completed in 1971, Finlandia Hall is one of Finland’s most renowned modern architectural creations. Following an extensive renovation, the building, formerly known primarily as a venue for congresses and events, reopened with an array of new services, including unique accommodation facilities, a bistro restaurant and wine café. A permanent exhibition will open at Finlandia Hall in June, offering an experiential exploration of both Finnish identity and the life’s work and creative inspirations of Alvar, Aino and Elissa Aalto. The exhibition provides an opportunity to gain deep insights into Alvar Aalto’s legacy and design principles.

Visitors can also admire contemporary Finnish art at Helsinki Art Museum.

© Anni Koponen

As summer unfolds, the Helsinki Biennial, June 8 to Sept. 21, will bring art and nature into dialogue under the theme “Shelter,” transforming Esplanade Park and Vallisaari island into a stage. Celebrating its 20^th anniversary, Helsinki Design Week (Sept. 5–14) will highlight creativity and explore happiness as a design principle, envisioning a brighter, more hopeful future.

The program features diverse events, including Design Market, Open Studios and PechaKucha Night, alongside innovative symposium talks and satellite events showcasing various design fields. Helsinki Design Week 2025 will also revisit some of its best moments from previous years, emphasizing Helsinki’s role as a global hub for design and architecture.

© Helsinki Partners

It all began with the first tale, The Moomins and the Great Flood, published in 1945. Written by Tove Jansson in Helsinki during World War II as a fairytale to comfort herself in dark times, the story follows Moominmamma and Moomintroll as they find a new home in Moominvalley. There, a tall blue house stands, a joyful and welcoming place where everyone is accepted, no matter who they are or when they arrive. Helsinki celebrates this anniversary year with two major exhibitions.

The festivities, which will run until October at Helsinki Art Museum, delves into her public paintings of Tove Jansson, showcasing how Jansson created joy, beauty and windows into magical worlds through her art. This exhibition provides a unique perspective on Tove Jansson’s world, how she perceived architecture and design in her life, and how these elements come to life in the stories of Moominvalley.

© Helsinki Partners / Ella Tommila

Museum of Finnish Architecture and Design Museum Helsinki, with their separate internationally unique collections, forms a new national architecture and design museum. In 2024, the two museums merged, and a new building is being planned for the new museum, set to be situated in the Makasiiniranta area of Helsinki’s South Harbour. For the next few years, Museum of Finnish Architecture and Design Museum Helsinki will continue with joint programs at their current Helsinki addresses.

The new museum, dedicated to architecture and design, is to open in Helsinki in 2030. The winner of the competitive search for the architectural firm that will design the new museum building will be announced shortly.  In the meantime, visitors to Helsinki in 2025 can enjoy excellent exhibitions at the current Museum of Finnish Architecture and Design Museum Helsinki.