Lux Helsinki 2025
Lux Helsinki 2025 is an annual light art festival that will light up Helsinki’s streets and monuments from 8 to 12 January 2025.
Most of the light shows will take place in the evening between 5 pm and 10 pm.
Light installations will surround and embrace the most famous buildings in Helsinki. However, lesser-known alleys and courtyards are often part of the route.
Best Spots For Lux Helsinki 2025
First of all, we should say that Lux Helsinki is a unique free event that should be enjoyed in its entirety, if possible.
However, if you need to be selective, we would suggest the three best posts for Lux Helsinki 2025:
- Senate Square & Helsinki Cathedral
- Esplanadi
- Oodi & Kansalaistori
Read more to understand why those are the spots you cannot miss.
Senate Square & Helsinki Cathedral
One of the best spots to enjoy Lux Helsinki 2025 is Senate Square, Senaatintori, from which you can enjoy the show projected on the Helsinki Cathedral, Helsingin tuomiokirkko.
Every year, multiple light shows are projected on the façade of the monument during the light show. Each show includes lights and music and lasts a few minutes which is great for enjoying a variety of shows even if you are short on time.
During Lux Helsinki, the cathedral’s façade turns into a dynamic, illuminated canvas. The projections are synchronized with music, creating a multi-sensory experience that transforms the cathedral into a spectacle of art.
The Helsinki Cathedral is not the only monument you will enjoy from Senate Square.
Most of the façades around the square will become canvases for unique and mesmerizing light shows.
Helsinki Lux 2024 saw Senate Square becoming the epicenter of a unique 360-degree show. The façades of the surrounding buildings served as a canvas for multiple different light installations.
Senate Square is also a great spot surrounded by cozy cafés, restaurants, and cocktail bars for all tastes.
You will greatly enjoy some food and warmth during or after the event.
Esplanadi
If you decide to start your tour from Senate Square, Esplanadi could be your next stop.
Facilitated by its proximity to Senate Square, Esplanadi Park has become one of the main locations for light art installations during Helsinki Lux.
In previous festivals, Esplanadi has hosted installations like glowing sculptures nestled among the trees, colorful light displays illuminating the pathways, and even interactive pieces that react to visitors’ movements or sounds.
Enjoy photography at Lux Helsinki 2025
The contrast of vibrant bright colors and dynamic shapes against the dark winter backdrop is ideal for photography, creating bold images with unique lighting effects.
Many installations are interactive and change colors. So, if you like photography, this is your chance to shine.
Oodi & Kansalaistori
Oodi is a marvel of architecture but during Lux Helsinki, it will be surrounded by multiple light exhibitions making it an ideal starting point for your tour.
UPM-Kymmene Cultural Foundation
Thanks to the UPM-Kymmene Cultural Foundation you will be able to enjoy unique light exhibitions just beside Oodi.
At Lux Helsinki 2024 they supported Societas Luminis with The light we cannot see. The light we cannot see presents the familiar plants of roadsides, meadows, and forest clearings in the colors reflected by UV radiation.
The projected video work is a fairy-tale journey through the eyes of insects. In the work, ultraviolet radiation reveals invisible patterns and shapes in flowers that guide pollinating insects to important parts of the plant.
Ultraviolet radiation causes some materials to shimmer and can enhance or change the color of plants.
Not far away, you can enjoy yet another piece of art in the park in front of the building.
Lux Helsinki 2025 at Kansalaistori
The main square and park between Oodi and Finlandia Hall is set to host another light exhibition that is sure to leave you in awe.
The wide open space of the park during the night creates an ideal canvas for bright light exhibitions.
Lux Helsinki 2025 consists of about 20 light exhibitions that will be scattered around the city center of Helsinki.
It is possible to visit all of them during the same evening however many of them are located close to each other in three spots, and that’s why these are the three spots you can’t miss:
- Senate Square & Helsinki Cathedral
- Esplanadi
- Oodi & Kansalaistori
For the sake of completion, we should mention Lux Korkeasaari at Helsinki Zoo. This is part of Lux Helsinki but requires a separate entrance fee.
Be aware that over half a million visitors come each year to admire the festival, so be prepared to be surrounded by a crowd during peak hours.
How To Prepare For Lux Helsinki 2025
Lux Helsinki 2025 is a must-see but don’t get caught unprepared!
As you can see in some of the images above, there is a good chance you will find snow or it might snow during the tour!
You should expect cold weather with temperatures well below zero.
We highly recommend wearing several layers of warm clothes and gloves. If you decide to see all the art exhibitions you should be prepared to walk a few kilometers and proper boots are recommended.
Lux Helsinki is a fully accessible and free event for the whole family.
Find more info at:
- luxhelsinki on Instagram
- https://luxhelsinki.fi/
“Art is often and at its best an exploration, just like science. Both offer insights and discoveries to the openminded seeker, and you can never be sure what the expedition will uncover”
Juha Rouhikoski, Artistic Director of Lux Helsinki.