Seurasaari

Outdoor museum Helsinki, Finland

Seurasaari is an island and district of Helsinki, best known as the location of the Seurasaari Open Air Museum, which consists of old mostly wooden buildings transplanted from other parts of Finland and set in the island's dense forest landscape. Every summer, many Helsinki residents come to Seurasaari to enjoy the rural and serene atmosphere outdoors. Despite the visitors, the island has a variety of wildlife, especially birds, but also red squirrels and hares. The height of the island's popularity is in mid-summer, when a large bonfire is built on a small island just off the coast of the island, and lit by a newlywed couple. Thousands of people, both tourists and Helsinkians, watch the bonfire fire both from Seurasaari and from boats anchored near it.