Top 5 museums in Helsinki

Helsinki features an extensive selection of distinguished museums, each providing valuable insights into the Finlands cultural heritage and historical development. If you’re pressed for time, it’s wise to choose your top picks together. Here’s a curated selection of five must-see museums—four situated right in the heart of Helsinki, with the fifth, the Cable Factory, just a short and convenient metro journey away. For those arriving by sea, Helsinki’s West Terminal is also within easy reach of the Cable Factory

1 Ateneum, 2 Amos Rex, 3 Helsinki Art Museum HAM, 4 Kiasma, 5 Cable Museums

1 Ateneum Art Museum

Located in the city centre, the Ateneum Art Museum houses the Finnish National Gallery’s renowned collection of classic Finnish art. The museum itself, an impressive building designed by Theodor Höijer in 1887, stands as a symbol of Finland’s national identity. Its permanent exhibition, "A Question of Time", is arranged around four themes: Nature, Finnish Identity, The City, and The Users of Power in Art—highlighting the significance of collection-building and notable donations.

Visitors can admire works by revered Finnish artists such as Albert Edelfelt, Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Helene Schjerfbeck, and Tove Jansson, as well as the only Vincent van Gogh painting in a Finnish public collection. 

Currently, the museum is hosting a major exhibition of Eero Nelimarkka (from 13.3. to 13.9.2026)

More about the Ateneum and its Permanent exhibition 

Ateneums website

 2 Amos Rex

Amos Rex, inaugurated in August 2018, continues the legacy of the original Amos Anderson Art Museum. Set within the historic Lasipalatsi (Glass Palace), the museum’s striking architecture—designed by JKMM Architects—features underground galleries illuminated by large, dome-shaped skylights that create a distinctive urban landscape above. The renovation of the 1936 Lasipalatsi building also restored the Bio Rex cinema, now serving as the museum’s auditorium.

Currently, Amos Rex presents the Generation triennial, held for the fourth time, it brings together 50 artists and collectives to explore the most pressing social questions of our time. The group exhibition for young artists is a flagship project of Amos Rex and the museum’s owner, the Amos Anderson Fund

Amos Rex website

3 Helsinki Art Museum (HAM)

HAM is housed in the Tennispalatsi (Tennis Palace), a notable example of Finnish Functionalism, originally built in 1937 and designed by Helge Lundström. Once a sports venue and service building for the Olympics, Tennispalatsi was transformed into a cultural centre in the late 1990s. Today, HAM showcases contemporary and modern art in spacious, renovated galleries. I used to play badminton at Tennispalatsi during my student years. The magnificent arched halls were excellently suited for that. However, the premises are apparently not the best possible for museum use, as the art museum is planned to move near the Market Square to Eteläsatama (South Harbour) sometime in the future.

A highlight this season is Crossing Boundaries marks the first solo exhibition of the Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz (1930–2017) in Finland.  (-30.8.2026)

 The exhibition runs  to 30.8.2026

You can read more about Abakans from here

Other exhibitions are also on view, including one at the Tove Jansson Gallery presenting Jansson’s artistic family, as well as works by Petri Ala-Maunus and Mauno Markkula.

HAM website

4 Kiasma

Kiasma, a landmark of contemporary art in Finland, opened in 1998 and was designed by Steven Holl. Its name refers to the intersection of optic nerves, and this concept is reflected in the dynamic architecture. Kiasma’s 2026 collection exhibition, A Dream in Four Colors will be on display until January 2027. 

Other exhibitions are also on view: Edith Karlson 17.4.–27.9.2026 and We Who Remain,

Sámi Art in Focus 27.3.–6.9.2026 

Merenmies, Elina. A Snake Full of Sighs (2023–2024), tempera and oil on canvas. Finnish National Gallery Collection, Kiasma | Acquisition 2025

You can read more about Collection exhibition from here

Kiasma website

5 Cable Factory Museums

Situated a little outside the centre, the Cable Factory (Kaapelitehdas) is Finland’s largest cultural complex, transformed from an industrial site into a thriving hub for the arts in the 1990s. The sprawling building hosts over 300 tenants and three notable museums: the Finnish Museum of Photography, the Theatre Museum, and the Hotel and Restaurant Museum.

Hotel and Restaurant Museum

Its permanent exhibition, "Taste Matters", explores Finnish food and drink culture through sight, sound, and scent. Highlights include the history of alcohol regulation, iconic food traditions, and recipes for visitors to try at home. The museum offers a rich sensory experience and serves as a fascinating substitute for the National Museum during its closure.

The picture shows the preparation of pies in 1929. Tyyni Vahter, Ethnographic photo collection, Museovirasto

You can read more about Taste Matters from here 

Turbulent Decades – Photos of Restaurant Life in the 60s and 70s' is on display at the museum from September 19, 2025 – August 30, 2026

Finnish Museum of Photography

Europe’s first museum dedicated to photographic art, this institution presents The Viewfinder—an engaging, non-chronological exploration of Finnish photography. The museum covers key historical moments, including the introduction of photography and its role in documenting change, memory, and identity. The current exhibition, The Film Still exhibition presents the exceptionally extensive life’s work of Marja-Leena “Malla” Hukkanen (b. 1959) as a film still photographer, spanning more than 40 years. Hukkanen has photographed, among other things, the widely circulated still images for nearly all of Aki Kaurismäki’s films. The exhibition is on view until 20 September 2026

Viewfinder (in Finnish)

Museums webpage

Theatre Museum

With its interactive exhibition The Third Call, the Theatre Museum invites visitors to experience every stage of performance creation, even stepping onto the Arkadia Theatre stage themselves. The exhibition features costumes, set designs, and technical equipment, and is best enjoyed with a guide. Another highlight is Amaze! Tales and Magic of Circus, which celebrates Finnish circus history and artistry, on display from 10/10/2025 to 10/01/2027.

The Third Call (in Finnish)

Cable Museums website

For more information on the Cable Factory visit their official website.

Cable Factory 1978. Sky-foto. Helsinki City Museum, Finna

Photograps by the author unless otherwise noted