Pienten Helsinki
Museum Experiences in Helsinki and Surrounding Area
For those looking for indoor activities and on rainy days, many museums in Helsinki and the surrounding area are excellent places to spend time and experience something new. Many museums have thoughtfully accommodated young visitors, and for example, you can move around with strollers and carriages in the exhibitions. Many museums also have quite functional care rooms as well as places to eat packed lunches.
Please note that many museums are closed on Mondays! However, not the Helsinki City Museum, Tram Museum, Merkki, TAHTO, and Amos Rex (Amos Rex is closed on Tuesdays).
Article published in 2022, updated 30.12.2025
Amos Rex
Amos Rex Under Lasipalatsi Square welcomes children as visitors too. Many exhibitions are designed with interactive ways for children to experience the museum, but it's worth checking before your visit whether the current exhibition is suitable for children. Amos Rex also provides Ou-hug buddies for the youngest visitors to take into the exhibition. The Small Helsinki team also recommends exploring the museum's interior courtyard roosting places, especially in summer!
Museum entrance fee, under 18s free.
Accessible entrance from the Lasipalatsi Square side.
Amos Rex is open on Mondays but closed on Tuesdays.
Read also: Small Helsinki's article about Amos Rex
Design Museum
Design Museum on Korkeavuorenkatu welcomes little ones too to explore design and the museum housed in an old school. The museum organizes varying family design workshops mainly on weekends and during school holidays. It's also possible to arrange children's birthday parties. Museum entrance fee, 2–17 year-olds €2.
Escape to Moomintales Exhibition at the Design Museum from 10.10.2025–27.9.2026. The exhibition is partly interactive and works well to experience with children.
Accessible entrance through the museum's back door.
from 10.10.2025–27.9.2026
Helsinki City Museum and Children's City
Helsinki City Museum and its Children's City at the edge of Senate Square is always a safe choice for a young museum visit. Here you learn history through play! Always free admission.
A sheltered carriage park is located next to the main entrance. Children's City is set in one of Helsinki's oldest buildings, so space for strollers is limited. Otherwise, the museum is easy to navigate with strollers and carriages. The City Museum's lobby is an open community living room where you can rest for a moment or even eat packed lunches. The Children's City side also has a space where you can eat and warm up your own food. The Children's City can get quite warm on hot days.
Read also: Small Helsinki's article about Helsinki City Museum
Hotel and Restaurant Museum
Hotel and Restaurant Museum at Kaapelitehtaa also works as a museum destination for children. From time to time, there are also exhibitions specifically designed for children. It's also possible to arrange children's birthday parties.
Museum entrance fee, under 18s free. Joint tickets are available for the Hotel and Restaurant Museum and the Theater Museum.
Kaisaniemi Botanical Garden
Kaisaniemi Botanical Garden enchants in all seasons. Entrance fee, under 7s free. Free admission to the garden's outdoor area.
Moving around with strollers in the old greenhouses is challenging, so for the very smallest visitors, for example, a baby carrier is recommended. Strollers and carriages can be left at the coatroom. Jackets and hats should also be left at the coatroom, as it's tropically warm here! Enjoying packed lunches in the wonderful garden or in the garden's glass pavilion is at least during the summer season an experience, so just a picnic trip to Kaisaniemi is a nice idea (the outdoor garden always has free admission). The area is also home to Cafe Viola, which offers lunch.
Read also: Small Helsinki's article about Kaisaniemi Botanical Garden
National Museum
The National Museum will close its doors on 15.10.2023 for over three years for renovation and expansion projects. The museum will reopen to the public in spring 2027.
At the National Museum you can marvel at Finnish history, royal splendor, and ponder what life was like long ago. The Finland's Story exhibition is really interactive for children too. In October 2022, the museum opened a Play Time space on the 3rd floor (in the former Vint spaces), featuring various interactive stations for children. It also includes elements familiar from Vint, such as a large horse and a buildable log cabin.
Museum entrance fee, under 18s free.
Accessible entrance from the museum tower base, below the main entrance stairs. On the ground floor, there's an opportunity to store strollers and a children's care room. The museum's elevator is relatively small and slow, but small double strollers fit in just barely.
Contemporary Art Museum Kiasma
At Contemporary Art Museum Kiasma there are occasionally exhibitions that are excellent for children, but it's worth checking in advance, as not all Kiasma exhibitions are suitable for small visitors. Museum entrance fee, under 18s free.
Easy to navigate with strollers, excellent carriage parking in the entrance hall under the stairs, and child-friendly staff. Loaner strollers available and a functional children's care room on the 1st floor. Special mention to Kiasma's café, which has reserved tables for those with strollers and offers table service.
Kindergarten Museum
At the Kindergarten Museum children play on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. Entrance fee, under 18s free. The Kindergarten Museum is closed from Midsummer to August and during Christmas.
A sheltered storage space for strollers is available on the museum's grounds.
Espoo: Museo Leikki
From Tokyo to Tapiola Special Exhibition at Museo Leikki from 17.4.2024 – 22.3.2026 introduces Japanese popular culture. The special exhibition is particularly suitable for school-age children and teenagers
Museo Leikki in Espoo's Tapiola offers, as its name suggests, a journey in time through the world of play and toys. The museum isn't very large, but in addition to the items in the display cases, there are various activity stations and opportunities for play. Museum entrance fee, under 2s free.
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is a must-visit museum destination with children in Helsinki. The museum organizes workshops during school holidays and occasionally on weekends, as well as various events. The exhibitions have plenty to see and interactive elements. Museum entrance fee, under 7s free.
Accessible entrance from the north side of Rautatiekatu, from the left side of the building, stroller storage on the museum grounds and on the first floor. You can also move with strollers in the exhibition if needed.
Read also: Small Helsinki's article about the Natural History Museum
Merkki Media Museum and Archive
The Peppi exhibition at Museo Merkki closed on 30.12.2025.
Merkki Media Museum and Archive (formerly Päivälehti Museum) on Ludvikinkatu is an easy and always free museum destination to pop into with children. Merkki is open mainly daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., taking into account any exceptions to opening hours.
The museum offers a small corner for children, built around the Helsinki Sanomat Children's News and various signs. It also features Donald Duck and Finnish children's literature classics, as well as Donald Duck's car. The museum has rotating exhibitions, often designed for children and executed with quality.
Merkki is a nice stop on a city trip, but you shouldn't expect a huge experience with children unless there's currently a special exhibition made for children, such as the Skdiditpeli game in 2024 and the Peppi exhibition in 2025. Good location, bright and clear spaces, and consideration for children are reasons to recommend the place. On the ground floor, you can still find the old printing cellar with vintage printing machines.
Merkki is located at the corner of Ludvikinkatu and Korkeavuorenkatu. The museum has accessible entrance, a children's care room, and the staff warmly welcome child visitors.
Read also: Small Helsinki's Päivälehti Museum articles
Tram Museum
Tram Museum next to Töölö tram depot takes you on a journey through Helsinki's history every day from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Trams from different decades and other tram-related materials are on display. The Tram Museum reopened as renewed in March 2022 after a long break. Always free admission.
Accessible entrance and easy navigation with strollers.
Seurasaari
Seurasaari Open-Air Museum is open during the summer season. Seurasaari has free admission (the island has a beach, grilling area, beautiful shores, and nature), and only visiting the museum buildings requires a museum ticket.
Seurasaari without a museum visit is also a nice outdoor destination year-round!
Museum building admission fee, under 18s free.
Suomenlinna Museums
Suomenlinna has six museums: Suomenlinna Museum, Ehrensvärd Museum, War Museum Exhibition Hall, Submarine Vesikko, Suomenlinna Toy Museum, and Customs Museum. The museums are located on different sides of the fortress.
TAHTO - Sports Museum
Located at the Olympic Stadium, TAHTO Sports Museum showcases Finnish sports history and achievements. The museum also has several different activity stations suitable for children. Many interesting objects from Finnish elite sports history are on display. TAHTO is also open on Mondays. The museum is mostly accessible.
Museum entrance fee, under 7s free.
Tamminiemi
Tamminiemi in Meilahti, right next to Seurasaari, is a presidential residence and is now a home museum. This place may not come to mind first when thinking about a museum destination with children, but you should definitely stop by here – especially in summer, Tamminiemi's grounds and the nearby ice cream kiosk are hits! Museum entrance fee, under 7s free.
Tamminiemi is not accessible, so unfortunately you cannot navigate with strollers.
Read also: Small Helsinki's museum series article about Tamminiemi
Theater Museum
At the Theater Museum at Kaapelitehtaa, there is plenty to do and experience for children as well. It's also possible to arrange children's birthday parties. Museum entrance fee, under 3s free.
Joint tickets are available for the Hotel and Restaurant Museum and the Theater Museum.
Accessible entrance and spacious elevator lead to the museum.
Museum of Technology
Museum of Technology at Vanhankaupunginlahti is also suitable as a museum destination for children and especially school-age children. Theme days and exhibitions built from children's perspective, and the museum environment with its rushing rapids is also interesting. It's possible to arrange children's birthday parties. Museum entrance fee, under 7s free.
Exhibition spaces are not fully accessible.
Espoo: WeeGee Exhibition Center
WeeGee Exhibition Center in Espoo offers diverse museum experiences for all ages. EMMA – Espoo Museum of Modern Art, KAMU Espoo City Museum, Mauri Kunnas Exhibition, and the Futuro House (open in summer) invite exploration. The Mauri Kunnas exhibition and KAMU Espoo City Museum are particularly appealing to children.
With one ticket, you can visit all the museums at the exhibition center. Museum entrance fee, under 18s free.
The venue is accessible, and you can move between floors by elevator.
Museum Adventures with Children All Around Finland!
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