Every now and again I manage to inspire someone to travel to Finland and of course I get asked for tips and recommendations. It’s been a while since we moved out, but some favourites remain. Here’s an excerpt from an email I recently sent to Anna:
The centre of Helsinki is nice to just walk around (it’s small enough), particularly around the Senate square, the Lutheran Cathedral, Russian Orthodox church, market square, the Esplanade, etc. There’s also a beautiful fortress island “Suomenlinna” just  outside of Helsinki – you can catch a ferry there for the price of a bus ticket (or if you have a daily ticket it includes the ferry as it’s considered public transport for people who live on the island). But if the weather’s no good, it’s probably not worth going there as it’s very much an outdoorsy place.  A couple of stops on the tram out of the centre of Helsinki there’s also the Temppelinaukio church, which is carved in rock and simply humbling.
If you’re into Finnish design and arts and stuff, the Esplanade (leafy cobblestone street near the marina) is the place to go. You’ll find several Marimekko and Iittala stores there. Although you can also go to Stockmann (I believe one of the oldest department stores in Scandinavia) for your Finnish gear.
The museum of modern art “Kiasma” is usually well worth a visit too. It obviously depends on what they’re exhibiting at the time, but the building itself is quite spectacular.
You’ll be able to find heaps of decent restaurants in Helsinki, but one that I would recommend is Zetor. Their menu is inspired by traditional Finnish cookery and I have always enjoyed it immensely. The decor is a bit kitsch, but that only adds a bit of flavour to the experience! A nice spot for a drink is the Torni Hotel; the views from their little bar on top of the tower are great. You can get a panoramic view of Helsinki. Even the ladies’ toilets have a view!
If you have the time to venture out a little, I’d recommend going to see Porvoo, a historic little “old town” about an hour out of Helsinki. If you had a bit more time I’d recommend going to Lappeenranta or somewhere similar to see some of our beautiful lakes and forests.
I hope that helps anyone else planning to visit Helsinki! These are just some of our favourite spots and there is of course loads more to see too. One of my favourite Finnish websites is: http://virtual.finland.fi/. 
Happy travels everyone!! :)