In the summertime, the city's public playgrounds provide families and children with fun and diverse activities, guided sessions, and various events in a safe environment. The playground staff are there for the children and their families. Activities take place from Monday to Friday, are free of charge, and there is no need to register. All activities are in Finnish.
Come play, be active, make music and do arts and crafts with us! These activities are free of charge, and you do not need to sign up for them.
At playgrounds, parents and guardians can meet other families with children, while children can find new friends to play with. You can heat your own food and make coffee or tea. In addition to guided holiday activities, the children are free to use the toys and games of the playground. Families can spend time freely at the open playgrounds.
We hope to see you there!
For more information, get in touch with the playground staff.
Playground is a public space where an under school-aged child must have an adult with them supervising the child’s play. The staff may contact the authorities if they feel that a child is not being supervised adequately. The playground staff is not in charge of supervising individual children at the playground.
Schoolchildren are welcome to spend summer holiday days at playgrounds. They can spend the entire day at the playground if they want to! They can play, meet friends, join trips and take part in guided activities.
The staff will take care of the schoolchildren’s safety throughout the day. When a schoolchild spends entire summer days at the playground, their guardian can give the staff their contact information and inform the staff of the family's own arrangements, such as the child's curfew, whether the child is allowed to travel independently, and so on. Children at the payground are insured during the playground's opening hours. Please note that the guardian bears the primary responsibility for the child at the playground. This means that the schoolchild's skills, abilities and readiness to participate in the playground activities is evaluated by the playground staff together with the child's guardian.
For more information, get in touch with the playground staff.
The Swedish-speaking playground activities will visit some of the public playgrounds in Helsinki during the summer. See dates, times and other details below.
The guided sessions will feature a variety of activities, such as art & crafts, play, music, nursery rhymes and songs, movement, and singing – all in the Swedish language! The activities are free of charge, and no advance registration is required, except for excursions. Come along and join in the fun!
Children under the age of 16 get a free lunch at the playgrounds from Monday to Friday at 12.00 pm noon. Please bring your own bowl, spoon and cup. On most days, the summer food is soup, so it's a good idea to top it off with your own sandwich or other snacks.
Some playgrounds have paddling pools, so remember to pack a swimsuit and a towel.
Times for the guided activities in playgrounds listed below:
The legendary summer meals at Helsinki playgrounds go back 83 years! Summer meals are provided by all playgrounds open during the season.
The summer meals are free of charge and served on weekdays at 12.00 noon to children under the age of 16. The child must bring their own tableware: a plate, a mug and a spoon. Water is served as the beverage. On most days, the summer food is soup, so packing an extra snack or a sandwich is a good idea. The menus are on display at the playgrounds.
For more information, get in touch with the playground staff and on the Palvelukeskus Helsinki website Summer meals at playgrounds(Link leads to external service) .
Some playgrounds provide free-of-charge day camps for schoolchildren in grades 1–3. The day camps last from Monday to Friday (from Monday to Thursday in the Midsummer week). The daily activity time of the day camps is 9.00–16.00. All day camp activities are in Finnish.
Sign up your child for a day camp by emailing the organising playground directly. In your email, include the child’s name, what grade they are in in school, and the guardian’s contact details. The places are filled on a first come, first served basis. Any registrations submitted before the registration period will be ignored. The playground organising the day camp will contact you after registration.
For more information, get in touch with the playground staff and the senior playground instructor.
Registration opens on 8 April 2025 at 8.00
Paddling pools are managed by the city’s Urban Environment Division.
Under school aged child strictly must have an adult supervising them at the pool.
Due to safety or hygiene reasons, the pool may be emptied during the activities.
Playgrounds that have a paddling pool: Brahe, Etupelto, Filpus, Intia, Isoneva, Kankarepuisto, Kotinummi, Kurranummi, Lehdokki, Linja, Linnunrata, Lohikäärmepuisto, Maasälpä, Maunula, Mellunmäki, Mustakivi, Mäkitorppa, Nuoli, Nurkka, Orava, Piika, Rudolf, Salpausselkä, Ulvila, Viikkari and Vähätupa.
At Café Tänään tavataan ("See you today"), families with different language and cultural backgrounds can meet, spend time and talk Finnish in a comfortable and relaxed environment. Adults get to know each other, and children find playmates. You can also take part in the activities without your child.