Cultural Activities in Turku
Libraries
What kinds of services do the libraries offer?
Libraries are the meeting places of books, cultures and people.
Several branch libraries all over Turku are a part of the Turku City Library, as is the main library in the city centre. In addition to this, mobile libraries travel around the city.
In a library you can, for example:
- acquire information about Finland and the Finnish society
- read books and magazines in Finnish and other languages
- use a computer and the Internet
- participate in various events and lectures
- everyone who has a library card can borrow books, CDs and other material free of charge.
Libraries also provide special services for immigrants in various languages.
Library Card and Borrowing from a Library
In order to borrow, you need a library card.
You can get one by presenting, at the library, an identity card which has your personal identity code and a photograph of you, and which the library accepts. Library customers must have an address in Finland. A 5-year-old child can get a library card too. Customers who are under the age of 15 are required to present written consent from their guardian and their personal data.
The first library card is free. If it gets lost or broken, however, a fee will be charged for a replacement.
Borrowing is free. If you return a book late, you must pay a late fee for it.
The holder of the library card is responsible for the material borrowed with it. The guardian of a person who is under 15 years of age is responsible for the material borrowed with the child’s card.
If you lose your card, you must notify the library immediately. This notification can be made to any Vaski library. The card holder is not responsible for material that is borrowed with the card after its disappearance when the library has been notified. A card that has been notified as lost will be disabled.
You can find information about all library services on the library’s website at Turku City Library and about the services for immigrants at the web pages for the multicultural library.
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How can I engage in culture in Turku?
Many kinds of concerts, theatre performances, art courses and other cultural activities are organised in Turku. They are arranged both by the City of Turku’s own art institutions and other art institutions and associations.
Where can I find information about cultural activities and events organised in Turku?
- On the City of Turku website
- In the event calendar
Where can an immigrant get to know the Finnish culture?
In Turku, many associations and the City of Turku Cultural Services offer immigrants numerous opportunities to get acquainted with the Finnish way of life and society, as well as Finnish art and history.
On the Getting to Know Finland web page you will find a collection of information about exhibitions and events that will help immigrants to become integrated. There you will also find The Way of the Land guidebook containing a compilation of information about Finnish culture, history, traditions and the societal and working life rules and laws in Finland. It has been published both in electronic form and as a book in Finnish, English and Russian.
You can find the page at www.turku.fi/monikulttuurisuus/Suomi tutuksi.
You can familiarise yourself with Finnish history, art and society in Turku’s many museums.
Some museums in Turku:
- Turku Castle
- the Luostarinmäki Handicrafts Museum
- the Pharmacy Museum and the Qwensel House
- Kylämäki Village of Living History
- the Biological Museum of Turku
- Wäinö Aaltonen Museum of Art, offering high-quality fine arts exhibitions
In addition to exhibitions, the Museum offers a myriad of different events.
The addresses, opening hours and ticket prices for the museums are listed on their own website at Museums in Turku.
What kind of multicultural activities do Cultural Services have to offer?
- Exhibitions, seminars, lectures and other events that help to promote multiculturalism and the dialogues between the various cultures in Turku.
- Cultural services for immigrants to support their integration and to help them nurture their own culture.
- Communication on various cultures – to immigrants about Finnish culture and history, and to Finns about other cultures and immigrants.
You can find information about current multicultural events and services at
www.turku.fi » turku.fi » Kulttuuri » Monikulttuurisuus
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Sport services
All the residents of Turku are warmly welcome to engage in physical exercise! Turku has an abundance of different sports services to offer.
Where do I find out about sports services?
- about sports services for immigrants: tel. 050 554 6229, liikunta.palvelut@turku.fi
- from our Customer Service: City of Turku’s Sports Services Centre Blomberginaukio 4 /
Hippoksentie 6, 20720 Turku
tel. (02) 262 3232
- from the Turku liikkeelle magazine
Where can I take exercise?
The City of Turku manages over 200 sports and exercise facilities where various sports can be engaged in. Turku has gymnasiums, public swimming pools, sports halls, ice stadiums, sports grounds, skateboard facilities etc.
More information about sports and exercise facilities in Finnish: http://www.turku.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=8810&culture=fi-FI&contentlan=1
More information in English:
http://www.turku.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=8810&culture=en-US&contentlan=2
Sports Services for Turku Residents:
The Sports Wonderland for Kids is intended for children between the ages of 1 and 12. The Wonderland events take place on Sundays at nine different locations in Turku. Children are welcome to attend with an adult. In the Sports Wonderland for Kids, children can play and move around to their hearts’ content. The Wonderland is free-of-charge.
Poweraction is an exercise product for 13–19-year-old Turku residents. Poweraction exercise is free-of-charge. Check times and sports in the Power Timetable.
You can get the Poweraction.net passport from your PE teacher, the Sports Services Centre’s customer service at the end of the Kupittaa football stand, or the NuortenTurku information point in the Vimma Art and Activity Centre for Youth.
The Leidit Liikkeellä exercise group – Leidit Liikkeellä will introduce you to new sports and encourage you to keep moving. The Leidit are mature women who exercise together: they do aerobics, dance, play ball games, go bowling etc. The activities include several different sports, and there are groups every weekday. Some sessions are run by a female instructor. You can join the ladies by buying a Leidit Liikkeellä Card, which allows you to move in and out of all the groups freely.
The Hikinen Tusina exercise group is intended to help men of ages 30–65 to take up sports and exercise. In the Hikinen Tusina group, you can engage in exercise with other beginners. You can join them by buying a Hikinen Tusina Card, which allows you to move in and out of all the groups freely.
The Ihanat Naiset exercise course is for overweight women, and the Raskas Sarja exercise course for overweight men. The courses offer the opportunity to become acquainted with various forms of exercise, for example, pumping iron at the gym, circuit training exercises, basic gymnastic exercise to get the heart pumping, and Nordic walking.
The Senior Card is intended for Turku residents who are 65 years old or more. The Senior Card provides access to the Petrelius public swimming pool, as well as those in Lauste and Paattinen, the outdoor swimming pools in Kupittaa and Samppalinna and the gyms in the Kupittaa Sports Arena, in Pansio, the Varissuo Ice Stadium, the Paattinen Community Centre and the Petrelius swimming pool building.
Immigrants are warmly welcome to participate in all the services provided by the Sports Services Centre. Those involved in the Social Welfare Centre of the City of Turku’s Koto activities have free access to sports and exercise for immigrants and can participate in course activities at half price.
For immigrants, there are various seasonal exercise groups, such as gym activities, ball game groups, tuition in skiing, ice skating and dance and try-out courses for various sports, as well as excursions to the Turku archipelago.
More information:
- See activities especially aimed at immigrants
Sports clubs in Turku offer various kinds of hobby opportunities for people of different ages who are interested in getting exercise. More information: http://www.turku.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=8842&culture=fi-FI&contentlan=1
We would like to start our own hobby group. Where can we find out about facilities, available times and grants?
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Services for Children and Youths
Do you want to spend time safely with other youths?
7–18-year-olds can spend their leisure time at Turku’s youth spaces. Youth spaces are situated all over the city and are where young people can engage in leisure time activities. The activities in the spaces are diverse. The youths can, for example, play games, do craft work, cook, meet friends or just relax. The youths’ wishes on what they would like to do are listened to and these wishes are implemented as far as possible.
There is always an adult youth worker present.
For example, discos are organised at youth spaces. During school holidays, the Youth Department organises various excursions, for example, to amusement parks.
More information: Kerstin Paananen, Head of Department, tel. 050 554 6114, www.turku.fi/nuokkarit
Does your 7–8-year-old child need activities before and/or after the school day?
Morning and afternoon activities are mainly intended for children in 1st and 2nd grades. Children can participate in the activities in the morning before school and/or in the afternoon after school. The activities are safe and stimulating for children. Children can also do their homework in the clubs. The clubs are organised at the school or in facilities near the schools. The morning clubs are open during school days between 7:30–11:00 and the afternoon clubs between 11:00–17:00.
Religious and health-related factors and rules involved in the child’s eating are all respected in these morning and afternoon activities.
More information: tel. 02 262 3157, 050 590 7674, 050 554 6128, www.turku.fi/ippe
Are you looking for something fun for your child to do?
The Adventure Park, which is designed for children and families, is open all year round. In the summer, the park and its amusements offer versatile opportunities for fun. The spray mushroom, paddling pool, Traffic Park, giant statues and the brook running through the Park are just some of the kids’ favourites. In the winter, various club and theatre activities etc. are organised indoors at the Adventure Park.
The activities of the Adventure Park are primarily designed for children from 0–14 years of age and for families with children.
More information: tel. 02 262 3331, www.turku.fi/seikkailupuisto
Adventure Park
Kupittaankatu 2
20520 Turku
Do you want to try new hobbies in Varissuo?
Activities are organised for children in the afternoons in the Majanummi Activity Centre on Hintsankuja 4, Varissuo. There are many hobby groups for children interested in theatre, art, the media and exercise, etc. The activities are mainly designed for 9–13-year-old children during afternoons. The hobby groups are free-of-charge.
In the summer, there are theatre and hobby camps. A small participation fee is charged for the camps.
More information: www.seikkailupuisto.fi, Marianne Uusaho, Children’s Culture Coordinator, tel. 050 310 1661
Do you like skateboarding?
The Cube Skatehall is primarily intended for 7–20-year-old skateboarders. BMX riders can also use the facilities. The hall has a ramp, street and curb etc. The activities are continually developed together with the skateboarders.
More information: tel. 050 554 6116, www.turku.fi/cube
Cube Skatehall
Ruissalontie 37-39, building G
20200 Turku
Do you want to practice art, dance, go online or just relax?
The Vimma Art and Activity Centre for youth is mainly intended for young people under the age of 29. At Vimma you can, for example, engage in arts and crafts and attend concerts and events. There is also a café and space to sit and chat. In Vimma’s hall, there are computers with Internet connections which young people can use free of charge.
Ohjaamo, the guidance and support point for youths without study places is located in Vimma, and you can also find social workers from the Youth Social Work Services Unit there. In Vimma there is also the Youth Information and Counselling Point NuortenTurku, which offers free support and information, without an appointment, for anyone under the age of 29. You can also meet Outreach youth workers in Vimma.
More information: tel. 02 262 3129, www.vimma.info, www.turku.fi/ohjaamo, www.nuortenturku.fi
Does your band need practice facilities and equipment?
Youths’ bands can practice in the Auran Panimo’s facilities. The City offers the facilities and equipment for an annual charge of 40 euros. The facilities are primarily intended for under-age youths, i.e. under 18-year-olds. You can also participate in band competitions and concerts etc. at the Panimo. Halls can be rented at the Auran Panimo for events, performances and meetings.
More information: tel. 02 262 3333, www.turku.fi/nuoriso/panimo
City of Turku’s Youth Services Centre / Auran Panimo
Läntinen Rantakatu 47
20100 Turku
Do you want to go camping or rent a cottage cheaply?
Clients can rent the four camping areas of the City of Turku’s Youth Services Centre. The areas are located in Taivassalo, Rymättylä, Sauvo and Inari and they are all in beautiful nature by the water.
The campsites are very affordable and suitable for both large and small groups. The Youth Services Centre offers the areas and facilities for the purpose of camps. There is no programme, meal or cleaning service.
More information: Pirjo Lehtinen, Executive Director, tel. 050 554 6113, www.turku.fi/nuorisoleirialueet
Do you need information and guidance?
The Youth Information and Counselling Point NuortenTurku offers free support and information, without an appointment, for anyone under the age of 29. NuortenTurku will help you find the answers you are looking for, whether they concern studying, job hunting, international affairs, housing, events or hobbies. NuortenTurku is located in Vimma on Aurakatu 16.
More information: tel. 02 262 3126, www.nuortenturku.fi
The youths’ website Pointti.info offers information and advice on studying, finding employment, hobbies and many other useful things. In Pointti you will also find the contact information for youth workers and information about other services in your home municipality.
www.pointti.info
Do you want to have an influence on the affairs of your municipality?
On the Aloitekanava forum you can express your opinions on issues that concern you and are related to your own home municipality. Aloitekanava.fi is an Internet website where young people can make various suggestions for improvements and comment on ideas presented by others.
www.aloitekanava.fi
Do you need help finding youth services?
Outreach youth work involves looking for the services that would be useful to young people together with them. The target group consists of 15–25-year-old young people who are unsure about how to set about planning their lives. The challenges young people meet may include, for example, unemployment, homelessness or loneliness.
Outreach youth work offers support for planning the future and help in finding the right services and in attending to affairs at various places of service. The workers can accompany the youth, for example, to various offices and help them to take care of their affairs.
Contact information for the Outreach youth workers:
Joint e-mail address: etsivat@turku.fi
Marja Hietala, tel. 044 907 2364
Jaana Petäjoki, tel. 044 907 2363
Sami Renberg, tel. 044 907 2366
Anni-Reetta Sorell, tel. 044 907 2365
Do you want to talk to a youth worker?
With a youth social worker, a young person can discuss anything. Or they can talk about what should be developed in their area. Social work among the youth is performed all over Turku on the streets, in youth spaces and schools.
More information: Kerstin Paananen, Head of Department, tel. 050 554 6114, www.turku.fi/nuokkarit
Do you have no study place or job?
Ohjaamo offers support and help to young persons of 15-20 years of age who have no study place after finishing comprehensive school. Ohjaamo’s purpose is to help them to find a place of study that interests them. The youth are guided, for example, towards making use of second application rounds and helped in the joint application process. Ohjaamo also helps in organising work experience placements.
Ohjaamo is located in the Vimma building on Aurakatu 16, at street level
More information: www.turku.fi/ohjaamo
Young person, do you want to work or be a trainee at the Youth Services Centre?
Are you interested in working within the City of Turku’s Youth Services Centre’s activities? If you are, you can fill out an open job application online at: www.turku.fi/tyopaikat.
The information you send will be stored in the City’s job seeker register. All information is handled confidentially.
You can send a free-form application for a work experience placement by e-mail to nuorisoasiainkeskus(a)turku.fi.
The work experience placement can be performed, for example, at youth places, afternoon clubs, the Adventure Park, in Vimma or the Youth Services Centre office.
Youth Services Centre
Puutarhakatu 14 A, 4th floor
20100 Turku
tel. 02 330 000
Do you have no job?
The youth workshops that go by the name of Fendari employ Turku residents who are 15–25 years old. The aim is to maintain and develop young people’s skills and give them an opportunity to learn about different vocations.
There are seven workshops: a paintshop, repair shop, wood work, textiles, handicrafts, boat and excursion workshops.
Also work to order is performed at Fendari for private customers, such as repairs to furniture and clothes. Fendari also sells the products produced there.
From the excursion workshop, Turku dwellers can rent hiking equipment.
More information: tel. 02 262 3120, www.turku.fi/fendari
City of Turku, Youth Services Centre/FendariAmiraalistonkatu 6
20100 Turku