We’ve all been to those meetings: flight, airport, airport hotel conference room, hotel lunch, back to the conference room, hotel dinner, sleep, back to the airport, flight home.
What did we see of the city in which we had the meeting? Not much.
I would like to propose 10 reasons why you should have your next international meeting or conference in Helsinki. In Helsinki, there is time and opportunity to see more than just the airport and its hotel.
- Easy flights – It’s easy to reach Helsinki whether you’re flying from Europe or Asia. There are plenty of connections, and the airport is small and easy to navigate.
- Short airport commute – It only takes 30 minutes from the airport into the city centre, so you don’t need to stay at the airport if you don’t want to.
- Abundance of conference facilities and unique hotels – You can find large conference facilities in central Helsinki as well as really unique hotels with excellent conference and meeting facilities, setting a livelier tone for your gathering.
- Restaurants to rave about – Helsinki’s restaurant scene is giving Copenhagen a run for its money. Come here to taste a different take on Nordic cuisine.
- Uncomplicated service – The best way to describe Finnish service is uncomplicated: polite and efficient.
- Everything is within walking distance – In the centre of Helsinki you can walk everywhere – from the hotel to the restaurant and back – and get some fresh air. No need to book transport.
- You get to see the sea – How often does an airport hotel have a sea view? The Baltic Sea is all around you in the centre of town. You can even have your dinner on a boat or take a short ride to one of the many restaurants on the surrounding small islands.
- Jogger’s paradise – There are wonderful routes you can take on your run to see the city. Going for a run is one of my favourite ways to get to know a new place.
- Bikes available – Or, if you’d rather see the city riding, you can rent one of the brand new yellow city bikes which have been made available this summer in Helsinki.
- Everything works – Regardless of the time of year, the airport doesn’t shut down, the busses and trains run, your wifi works and so does your shower. You can even drink the tap water.
In addition to our Export Finland and Invest in Finland services for businesses in Finland and abroad, Finpro’s Visit Finland unit provides information on Finland as a conference destination as well as information on Finland as a leisure travel destination. StopOver Finland offers ideas on what you can do in Helsinki and further afield in Finland the next time you stop by.
See you soon!
Markus Suomi
CEO, Finpro
