Even though the beginning of November 2022 has been warmer than usual and less wintery than many expected, Helsinki throws itself into the holiday spirit around the middle of the month, when the Christmas season officially opens in the capital region as well. This text presents Helsinki’s Christmas season events and Christmas markets for 2022.
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The opening of the Christmas season will take place in Helsinki as usual with a traditional Christmas opening event, which will take place on Aleksanterinkatu on November 19, 2022. Helsinki’s Christmas opening has traditionally delighted locals and tourists in the capital.
It is also one of the oldest Christmas traditions in Helsinki, as the Christmas lights on Aleksanterinkatu were lit for the first time in 1949. The event once started when the merchants of the nearby streets wanted to cheer up the townspeople recovering from the difficult war years.
The opening event of the Christmas season culminates, as usual, with the lighting of the Christmas lights on Aleksanterinkatu and the traditional Christmas parade marching through the heart of Helsinki.
The parade route goes as follows: Hallituskatu – Snellmaninkatu – Aleksanterinkatu – Pohjoisesplanadi – Mariankatu, from where the parade returns along Aleksanterinkatu to Senaatintori square.
During Christmas time in Helsinki, you can also enjoy the atmospheric Christmas markets, the most famous of which is the Tuomaan markkinat located in Senaatintori square.
The wonderfully atmospheric outdoor market is also Helsinki’s oldest Christmas market, filled with hundreds of different market vendors during the festive season.
Over the years, visitors to the market have been delighted with, e.g. on an old-fashioned merry-go-round, with performances suitable for the party theme, from choir singing to elf plays. In Senate Square, you can also find impressive Christmas trees and atmospheric Christmas lighting, which create light even at the end of the year without snow.
Various entertainment is also available for the family’s youngest members. At the Tuomaa market, children get to meet both beautiful animals and elves, not forgetting Santa Claus himself.
Another traditional Helsinki Christmas market goes by the name Vanhan Joulutori. This Christmas market is located in the old Ylioppilastalo (student centre) from 15.-22.12. organized Christmas market, open on weekdays 11-20 and on weekends 11-18.
If you want to experience Helsinki’s Christmas traditions and the atmosphere of the festive season, Vanhan Joulutori is a place worth visiting for Christmas 2022.
The Teurastamo’s Christmas Market, which is organized on the premises of the old slaughterhouse in Helsinki, has almost ten years of history. This year, too, the area will be filled for two days with delicacies offered by local companies and gift ideas to the brim.
It is possible to visit the Christmas market for two days from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
In addition to the market vendors, there are many Christmas delicacies on offer and a Christmas tree that fits the theme of the Christmas market, which will be decorated together on Saturday, December 19, from 13:00 to 15:00, accompanied by Tiernapojat and posetiivar.
This year, it is again possible to organize the famous Christmas carolling events more freely. Popular events invite people to sing together yearly from the end of November until Epiphany.
You can find out more about the schedules of the most beautiful Christmas carols in Helsinki on the website of the Helsinki parish.
In the centre of Helsinki, it is also possible to enjoy the Christmas atmosphere in the form of Christmas windows in large shopping centres.
Every Christmas classic includes Stockmann’s fairy tale window, a wonderfully atmospheric experience for the whole family this year. It is possible to admire the Christmas window until Epiphany at the corner of Aleksanterinkatu and Keskuskatu. Another Christmas window worth special mention is located next to Fazer on Kluuvikatu.
It is also possible to feel the Christmas atmosphere in many different ways in the premises of VALO Hotel & Work throughout December. In VALO, you can, for example, organize the best little Christmas in Helsinki, enjoy an atmospheric Christmas sauna in the Wellness area, and have a Christmas meal in Bistro ELO.
External sources: City of Helsinki, Tuomaan markkinat, Vanhan Joulutori
Main image of the article: Visit Finland Media Bank
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