Helsinki is the capital of Finland and its largest city and sits on a granite peninsula on the north coast of the Gulf of Finland, facing the Baltic Sea. King Gustavus Vasa of Sweden founded Helsinki in 1550, and in 1808 the town was incorporated in the Russian Grand Duchy of Finland. After a great fire destroyed a third of the town in 1808, Carl Ludwig Engel (1778-1840) was commissioned to rebuild it, and the resulting Neoclassical city center is laid out in wide handsome streets and boulevards with plentiful parks. The harbor, where many of the nearly 300 cruise ships that visit annually dock, is right in the heart of Helsinki, and a number of the top tourist attractions are within walking distance.

While it’s a culture-packed urban centre, Helsinki is surrounded by sublime natural environment that’s easily reached from every part of the city. Opportunities to get active abound here, from boating to its archipelago’s islands, strolling along its beaches and through its extensive parks and gardens, and hiking in its surrounding forests. When snow blankets the city in winter and the seas freeze, snowshoeing, cross-country and downhill skiing, ice skating and ice fishing on the many bays are all invigorating ways to keep warm while staying in touch with nature.