Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Look out for public art as you wander the streets.
Pohjanmaan Museo
MUSEUM
€7/free, Fri free; noon-6pm Tue-Thu, noon-4pm Fri-Sun late May-late Aug, noon-5pm Tue, Thu &
Sun, noon-8pm Wed late Aug-late May)
Vaasa's dynamic, modern museum is divided into three sections. Downstairs,
Terranova
has a brilliant evocation of the region's natural history - complete with dioramas and
storm-and-lightning effects - that includes information on the Kvarken Archipelago. On
the ground floor, yesteryear Vaasa is brought to life in the
Pohjanmaan Museo
. Upstairs,
the
Hedman collection
contains some 300 works of art, including a Tintoretto, a Botticelli
Madonna, works from all the Finnish masters and a huge number of ceramics.
Wasalandia
AMUSEMENT PARK
€36; 11am-7pm late Jun-mid-Aug, 11am-5pm early-Jun-mid-Jun, 11am-6pm mid-Jun-late Jun)
Great for preteens, Wasalandia is the centrepiece of the island of Vaskiluoto, with lots of
pirate-themed rides and a 'traffic park' for junior drivers. Across the road, the outdoor
spa & waterpark €23, incl Wasalandia €36, spa only €17; waterpark 10am-7pm Jun-early Aug, spa
8am-9pm Mon-Fri, 9am-9pm Sat, 10am-9pm Sun early Oct-late Aug)
has enough water slides,
wave machines, Jacuzzis, saunas and spa treatments to keep both kids and adults happy.
Packages can be arranged with the
spa hotel
here. The
Lilliputilla
(per person/family €5/15;
10.30am-5.30pm late Jun-early Aug)
street train runs hourly from Vaasa's kauppatori to
Vaskiluoto during summer.
Kuntsi
GALLERY
11am-5pm Tue-Sun)
The beautiful former customs house now hosts changing exhibitions of pop art, kinetic art,
surrealism and postmodernism. At its core is the collection of Simo Kuntsi, who gathered
almost a thousand modern Finnish works from the 1950s onwards.
