Design District Walk, Helsinki

Design District Walk (Self Guided), Helsinki

If your perfect morning or afternoon involves shopping, then Helsinki's downtown Design District is where you need to point your feet. This is the location of the city's main shopping precincts and streets. Search fashion stores for thrilling outfits, browse art galleries for something new to hang on your walls and find a valuable collectible in the antique shops. Depending on what you are looking for, a few of the downtown streets stand out.

On Pohjoisesplanadi Street, find gorgeous boutiques selling the creations of the biggest Finnish design names. For jewelry and more Finnish fashion choices as well clothes by international brands, make your way over to Aleksanterinkatu Street. Whether or not you have come across Finnish design names before, the Design District promises a wonderful introduction and immersion into their superlative work.

Other shopping areas to investigate while you are in the neighborhood are Eteläesplanadi and Mannerheimintie streets and the Forum Shopping Center. This indoor shopping complex encompasses more than 100 stores and covers an entire city block. Come here for clothes, cosmetics, fashions, sport and leisure goods, home electronics, gifts and much more.
How it works: A discovery walk features a route using which you can explore a popular city neighborhood on your own. This walk, along with other self-guided walks in over 1,500 cities, can be found on the app "GPSmyCity: Walks in 1K+ Cities" which can be downloaded from Apple App Store or Google Play Store to your mobile phone or tablet. The app's built-in GPS navigation functions allow following this walk route with ease. The app works both online and offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

Download The GPSmyCity App

Design District Walk Map

Guide Name: Design District Walk
Guide Location: Finland » Helsinki
Guide Type: Self-guided Walking Tour (Discovery)
Travel Distance: 3.8 Km or 2.4 Miles
Author: Helen

Walking Tours in Helsinki, Finland

Create Your Own Walk in Helsinki

Create Your Own Walk in Helsinki

Creating your own self-guided walk in Helsinki is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Helsinki Introduction Walking Tour

Helsinki Introduction Walking Tour

Helsinki was created as a trading town by Swedish King Gustav I in 1550, but it is believed that Swedish settlers had arrived here in the 1300s. Sometimes called the “Daughter of the Baltic,” Helsinki is a port town through and through. Its close connection to its Baltic neighbors, Sweden and Russia, has shaped its history for better and worse over the last 400 years. Both Finnish and Swedish...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.1 Km or 1.9 Miles
Finnish Souvenir Shopping Tour

Finnish Souvenir Shopping Tour

When in Helsinki, souvenir shopping can be an exciting adventure allowing you to bring home a memorable piece of Finland worth having in your household. Depending on your inclinations, these could include sauna bucket and ladle, traditional Finnish music instruments, hand-woven long-tufted rugs (ryija), Finnish vodka made from Arctic-grown berries, or something else.

Those in the know can give...  view more

Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.0 Km or 1.2 Miles
Seurasaari Island Walking Tour

Seurasaari Island Walking Tour

Seurasaari Island in Helsinki is best known as the home to the popular open-air museum. This venue offers a glimpse into the life of Finland's countryside in various epochs, showcasing old, mainly wooden houses, some of which – once lived in by famous people in Finnish history – were transplanted to the island and thus became part of the museum.

Among the notable attractions here are...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.6 Km or 1 Miles
Helsinki's Architectural Jewels

Helsinki's Architectural Jewels

Typified by Nordic minimalism and refinement, the architecture of Helsinki is shaped primarily by the early neoclassical style and a regional form of Art Nouveau called Jugendstil. Still, it is the later work by modernist architect, Alvar Aalto, as well as the thriving contemporary designs deeply rooted in nature and local craft that give Helsinki, as well as Finland in general, their current...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.9 Km or 1.2 Miles
Helsinki's Historical Churches

Helsinki's Historical Churches

Because of Finland's former affiliations with neighboring Sweden and Russia, it's no wonder that the religious tapestry of Helsinki is dominated by Lutheran and Orthodox churches. Nonetheless, there are also some beautiful architectural expressions of other Christian denominations like Anglican and Catholic to be found in the city, each holding a special place in its religious narrative....  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.0 Km or 1.9 Miles

Useful Travel Guides for Planning Your Trip


Finnish Sweets and Pastries

Finnish Sweets and Pastries

The country of thousands of lakes and the magical homeland of Santa Claus, Finland is also a major producer of quality chocolate and many other sweet delights without which surviving long winter nights in this Nordic part of Europe would have been far too boring. Big on coffee, the Finns love their...
16 Distinctively Finnish Things to Buy in Helsinki

16 Distinctively Finnish Things to Buy in Helsinki

Shopping in Helsinki for an extraordinary range of tasteful and distinctive products is made simple and easy with the creation of a design district in the heart of the city which has many department stores, shopping centers, and boutique shops bunched together. The Finnish capital is a good city for...