Turku Things to Do

This is popular music happenig in Turku. Not like big festivals, but quite famous and it´s more a "city festival", not outside the city centre. There are concerst around the centre and the mainconcerts are mentioned at the link. The link is mostly in Finnish.
Most of bands and singers are Finnish, but there are some foreign ones too.

At the end of June to the first days of July, there is this Medieval happening in Turku. There´s medieval market, where you can buy handmade things from old times, and even eat medieval goods. You can see lots of happening around the city and many places you will meet people in medieval clothes.
If you go to Turku at this week, you may find it hard to find a hotel room. But there is also b&b:s and cheap hotels. If you know you´re going, try to book early!

I love medieval castles, and I have visited the castle several times. It´s one of the best kept castles in Finland. I think it´s great, that they haven´t renovated it too much, so it´s possible to see how well it has been kept over the years.
It has been served in different needs, been a prison, used as celebration of royal guests and so on. Today you can also rent some rooms from it if you want.
When the Turku keskiaikapäivät- (medieval days)happening is on, there is medieval dinner served here, and a party made medieval style.
Turku city museum is also inside the castle.

It´s not as common to find anything archeological in Finland, so when I heard about this first time, we made a trip to Turku right away!
I found it very interesting to walk underground at the streets of old Turku. It´s not so old as in Southern Europe, but anyway. It´s a part of our history. The ruins are not very high, but I found them interesting. There is also some things saved from old days. This place was found, when they started to make modern art museum. It is now at the same building.

I didn´t have camera with me in here.

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Turku Cathedral is the mother church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, and Finland's national shrine. It is also the seat of the Archbishop of Finland.
When we visited the Cathedral some people sang prayer song for Easter.

It's a complex of two museums: Aboa Vetus is a museum of history and archaelogy and Ars Nova is a museum of contemporary art.

Aboa Vetus illuminates the lifes of ordinary citizens in Turku and in Finland over the centuries.There is for example a multimedia show telling how Turku's city profile has changed over the centuries and who has lived in the houses on the site. The museum is build around an excavated medieval city block, so you can find the cobblestone streets and arched cellars inside the museum.

Ars Nova is located on two floors of the old Retting Palace. There are collections of the works of 20th century Finnish and foreign artists. There are for example Picasso's works. There are periodical exhibitions also introducing the hottest new names in the scene.

For adults the ticket is 8 €. If you have IATA Travel Agents ID Card you will get 50 % of the etrance fee.

Turku cathedral is claimed to be the oldest church in mainland Finland. The church is also the main church of Finnish Lutheran Church and national shrine of the country.

As most of the old cathedrals, it has been built in several stages. The oldest parts date back to 13th century and the latest additions were made 1870. The cathedral was renovated in 1979.

The church is still being used in ceremonies, so you may not be able to stroll freely inside. But if you can, check out the graves, statues and coat of arms of aristocratic families -- usually not found in Finnish churches.

There is also a museum and café in the cathedral.

The 700 years old cathedral of Turku is considered as the most valuable monument of finnish architectural history. It is also the mother church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. Its construction began in the 13th century, when Turku started to emerge as the most important trading centre in Finland. The Bishop of the Diocese was then transferred to Turku, and the cathedral still is now the seat of the Archbishop of Finland.The inside has been restorated after the Great Fire of Turku (1827).