20 popular festivals that take place in Finland, across categories of music, art, food, and sports:
Music Festivals:
- Ruisrock – The second oldest rock festival in Europe and the oldest in Finland, located in Turku.
- Flow Festival – A music and arts festival in Helsinki, known for its diverse line-up of music from various genres.
- Ilosaarirock – An annual rock festival held in Joensuu. It’s one of the oldest music festivals in Finland.
- Pori Jazz – One of the oldest jazz festivals in Europe, held annually in Pori.
- Tuska Open Air Metal Festival – The biggest metal music festival in the Nordic countries, held in Helsinki.
Art Festivals:
- Helsinki Festival – The largest multi-arts festival in Finland, offering a wide range of events in all art forms.
- Helsinki Design Week – The largest design festival in the Nordic countries, showcasing fashion, architecture, and urban culture.
- Midnight Sun Film Festival – A unique event where films are shown 24 hours a day in Sodankylä, Finnish Lapland.
- DocPoint – Helsinki Documentary Film Festival – One of the largest documentary film festivals in the Nordic countries.
Food Festivals:
- Helsinki Baltic Herring Market – One of the oldest ongoing event traditions in Finland, with fishermen selling their products at the Market Square.
- Turku Food & Wine Festival – An event that brings together food and wine enthusiasts in the historical city of Turku.
- Restaurant Day – A unique “food carnival” where anyone can open a restaurant for a day, taking place four times a year.
- Savour the Flavour of Helsinki – An event where local restaurants offer their best dishes in Kansalaistori square.
Sport Festivals:
- Ruka Nordic Opening – The traditional opening competition of the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup in Kuusamo.
- Jukola Relay – The largest orienteering relay race in the world, held annually in different parts of Finland.
- Air Guitar World Championships – A fun and quirky event held annually in Oulu, promoting world peace according to the ideology “Wars would end, climate change stop if all played the Air Guitar”.
- NUTS Ylläs Pallas – An ultramarathon event in Finnish Lapland, featuring trail runs of various distances.
- Kuopio Dance Festival – The largest annual dance festival in the Nordic countries.
- Lahti Ski Games (Salpausselän kisat) – A traditional annual winter sports event with competitions in ski jumping and cross-country skiing.
- Helsinki City Marathon – The biggest marathon event in Finland, held in August.
As always, be sure to check the most recent information about these festivals, as details may change due to various circumstances.
