My daughter will be competing in the Helsinki international Ballet competition May 24 - June 6. How does the cost of food, hotels and public transportation compare to the US? Any special tips on travel in Finland?

Helsinki is a great place - you will really enjoy it! It's super clean and safe, so as a parent you won't have to worry (as much!). <BR> <BR>In general food and hotels are likely to be more expensive than here in the states. Overall just about everything is more expensive in Scandanavia. <BR> <BR>Public transport is very good in Helsinki - tons of buses. The subway system called the metro is really easy. Basically it's one line that just goes back and forth, so a person can't really get lost. <BR> <BR>English is widely spoken, so communication won't be much a problem. Generally if you talk to anyone under the age of 50 or so, they will be able to speak very good English as it is required in the schools. <BR> <BR>If you have any other questions, feel free to post back. I was an AFS exchange student to Suomi and I absolutely loved it! <BR> <BR>Becca

Thanks so much for the info! Since I'll have 15 days to spend in Finland/Helsinki, what are some of the attractions you would recommend? The small group of six I'll be traveling with is interested in gardening, music (classical), the arts (in general) and local history. We probably will venture outside of Helsinki. Any suggestions?

15 days! Cool! <BR> <BR>The temple square church is very pretty. Also, the national museum is quite an attraction. Also, one neat thing is to go to the sport museum of finland. it is the area where the olympics took place. <BR> <BR>Other places, Turku is only about 2 hours from Helsinki I think. Also, lapland is the most northern part of Suomi - you know, that is where the *real* Santa lives! <BR> <BR>Stockmann's is THE place for shopping! <BR> <BR>One other thing that is hugely popular is taking a night cruise to Stockholm. I am going back to visit my host family this summer and my finnish friends and I are taking a cruise there. It's an overnight trip w/a day in the city and then a night back to Helsinki. <BR> <BR>Hope this helps! <BR>Becca

You will probably get bored with Helsinki after that many days. It is a nice place to live, but I think it is only good for about 1 day of tourism. Helsinki is a relatively new city dating from only the 1600s. Not much stuff goes back further than the 1800s. During my many visits to see family, I have enjoyed a few of the art museums. The Atheneum and Sinebrinkoff are good. The new modern art museum Kiasma is not good at all, unless you want to pay 10 bucks to see rocks on the floor. The harbor area is a nice walk. As far as music, Helsinki has a neat concert hall and attractions devoted to Sibelius. <BR>For history, take a ferry from the harbor to the Soumenlinna island fortress. The National Museum is also has interesting stuff. <BR>Take an 1.5 hr ferry trip to Tallinn, Estonia. This city has a medieval look and feel. It has come along way from the fall of communism-you will feel safe. Everything here is a bargain compared to Helsinki. <BR>With all that time, take an overnight ferry to Stockholm, a very underrated city, with the amazing Vaasa Ship Museum and the Royal Palace. Take a train to St. Petersburg too. However, the unstability of Russia is a concern.