Do I need a guide to go to nature in Helsinki?

No, not necessarily. But if you want the best experience of nature in peace and quiet, then yes, a guide makes your life much easier. You don't need to worry about transport, food and drinks, weather, finding the best places, finding berries and mushrooms, and you get to places where other tourists don't go.

How can I get to Nuuksio National Park?

By yourself on public transport, by taxi to anywhere in the national park, or with a guide who picks you up from your hotel or Airbnb and takes you back as well.

How much time do I need to go to Nuuksio National Park?

Public transport takes 1-1,5 hours one way, that's 3 hours plus the time you are in the national park, so at least 6 hours in total. With a guide you get to the national park in 30-40 minutes and you want to stay there for at least 3 hours. I recommend staying for 6 hours.

When is the best time to go to Nuuksio National Park?

Weekends are always busy on the main trails. With a guide you get peace in weekends too. Best time for berries is in July and August. Best time for mushrooms and fall colors is in November. Best time for snowshoeing is in February and March. Best time to see the forest come back to life after winter is in May.

What do I need to take with me to Nuuksio National Park?

There is a restaurant in Nature Center Haltia and you can get drinking water from Haukkalampi. If you want to explore more, you should take drinking water, snacks and a lunch, a map, suitable shoes, insect protection, warm jacket and rain gear, and you should know where you are going and how you can get back. With a guide you don't need to worry about these.

What are the best trails in Nuuksio National Park?

The most popular main marked trail is Haukankierros, it starts from Haukkalampi which is the most popular place in the national park. It's a nice trail, but it can get crowded. Korpinkierros has lot's of road for my liking, but it's longer. The absolute best trails are unmarked and outside the most popular part of the national park. Maps don't show all these smaller trails. You need to explore for them or take a guide.

What activities there are in Nuuksio National Park?

Finnish people go to the national park to walk and wander, breath the fresh air, pick some berries or mushrooms, swim in the lakes and just relax in peace and quiet. Other activities like canoeing are there to attract tourists, Finns don't do those things in Nuuksio National Park.

All Inclusive Hiking Tours to Finland’s National Parks from Helsinki

My name is Mikko and you can think of me as your Finnish Friend who loves being out in nature. — .

❤ Reasons to Go With Me

My hikes are private for you, you don’t have to go with a big group of unknown people.

Freedom of hiking distances and schedules, and your own peace and quiet thanks to the small group size.

You can borrow all hiking and camping gear needed, they’re included in the prices.

You don’t want a heavy backpack to ruin all the joys of being in nature, we use ultralight gear on my trips.

I can adapt the tours to your wishes and needs, for example if you want pickup from your hotel and drop off at the airport, or to come with children or a dog, or if you have physical disabilities.

There are no booking fees or payments in advance, you only pay after the tour.

Archipelago by Helsinki
Day hike
Starts at 100 €
Repovesi National Park
Camping – 2 or 3 days
Starts at 250 €

» See All Tours

I’ve built my tours based on things you need to think about when visiting national parks around Helsinki, to make it as easy as possible for you to just enjoy your authentic experience, in all the best places, at any time of year.

Everything has been taken care of for you. You don’t need to worry about transport, weather and clothing or camping gear, food or drinks, finding your way or finding peace.

All you need to do is walk in nature. Let your mind and body wander in the forest.

We hike responsibly and respect nature. We leave only footprints behind.

What My Customers Think of Me

4.9

11 reviews

Alan

04.09.2023 - Google

I had such a good time meeting Mikko. I did a two day, one night hike in Repovesi national park (amazing place), and Mikko was knowledgeable, friendly, organized—just a perfect host. I would also really recommend booking a course with him if you’re curious about ultralight camping—I learned a ton (Mikko is a camping encyclopedia + has tried tons of different equipment). I even got to try out a cool Durston tent 🤓. I’m excited to do a longer trip with him (he’s got lots of flexible course options), and hopefully eventually a winter course too!

Rochelle

30.08.2023 - Google

Mikko was an excellent host, and indeed felt like our new Finnish friend by the end of the trip. Extremely well organized and tailored the hike to our interests / desired level of difficulty (I did the 3-day hike in Repovesi 5 months pregnant!). Good quality and very comfortable gear, which even included a real pillow (a true camping luxury). Van was also very comfortable and convenient because we could leave our larger suitcases there while we hiked. Food was tasty and filling, and the coffee (with milk and sugar!) was excellent. Learned lots about Finland as well as the nature we were enjoying. Mikko truly cares about his guests' experience. Would highly recommend any of the experiences Mikko offers. Thank you, Mikko!

04.07.2023 - Google

Found Mikko’s website totally by chance on Google and I’m so glad I did! I signed up for the hiking course for 3d3n. Mikko is full of knowledge about Finnish wildlife and nature and can answer any questions that you have about hiking in Finland. I had so much fun training myself to carry a 10kg backpack, navigation on the trail, setting up a tent and starting my own campfire. I also got to pick bilberries and a cloudberry! Mikko is super chill and can customise the trip to whatever you prefer be it hiking 25km a day or just 6km. The trip was really like being with a Finnish friend and I always felt safe and assured with him around. Totally recommend his courses and hikes for people looking for peace and quiet in Finnish nature!

Transport

My tours include transport from your hotel, Airbnb or the airport to our destination and back. There’s plenty of space in my car to change your clothes and stretch your legs.

I’ll pick you up when you want to go.

I can pick you up from the airport if you want to go to nature straight away, or if you’re just on a stopover or layover in Helsinki, or pick you up from your hotel and take you to the airport after our trip. You can leave your luggage in my car.

Hiking and camping gear, clothing, shoes and other equipment

Vaellusvarusteet vaellusmatkoilla. Sisältää teltat, makuupussit ja -alustat, tyynyt, rinkat ja kaiken muun tarvittavan. — My tours include all hiking and camping gear you need to stay overnight in a national park. The gear is good, I use the same in Lapland.

You can borrow a backpack, tent, sleeping bag and pad, pillow, jackets, trousers, shoes, gloves, beanies and caps, socks, snowshoes, walking poles, towel and everything else you might need on a camping trip or a day hike.

You’ll stay dry, you’ll stay warm. Unless you go swimming.

And you can keep your own clothes clean by borrowing mine.

Food, Snacks and Drinks

Kahvia kuksasta Porkkalanniemessä. — Quality coffee or tea even on hikes!

All meals you need during the trips are included from the moment you step in to my minibus.

Eat breakfast before I pick you up. On day hikes I provide snacks, drinks and a lunch in Finnish style. On longer camping trips all the snacks, drinks and meals are included. That means you get breakfasts, snacks while walking, lunch and dinner after we set camp. Warm drinks like coffee or tea you can get whenever you want.

Let me know about your diets or allergies on the booking form, I’ll accommodate everyone.

Guiding

Nuuksio National Park in spring in May. Quiet side of the national park, the trails are hidden deep in the woods. Finnish nature near Helsinki, Finland. — The best places and experiences are often hidden deep in the woods, behind a walk on secret trails.

You don’t need to know anything about hiking to go on my tours. I’ll take care of you.

Often on day hikes you don’t even need to carry a backpack, on overnight hiking and camping trips you’ll carry a very light pack. Otherwise you can choose how much you’ll participate in the work like setting up tents and packing up, or cooking.

Because we’ll hike in a small group without a predetermined plan and schedule I can change our route in the middle of the hike to accommodate your wishes or the conditions.

I want to show you the best places, but the most important thing on every hike is always safety, and that we’ll return to the car by walking on our own feet. As your guide I’ll make sure that happens.

Being your guide also means telling you about Finnish nature and helping you in every way possible. Let me know of your wishes and I’ll do my best to fulfil them.

Relaxed Schedule

Nuuksio National Park in fall. Having my morning coffee by a beautiful lake. Nature near Helsinki, Finland. — For me being in nature is supposed to be relaxing, that’s what I want you to have as well.

I want you to have a stress-free experience, we can go when it suits you and stay in the destination for long. There’s no schedule for preplanned route or programs to follow, we are free to go and do as we please.

If you decide you just want to sit down in peace and sense the world around you, we can do that. If you want to pick berries or mushrooms, we can do that. If you want to see as many lakes as possible and walk a long distance, we can do that. If you want to spend time alone with your loved one in the middle of a quiet forest, you can do that.

All the Typical Finnish Activities

Nuuksio National Park in summer in July. Handful of wild blueberries, or actually bilberries. Nature near Helsinki, Finland. — Picking blueberries in Nuuksio National Park. Thanks to Finland’s Everyman’s right we are free to pick edible things from nature.

We can do all the things Finnish people do when walking in nature, like pick berries, forage mushrooms, swim in the lakes, snowshoe, or just relax in the peace and quiet.

You don’t need to book different activities, they’re all included according to season and weather.

Privacy and Personal Experience

Nuuksio National Park in fall. Finnish forest on quiet autumn days in November. Nature near Helsinki, Finland. — I know where to take you to avoid crowds, where we can be alone on quiet trails.

My tours are private for you or your small group, and I want to take you to places where you can have the peace Finland’s nature is all about.

By being alone we can have much purer, personal experience of the natural world around us. We’ll experience small moments in time that we are the only witnesses to.

What Do I Know About Hiking

I’ve started hiking, backpacking, camping, whatever we call it, from zero. I haven’t been in scouts. I haven’t copied somebody else’s way of doing things, although it would’ve made some things easier to learn.

What starting from a sofa to go hiking and camping has forced me to do is that I don’t do things just because that’s how they’ve always been taught. I’ve had to learn to do things so that hiking is comfortable TO ME. It has taken some experiments and mistakes, but now when I take beginners to camp in national parks or Lapland’s wilderness, they don’t complain about being uncomfortable. Everything just works.

Skills and knowledge I’ve gathered on hundreds of nights in a tent and on thousands of kilometres on trails, and often outside of them, from Nuuksio National Park to wildernesses in Lapland.

I’ve gone to the mountains of North in spring when everybody else has said that it’s too early, and then I’ve enjoyed my time in an empty wilderness. In a same way I’ve stayed at the mountains in fall when the hiking season has been over and everybody else has gone home, and then I’ve looked at the amazing displays of northern lights and snow-covered mountaintops. Those are the kinds of things you’ll experience when you go on hiking adventures yourself.

Mikko Sinisalo's adventure in Lapland, hiking the Nordkalottruta/Nordkalottleden and a bit more. Hike across the Northern Norway. — My Kalotti 2011 hike: 1200 kilometres and 86 nights camping the whole way. Nordkalottruta from Sulitjelma to Kautokeino, and from there to Sandfjord on my own trails.

Adventures and hiking in nature, from Southern Finland to Lapland, in national parks and in wilderness. Finland, Sweden, Norway. Part 1 of 2. — Backpacking memories from Sweden, Norway, Koli and Hossa National Parks and from Porkkalanniemi.

Adventures and hiking in nature, from Southern Finland to Lapland, in national parks and in wilderness. Finland, Sweden, Norway. Part 2 of 2. — More memories from adventures in Lapland. You’ll experience many amazing things when you spend time outdoors.

I’ve hiked a lot alone and if I’d need to mention something especially important to know, it would be taking care of yourself. Somewhere out there in the wilderness nobody else looks after you, there’s nobody to help you if something bad happens, and there might not be any phone reception. Now I take care of you as my job.

You can trust me to keep you safe, to stay calm, and to always bring you back in a good spirit.

Partner of Metsähallitus, Parks & Wildlife Finland

Availability

You can check my availability from this page.

Ask Me Anything

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