Helsinki Every Night Skates

Where do you start exactly?

We start from the Paavo Nurmi statue, which is located between the Olympic Stadium and the National Opera. The flat surfaced areas around the statue are ideal for skaters.

If you are at the main railway station with your skates, you can reach the meeting point by skating via Töölönlahdenkatu to the Finlandia Hall, and then through the Hesperia park to the National Opera (the distance is about two kilometers).

Paavo Nurmi statue meeting point on map (GPS coordinates are also available)

When the tours start, at 1.15 pm or 6.15 pm?

It depends on the weekday. On working days we start at 6.15 pm. Weekends and other public holidays we start at 1.15 pm. Skaters arrive usually just before the start.

Skaters may arrange extra starts during the common holiday weeks. Don't bother to ask the schedule for the next few days when you meet us.

How many skaters there are usually skating?

Helsinki Every Night Skates are not big mass events like many night skates in other countries. Because in Finland skating is generally allowed in city centers and even on roads, Finnish skaters do not need a demonstration-like event to be able to skate in the city.

During the best season, there have been usually up to 15 skaters on Helsinki Every Night Skates. The small group ensures that you will get the best view of the city and you will be able to discuss with the experienced local skaters.

How do I know beforehand that I'll be able to skate fast enough?

We have agreed that we adapt your speed to the slowest skater skating with us. We probably have so much to speak with foreign tourists that the speed will not be any problem!

Note that Helsinki is not a completely flat city (but far from San Francisco). Ability to brake is necessary because it is not possible to avoid all downhills. However, if you do not like downhills, we do our best to avoid them when choosing the route.

Wednesdays are special novice-friendly days with shorter skating distance. Also on other weekdays the skating distance is usually suitable for novices. See Helsinki Every Night Skates home page for details.

It is possible that there are no skaters starting some days. How can I know this beforehand?

Helsinki Every Night Skates have no assigned leaders. This allows skating every day - everyone, including active skaters, may come or not to come. So, it is possible that there are no skaters starting some day, especially if the weather is not sunny and warm. Also during the common Finnish holiday season (July) there are less skaters in the city.

If you are joining us first time, wait for beautiful sunny weather and prefer Wednesday and weekend starts.
Check the dates in Street Gliders' event calendar (in Finnish, but look at the dates). If there is another event in the same day, there may not be enough skaters for this daily skating tour.
On summer weekends the trip distances are longer but also other events are more common, which may reduce the number of skaters even to zero.
During spring (before May) and autumn (after August) confirm the start beforehand.
When you are skating with us, ask our mobile phone numbers. Active skaters are pleased to give their numbers. Then you can confirm the start next time.

Many local skaters really enjoy showing Helsinki sights and skating routes by skates. Therefore if you are going to visit Helsinki as a skate tourist, it is a good idea to inform Street Gliders by email (info...katukiitajat.fi) well beforehand. This helps in meeting language-skilled local skaters at the starting point.

Why these tours are called as "every night skates" even they seem to happen at daytime?

If we start at 1.15 pm, we may continue skating to the midnight if everyone want to skate so long! The actual reason is that summer nights are so light here in north that there is not so big difference to skate at 1 pm or 9 pm.

Why to skate only on Fridays? The Finnish traffic rules are so skater-friendly that nothing prevents us to skate every day. Someone may be leaving Helsinki before next dry Friday!

Do I have to be a member in your club? Do I have to pay something?

Helsinki Every Night Skates are free and open for everyone who can skate, without any beforehand registration. You do not need to be a skillful skater – also novices are always welcome!

We skate according to the traffic rules and at our own risk. This is the funniest way to have a sightseeing in Helsinki. There is no other way to see so much details in the large Helsinki area. A few hours tour may take you to the city center, sea, fields, and forests.

So take your skates with you for your next business or holiday trip to Helsinki!