Nightlife in Helsinki (2024)

Perched atop the historic and newly renovated Solo Sokos Hotel Torni, the Ateljee Bar is a modest space, accessed by an elevator and then a narrow spiral straircase, but it's big enough to serve its purpose: serving co*cktails and other drinks. Though the drinks are expensive, the views of the city from its balconies—and famously, from its bathrooms—are second to none. Art exhibitions are an added attraction. A very pricey "Breakfast with a View" is a new offering.

Steeped in history, this bar was first opened in 1906 by the Helsinki Workers' Association. If that gives a staid impression, don't be deterred: Juttutupa hosts great jazz, blues, and other music nights (admission is free) and has a convivial, authentically Helsinki atmosphere, making it one of the city's best live music venues. At the bar's "revolutionary table," Vladimir Lenin met with fellow conspirators and plotted Russia's revolution, just one element of a fascinating and eventful history. The bar is inside the so-called "granite castle," a magnificent National Romantic–style stone fortress behind the Scandic Paasi hotel, overlooking an inlet from the sea. The menu includes good pizzas and salads, and there is an outdoor terrace that catches the evening sun.

Helsinki's most popular jazz club comprises a street-level Piano Bar and Music Club with a Creole-themed restaurant in the basem*nt; on Friday and Saturday you'll find live jazz, blues, rock and roll, and dancing. There's also a pleasant outdoor summer-only terrace in the small park across the street.

An affluent crowd frequents this English-style pub, one of the first of its kind when it opened back in the 1970s that is still one of the most convincing in the genre with its wooden bar, subdued lighting, and dartboard. Originally popular with the more sedate English-speaking expat set, these days it's frequented by aficionados of fine real ales, of which there is an excellent selection.

For an upscale evening of co*cktails, dinner, and a live show (June–August), head over to Grand Casino Helsinki's Fennia Salon.

G Livelab is a cool live music venue with an intimate club atmosphere that allows the performers to shine. Mainly jazz acts from Finland and farther afield perform here.

Grotesk belies its name with black carpet, an ornate polished-wood ceiling, and well-dressed people sipping champagne and expertly made co*cktails; its courtyard is packed in summer.

Larger than it appears from the outside, this bar—actually two conjoined bars with two separate entrances—offers a huge range of beers, ales, ciders, and whiskies from across the globe as well as bar snacks, including doorstop toast sandwiches. Popular with students (Helsinki University buildings are nearby), after-work drinkers, and board game enthusiasts, it's a lively haunt especially for discerning beer drinkers.

This old spa structure in beautiful Kaivopuisto Park is open on weekend event nights—see the website for dates and details—when it's often packed with a trendy young dance set.

The windows of this ornate, classic 19th-century Esplanade venue—containing a café, bar, and restaurant as well as offering one of Helsinki's most popular summer terraces—provide an excellent view of the Havis Amanda statue and the western edge of the Market Square. The terrace is a great place to sip a drink while enjoying afternoon performances on the bandstand on the other side of the Esplanade.

Considering the Finns' reputation for reserve and reticence, it might come as a surprise to discover their passion for a decidedly extroverted pursuit: karaoke. A gutsy, tear-jerking bellow of a Finnish pop classic after a few tuopit, or large beers, seems to proffer emotional therapy on a weekend evening for many a Finn. If you are seeking an archetypal, down-to-earth Helsinki nightlife experience, top of the list is Pataässä (Ace of Spades), a Helsinki institution where sessions, picked from a list of 100,000 songs, continue every morning until 5 am (and on weekends get going again four hours later). It's tucked away behind the Lutheran Cathedral.

The first-floor restaurant in this lively three-floor complex is open until midnight from Sunday to Thursday (until 1 am on Fridays), but the main attraction (in addition to the late-night pizza) is the entertainment: live music acts, Sunday lounge music, after-work jazz on Thursdays, and occasional stand-up comedy. It's a popular last stop on the weekend bar crawl for the younger set.

Helsinki's liveliest, most authentic and popular Irish pub, voted one of Europe's best in the genre, consists of three distinct bar areas, with live music in the upstairs bar.

Expect a good selection of co*cktails, wine, and champagne, served in a pleasant and "expressively gay" lounge environment. Recommended among Helsinki's queer community as a relaxed meeting place, it has a popular outdoor terrace on this leafy boulevard in summer.

Tavastia Club is one of the best and most atmospheric rock clubs for top Finnish talent and some solid imports. Be prepared for some good-natured rowdiness and late starts for bands.

Located behind the Swedish Theater, Teatteri takes full advantage of its sexy Esplanade location with a perennially cool (and expensive) nightclub and two bar-lounges.

Located on the edge of the Kamppi Center mall, Teerenpeli Kamppi serves excellent on-tap and bottled beers from its on-site microbrewery, its own whiskey, and substantial snacks and tapas plates.

The three spaces here attract students with live music and DJs—blues, folk, jazz, reggae, hip-hop, and Latin are all represented.

This four-story, Jugendstil building next to the main railway station, once the Finnair city terminal, is now a bar and restaurant with the best selection of Czech beers and filling pub food in the city.

Probably the best sports bar in Helsinki, the Woolshed is an Australian gastropub serving a great selection of beers and good-value pub meals such as fish-and-chips and burgers. There are special discounts on certain evenings. A plethora of well-placed TVs with access to major sports channels show the most popular sporting events, including ice hockey, soccer, rugby, and cricket, making it popular with expats as well as locals. It has a spacious outdoor terrace, too, and a back door that opens onto the railway station platforms.