A great read

Inside, there's The Design Lab, an inspired space for new ideas and unexpected creativity that's open to designers, visitors, students and the eternally curious. With free Wi-Fi and coffee, colour guides and inspirational books, it's a design shrine to the continuous process of experimentation, much like the city and its residents. You can spend days in this science-meets-medicine-meets-architecture-meets-art gallery space and never get bored. After, pop into Finnish furniture studio Nikari, which makes custom-built pieces for Icelandic singer Bj?rk, among others, or the also life-enhancing concept store and gallery Lokal, home to independent Finnish art, design and craft.

Find their art equivalent in vibrant galleries such as Helsinki Contemporary and Turku Art Museum. Galerie Forsblom, one of the largest contemporary art galleries, hosts work by emerging and young artists. The legendary Marimekko is also on these streets, the fashion and home furnishings store founded in 1951 by Armi and Viljo Ratia, which has more than 3,000 patterns in its archives. Every Finnish home has at least one item – the brand went global when Jacqueline Kennedy wore its fashion in the 1960s. Each May, the fashion house continues to open the summer season with a free open-air fashion show at Esplanade Park in the city centre, showcasing its latest wares.