Haltia - The Finnish Nature Centre — Attraction in Helsinki sub-region

The gateway to Finnish nature. - Haltia. Friendly staff, provides valuable information on forest trails, appropriate maps, hiking equipment rental. Gift shop & restaurant are all under one roof. Haltia building also has an accessible lookout point . Guided tours are available at a price but self guided map at your own pace is more fun and adventurous. It was raining on the day, hiking would have been impossible however thanks to the rain gear rental facility available for €5 deposit at the Nature centre. Enjoy buffet lunch or snacks and drinks at the restaurant or Experience 5 seasonal multi sensory journey upto the fells of Lapland at the museum. €12 admission fee. Nuuksio National Park is half an hour taxi journey from Helsinki. Explore the wilderness through marked forest trails and its panoramic...

This review is specifically about the visitor centre, not about the national parc. The centre was a large disappointment. Exhibitions do not consist of real items but are photo's, art, movies and installations for small children. The main focus seems to be design, not about transferring knowledge to the visitor. Consequently we did not learn anything about this national parc, nor about any other national parc. There is actually little content to see here, no texts or rather too long texts. Very disappointing because you can see that a lot of money and effort went to the design. Maybe our expectation of getting information about national parcs (e.g. history, special sights, special plants, animals, geology, etc.) was wrong? But then, what is the use of...

Building integrates well to the beautiful surroundings. When you enter the building it feels like you're in an Ikea furniture. Downstairs are cramped. Maybe more openness and windows would bring the nature better inside.

On the upstairs restaurant there are window places that are wanted and a good terrace, same here more windows. Food was bland and there were some odd choice of foods like cold roots. Desserts and coffee were good. I can see why buffe costs 18€, because of the ingredients, but the execution wasn't that good.

All in all good place for a lunch after some wandering in the beautiful...