Although my business Happy Guide Helsinki offers guided activities the whole year around, the spring brings a special buzz along. Especially design tours get new inspiration when spring events arrive at the Design District Helsinki.
This spring, happy vibes are brought by Design District Eve on April 6th, when a nice group of design shops and destinations keep their doors open later for special experiences. Designer and artist guests, open ateliers and spring activities make it worthwhile to take a stroll in the Design District area to visit old and new favorites.
During the last weeks, I have been excited to see many members of the Design District announcing their participation on the eve of April the 6th. It looks again like our guided walk of the evening has lots of special stops and content. We will visit locations that have never been a part of our guided tours before, but also some of the classic stops of our weekly design tours will offer an interesting program!
The idea of free guided walking tours on Design District Eves is to offer an introduction to the event and to the versatility of Design District. The tour takes place from 6pm to 8pm, so after that you still have another hour to find more places to visit from the area. But if you only have two hours, it’s fine as well. During the walk, we give you time at the stops for exploring and shopping. At all stops, we also have someone telling the story of that particular Design District Helsinki member.
Click here for the Facebook event of Design District Eve Walk for more info. The tour is guided in Finnish but the guide speaks English as well.
Soon after the Design District Eve we also have Design District’s biggest spring season event: the Design District Market on May 20th. It takes place at the Diana park that is the center point of Design District Helsinki.
The spring Design District Market, as well as the equivalent before Christmas, are important get-togethers for the DDH members but also the most beneficial opportunity to see and buy products from local designers.
I like to visit all of these events and get inspiration for developing our design walks. We offer public walking tours every Friday for 20 euros per person. The route keeps changing a bit according to what’s happening at the design quarters, but we always promise some iconic brands like Artek and Marimekko as well as the opportunity to meet some fresh faces of the local design scene at boutiques like Lokal Helsinki and Paja. We start the tours with a brief introduction to the history of Finnish design lifestyle at the Design Museum’s entrance hall.
Design District Eve walking tours are always tailored according to the participating members. Its starting point and route vary. On April 6th, we start in front of the concept store World of Tre on Mikonkatu. Click the Facebook event to reserve your spot!
I wish you a great spring and inspiring, happy visits to Design District Helsinki!
Karri Korppi
Creative Force of Happy Guide Helsinki
Board Member of Design District Helsinki
