New Year in Finland 2021: tour prices, where to meet?

We are starting to figure out how best to celebrate the New Year. We are one of those people who cannot imagine a winter holiday without snow-covered trees around. Therefore, warm countries for a trip at this time are not an option.

I want frosty air, snowmen and sledges, a flickering fire in the fireplace. So, we are planning a holiday in Finland for the New Year 2021!

Features of rest. Winter weather in Finland

Finland is a northern country. However, not as cold as many think. In the capital, seaside Helsinki, the weather in December-January is cool, but not bitter frost. The air temperature does not drop below -4 ° С, plus rain is likely. But only Lapland boasts frosts at -15 ° С ... -20 ° С. Which, in fact, are not so scary due to the dry climate.

In general, the weather in Finland for the New Year is more predictable and pleasant than in St. Petersburg: but it is in Helsinki that pure snow is not guaranteed 🙁

The atmosphere for December 31 is also predictable: it is not particularly remarkable and is brightened up only by the midnight fireworks. Finns do not plan salads - they work, albeit shortened, and sparklers do not hiss around the tree - it was folded as a week ago, after Christmas.

Of course, there will be some kind of festivities and celebrations (which we will tell you about). Partly for tourists so that they don't get bored at all, partly for the Finns, who give them a reason to have another fun.

How is Christmas celebrated in Europe?

Like the rest of Europe, Finland, first of all, celebrates Christmas: they decorate streets and houses, buy gifts. On Christmas Eve, the Finnish Santa Claus comes to children - Joulupukki or Christmas Grandfather (literally - the Christmas Goat). Santa Claus is also held in high esteem here: his residence is located just in the territory of Finnish Lapland. For tourists New Year's Finland is no longer as bright and elegant as Christmas.

Christmas markets (and not only) in Finland - 2020

Finland does not shine with fairs, in comparison with Germany or the Czech Republic, and by December 31 there is no trace of markets and garlands on the streets - these are the traditions. In 2020, a cup of Finnish mulled wine will be snapped from the beginning of December to the 22nd. The fair is open for visiting from about 12 to 20.

Prices at fairs in Finland

✓ Glog, 0.2 - € 2-2.5
✓ Coffee - € 2
✓ Baking - € 2
✓ Creamy salmon soup - € 7
✓ Roasted chestnuts, 100 gr - € 6

Where to go to Finland for New Year 2021?

Where is the best place to spend the New Year in Finland? In general, we have compiled four scenarios - all in different parts of the country:

1. Want to be right in the middle of city life, see the locals (some) celebrate, and relax in a spa? Means - rest in hotels in Helsinki, Turku, Tampere and Imatra
2. Skiers-snowboarders-tubing riders should sharpen up their sports equipment for ski resorts - Ruka, Levi, Tahko, Vuokatti or Himos. And also for those who, in a simple way, want privacy in an armchair near the fireplace, in a house hidden among snow-covered pine trees
3. For unusual things - cross the Arctic circle and book a room in ... an ice hotel! Well, or at least in a glass igloo, as, for example, in Santa's Hotel Aurora or Arctic TreeHouse Hotel - to try your luck with the northern lights
4. And about where to relax in Finland with children on New Year's holidays, there is only one recommendation - Santa Claus Village and Santa Park in Rovaniemi (Lapland)

Let's dwell on the first and fourth ↓

New Year in Helsinki

Helsinki is one of the most popular New Year destinations in Finland: 2021 will be greeted with fireworks and celebrated with thundering bats somewhere in the club. Public transport hours are increasing - both the metro and the tram are delivered until at least 2 am.

Mass open-air party usually organized on the Senate Square (by this time it is already "naked", without Christmas attributes) or on the Kansalaistori square. New Year 2021 is celebrated on the second. There will be an opening of the holiday and the main festivities - a music and light show, contests and games, and at midnight, January 1, a powerful fireworks.
When? 31 december 2020, at 17:00

It may seem that the Finns are not more happy about the New Year, but the opportunity to search with fireworks - any pyrotechnics are allowed to be used only on December 31 from 18:00 to 02:00.

And what to do, in fact, before or instead of the party?

✓ Before the celebration: take a walk and eat. And, ideally, before 20:00, since everything that continues to be received later requires a reservation

• Friends & Brgrs - burgers at a more or less adequate price (€ 8-9)
• Fazer Cafe on Kluvikatu 3 - highly recommended! From Monday to Friday - buffet breakfast for € 14.9; Saturday-Sunday - brunch for € 25.9
• Ravintola Kuu - level restaurant with Finnish cuisine, there is a four-course set menu (€ 48-54)

✓ Instead of celebrating: take a ticket to a club or bar. Here's what's relevant for December 31, 2020

• Storyville Music Club - arrange a Gatsby-style party with live music - from 7 pm to 4 am
  How many? € 25
• The Circus - the biggest party in the trendiest club in Helsinki - from 21:00 to 4 in the morning
  How many? Regular ticket - € 14, VIP - € 24
• Summer heat - a famous nightclub that annually throws a New Year celebration - from 22:00 to 5 in the morning
  How many? € 10-15
• Virgin Oil Co. - concert-party with the Finnish rock band Von Hertzen Brothers - from 21:00 to 3 in the morning
  How many? € 25-30 + entrance € 2.70

Alternative: meet NG on the SkyWheel. The cheapest € 28 ticket - from 11:45 pm to 12:20 pm - includes a 35-minute ride with a glass of champagne and fireworks. You can rent the whole booth (up to 6 people) for the same period, they will add a whole bottle, and from you - € 225.

New Year in Lapland

For the most daring, not afraid of real frosts and ready to meet the polar night (which lasts about 18 hours a day), a trip to Lapland is an excellent option for New Year's holidays.

The night from 31st to 1st will be most fun at:

Tours to Finland from St. Petersburg and Moscow for the New Year 2021

You can find out prices for tours to Finland for the New Year on online aggregators that collect offers from all leading tour operators:

• Onlinetours
• Travelata
• Level.Travel

It is better to book in advance, as there are many people who want to celebrate the New Year in Finland, and 2021 is just around the corner. Tours are in great demand and prices are only going up.

We talked about tours, let's say about independent trips. Useful resources:

Directly from Moscow to the Finnish coast can be reached by plane or by train. In the latter case, prices to Finland for the New Year should be clarified closer to the holidays - it may change. A compartment in the Lev Tolstoy branded train to Helsinki costs from 6,000 rubles one way (for 2020).

It is most convenient to travel to the country of Suomi for the New Year from St. Petersburg - there are many times more options to cross the border:

1. Bus excursions and regular buses - ticket price from 1000 rubles.
2. Ferries are a good option if the weather is not stormy in January. Tour prices start at € 60 for 3 days. The cost of rest will depend on the type of cabin and deck chosen. Breakfasts and dinners (€ 15-20) and excursions are paid separately.
3. Train from St. Petersburg to Helsinki (branded "Allegro") - from 3000 rubles per person.
4. By car - you decide where to celebrate the holiday, when and where to go. Suitable for those who are planning a quiet family vacation, and for those who, having arrived at Senate Square on December 31, watch the night fireworks on New Year's Eve, and go skiing in the morning!

Prices for holidays in Finland in winter

For calculation: 1 euro ≈ 88 rubles.

If you are driving on your own, your "New Year's tour" will include food costs in addition to accommodation. In general, restaurants in Finland usually open in the afternoon. You can have a snack on the way in a cafe at a gas station (the same € 10) or in pastry shops (coffee from € 2 + dessert from € 3).

Food prices in Finland in a cafe:

• Burger - € 8-10
• A plate of pasta - € 10-15
• 3-course business lunch - € 30
• Soup - € 9-12
• Beer, 0.3 - € 6-8
• Coffee, 0.2 - € 2

Planning to cook on your own? An important tip: shop as much as possible at the large border shops - Disas or Lidl. It will come out cheaper. Prices for the New Year in Finland do not rise, but many products in Finland are more expensive than in Russia. Pay attention to the network of stores K-Market and S-Market, after Christmas there are sales.

Also, when traveling by car, take into account the cost of fuel (A-95 - € 1.47, A-98 - € 1.54; you can take only 20 liters with you) and the issuance of a "green card" (2,450 rubles for 15 days).

So, when calculating the average budget for a trip, just multiply the number of travelers by the number of days and by 50. Proven: this formula works great in Finland, and there is still some shopping 🙂

The best hotels (price-quality) according to the advice of tourists

• 5 * Hotel Kamp, Helsinki is the best spa hotel in Helsinki according to travelers.
  Price per night: from 330 euros
• 4 * Scandic Park Helsinki, Helsinki is an excellent hotel for families with children.
  Price per night: from 135 euros
• 4 * Scandic Imatran Valtionhotelli, Imatra is a real castle with saunas and spa.
  Price per night: from 110 euros
• 5 * Arctic Light Hotel, Rovaniemi - for its 5 stars, tourist rating "excellent" and
  New Year's Eve at the hotel asks for 300 euros per night (for two)
• 3 * Lappeenranta Spa, Lappeenranta is a good spa hotel almost on the border with Russia.
  Price per night: from 125 euros

Supplement for New Year's Eve dinner in hotels in Finland is usually 100-150 euros.

Renting a house in Finland

Renting a house in Finland or villas is very popular. You can look for profitable options on:

• Airbnb - here a discount of up to 4000 rubles for the first booking
• lomarengas.fi (provides a large number of photos of each house and reviews of tourists, there is a service fee)
• or huvila.net (here the owners of the houses independently post information and communicate with clients; hence - sometimes there is no photo at all, only reviews, but you can agree to reduce the price)

If you like freedom of action, but do not want solitude in nature, on the same sites (especially on Airbnb) you can search for apartments or apartments for rent.

Many people book separate houses for large companies in Lapland or other regions far from the border. At any time of the year, holiday homes are rented here quite inexpensively. In winter, before the holidays, prices skyrocket, but even then, cottages in Lapland are very cheap: from € 700 for 4 people (7 nights). For comparison: a house for the New Year closer to the border costs from € 1300. Bed linen and final cleaning are paid separately (of course, you can not pay, bring everything with you and clean up at the end).

What to see in Helsinki in 3 days?

We warn you right away: the main attractions in Finland are of natural origin. These are rocks, caves, lakes and the like. Half of them are unavailable in winter. Therefore, we will be content with the remaining architectural interests. Moreover, there are many of them in the capital:

1. Senate Square - there are two objects worthy of the traveler's attention: the monument to Alexander II and the Cathedral. All together creates the impression that you were sent to St. Petersburg :)
2. Mannerheim Avenue is the main artery of the city, there are all tourists, there are also monuments to Mannerheim himself and three naked blacksmiths forging happiness!
3. The most unusual churches in Helsinki are the Chapel of Silence (Narinkkatori Square) and the Church in Skala (Töölö district) - two opposites: one is always quiet, the other has great acoustics and frequent concerts.
4. It will be interesting for both children and adults to look at all the animals in the city zoo (adult ticket - € 14, children from 4 years old - € 8), Tropicaria (€ 13 and € 8, respectively) or the Oceanarium (adult ticket - € 15, children - € 12 if buying online)

In general, in the New Year period 2020-2021, the following entertainments are relevant:

• December 28 and 31, 19:00 - Opera La Bohème in Italian with English subtitles at the Finnish National Opera - € 45-119
• December 30, 18:30 - ice hockey, KHL match Jokerit-Vityaz - € 11-50

Nightclubs in Helsinki

Like where to go in the afternoon, figured out. Now let's see what to do after sunset. Finns themselves go to nightclubs with pleasure, and there are plenty of them in Helsinki:

1. The most popular and one of the oldest clubs is Tavastia. The ticket price here starts from € 10
2. Storyville is one of the best jazz clubs; on New Year's Eve it is open until the morning. The ticket costs € 25
3. The BrewDog Helsinki club-bar also welcomes visitors until the morning of January 1
4. The fun and inexpensive Cuba club is popular among Finnish youth
5. Karaoke lovers will love the Wallis Karaoke Bar

Ski resorts

As already mentioned, there are slopes in Finland for every taste.The cost of a ski pass at all resorts is approximately the same: € 38 for adults and € 26 for children from 7 years old and seniors. So, look where the weather is better at the time of the trip and choose:

- Lapland ski resort Pyhä-Luosto - the southernmost ridge, a place suitable for beginners

- Vuokatti offers skiing, reindeer and husky safaris and a year-round snow tunnel for winter activities (even in summer). Day - € 30, rental of full equipment (skis / snowboard) - € 15

- Levi is Finland's largest ski center, with slopes ranging from black to children

- Ruka is one of the most popular resorts, snow lasts the longest here, until May

- Tahko is good for beginner skiers, there are no difficult slopes there - only ideal slopes

- Himos is also suitable for beginners, one of the largest winter resorts in Finland

Reviews of tourists - is it worth celebrating the New Year in Finland?

Reviews about the New Year in Finland tell us unambiguously what it is worth. How worth it!

Here we have the same things that we have and in other countries. But only in Finland it is all brought together: pure snow, skiing and other winter activities, beauty and some exoticism of northern nature, relaxation in the spa (even in ordinary hotels there will definitely be a sauna, you can be sure). And all this is flavored with New Year's bustle, diluted with European foreign countries and Scandinavian traditions.

Pros and cons

Of course, as in any business, there are both.

To the main cons tourists include:

- far away (this is usually written by travelers from Moscow who decide to get there by private car)

- expensive (we partially agree, but we will repeat - when renting a cottage for a large company, you can save money); plus, Europe itself is not a cheap place, especially because of the euro exchange rate

- boring (on holidays, and even in winter, many entertainment in Finland is not available, but now you are armed with our article and you will not get bored)

Pluses but in such a vacation there is much more:

+ show the children a real Santa Claus (albeit Santa Claus) and put a tick

+ ride a real reindeer sleigh or become a dog driver

+ steam up in the sauna for a year in advance

+ finally learn how to ski

+ celebrate the New Year in the forest or even beyond the Arctic Circle, in the company of friends

+ arrange a European shopping session during the discount season. They're just in time for Christmas 🙂

The preponderance in favor of the pluses is obvious ☺ So, tervetuloa Suomeen - welcome to Finland!