The best Vappu party in Helsinki announcement
Vappu (May Day) is is a huge deal in Finland. It’s a wild carnival that is so popular among the Finns you could say it’s in contention for the unofficial independence day 2 (Juhannus – Mid Summer – is equally popular). In Helsinki tens of thousands of Finns celebrate the spring and flock the streets and parks. Traditionally celebrated by university students and the working class the Vappu has a special meaning for the Finns. The long and hard Winter is just about finally over, and it’s time for the darkness to go away and be replaced eventually by 2 weeks of summer.
Exceptionally this year, the capping ceremony of the Havis Amanda statue will be replaced by som other kind of gathering, held at Kansalaistori, as Manta is under repair.
This is a historical tradition that has continued uninterrupted since 1921, but this year the Student Union of the University of the Arts is responsible for organizing the event and offers a diverse program. The art object to be capped will be revealed on the day of the event, and the capping will be performed using cranes at 6 p.m.
Finding your way to the best party in the city
One tradition you can count on is that the best Vappu partty will be held at Crystal Show Club. Our doors are open as normal, from 21.00 until 05.00 in the morning.
During Vappu you can expect that the city is a state of lockdown due to the excess confetti, balloons, champagne and inebriated citizens. The following map identifies the areas where you can expect “alternate traffic arrangments”.
The read areas are where the authorities have informed of alternate traffic arrangements. So best to avoid those if you are traveling by taxi and trying to get to any form of transport that runs on a schedule. However, if you are planning on walking, the read areas are a gret place to to consider. On May1st, early in the morning , the Kaivopuisto park in south east bottom corner is an excellent pölace to observe the natives.
As you can see from the map, Crystal Show Club, marked in the center in the black, is a convenient distance by foot from almost enywhwere in the city.
During Vappu, black turns white and even the Finns become talkative and social
The rest of the world may consider the Finns shy, quiet and somewhat reserved. That holds true on almost any other occasion, but not so much on Vappu.
If you are visiting Finland or Helsinki for the first time, this is something you can witness first hand, pretty much where ever you may be. And it’s best to clear your schedule of any formal appointments or attempts to do any sightseeing etc between 30.4-1.5 (+ take May 2nd for recovery).
