Christmas in Oulu, Finland: a Nordic Christmas by the frozen sea
Oulu sits by the Gulf of Bothnia, 170 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle. In December the sun shows up for about four hours, the sea starts to freeze, and the city answers with candles, saunas, Christmas markets and a singing tradition you will not find anywhere else. This year is also Oulu’s year as European Capital of Culture, so the season ends on a bigger note than usual. Here is how to spend Christmas the Oulu way.
1Shop the Christmas markets
Christmas shopping in Oulu happens outdoors in the cold, indoors in a market hall that has seen more than a hundred Christmases, and at tables where the maker is standing right behind the product. Bring a warm hat and a soft spot for wool socks.
Rotuaari Christmas Market
The pedestrian heart of the city turns into a Christmas market on two weekends in December. Santa Claus and the Star Boys visit every market day, and the programme on the Rotuaari stage includes a fire show and alpacas. On the first market day, 11 December, a light artwork by Ari Tiilikainen is switched on.
- WhereRotuaari, city centre
- When11–13 and 18–20 Dec, 10–18
Swipe →
December
Oulu Market Hall
The red-brick market hall by the Market Square has fed the city for more than a century and is at its best before Christmas: smoked and cured fish, reindeer, rye bread and local sweets for the table or the suitcase.
- WhereMarket Square (Kauppatori)
- MoreAbout the Market Hall
From 19 Nov
Taito Shop Christmas Boutique
A pop-up of Finnish craft next to the Rotuaari ball: hand-knitted wool socks, birch-plywood figures by Lovi, Lapuan Kankurit wool and linen, and small-batch treats.
- WhereKirkkokatu 17
- WhenMon–Fri 11–18, Sat 11–15, Sun 12–16
- Moretaito.fi
5–20 Dec
Artisans’ Gift Workshop
Local artisans, artists, designers and small producers share one space for sixteen days. Jewellery, clothing, candles, art, gingerbread houses and honey, and the person who made it is there to talk to.
- WhereIsokatu 33
- WhenMon–Thu and Sat 10–18, Fri 10–19, Sun 12–18 · free entry
12–13 Dec
Hailuoto Christmas Market
Hailuoto is the island off Oulu, now reached by road along the new causeway and bridge. Its Christmas market at the old village shop sells local produce, baked goods, ceramics, knitwear and wreaths. A proper day trip.
- WhereVanha Pääkauppa, Luovontie 231, Hailuoto
- When12–13 Dec
2Meet the Star Boys
Every Finnish town has Christmas lights. Only Oulu has the tiernapojat. The Star Boys are a sung nativity play from the 1800s: four performers, King Herod with a wooden sword, a spinning paper star, and a tune that every Oulu child learns at school. In December they appear on stages, in shops and on street corners across the city.
Swipe →
28–29 Nov
National Star Boys Competition
Groups from all over Finland compete in Oulu. The final is sung outdoors on Rotuaari square on Sunday and ends with the crowd singing Finnish Christmas carols together.
- FinalSun 29 Nov, 11.40–16, Rotuaari square
- Moretiernakaupunki.fi
December
Where to see them
The Star Boys perform every day of the Rotuaari Christmas Market (11–13 and 18–20 Dec) and at the Vauhtipuisto Christmas event in Nallikari on 12 Dec at 12.30 and 14.00. Performances last about ten minutes. The songs are in Finnish, the drama needs no translation.
December
Sailor’s Home Museum
On the island of Pikisaari, a ten-minute walk from the centre, a sailor’s cottage from the 1700s is dressed for an old-fashioned Christmas. Inside it smells of gingerbread and spruce; the decorated windows glow after closing time too.
- WherePikisaarentie 6
- WhenDecember · free entry
Christmas sauna
For Finns, the sauna on Christmas Eve is as fixed as the tree. In Oulu you can borrow the tradition. The city has a growing number of public saunas, several of them floating on the river, and in December some add rice porridge and mulled wine to the steam.
Aappola – silent Christmas sauna in a yurt
In Kempele, ten minutes from Oulu, a historic farmyard hosts a sauna inside a yurt. The silent Christmas sauna begins with a twenty-minute sound bath, and after the steam a 19th-century cottage waits with rice porridge and alcohol-free mulled wine. Groups are small, which is the point.
- WhereMonkkasenkuja 35, Kempele
- When26 Nov, 3 Dec, 10 Dec and 22 Dec · about 2.5 h · 38 €
- MoreBook at aappola.johku.com
Lainesauna – wood-fired sauna by the river
At Saarela harbour on the Oulujoki river a wood-fired sauna and a hot tub are heated for public sessions. Between rounds you cool off in the river, which in December is as refreshing as it sounds.
- WhereNissiläntie 21
- Whenpublic sessions, check Christmas times
- Morelainesauna.fi
All of Oulu’s public saunas are in The most unique sauna experiences in Oulu.
3Sit down to the Christmas table
A Finnish Christmas table is a long buffet: oven-baked ham with mustard, cured and smoked salmon, herring in several sauces, casseroles of swede, carrot and sweet potato, rosolli beetroot salad, and for dessert gingerbread, prune tarts and rice porridge with one almond hidden in it. Whoever finds the almond gets a good year. From mid-December Oulu’s restaurants serve their own versions as lunch or dinner buffets.
Swipe →
Restaurant Lasaretti
On the Hupisaaret park islands, Lasaretti serves a traditional Christmas lunch on weekdays and a Christmas dinner buffet on Friday and Saturday evenings.
- WhereKasarmintie 13b
- Whenlunch weekdays 11–22 Dec, 11–12.30 and 13–14.30 · dinner buffet 4, 11, 12, 18 and 19 Dec, 18–21, 56 €
- Morelasaretti.com
Oula Kitchen & Bar
Flavours of Lapland at Lapland Hotels Oulu: cured and smoked fish, ham, salmon in lemon butter and sautéed reindeer, then cheeses and Christmas pastries. On Christmas Eve the restaurant sets its own festive table.
- WhereKirkkokatu 3
- When14–18 Dec, 11.30–14 · 59 €, children 4–12 20 €
- Morekitchenoula.fi
Alfred Kitchen & Bar
Christmas lunch served to the table: malt bread with brown butter, cured whitefish with blood orange and roast duck breast with truffle potato purée. Vegetarian menu too. Alfred sells out every year, so book early.
- WherePakkahuoneenkatu 24
- WhenTue–Fri 15–18 Dec, tables 10.30–13.45 · 53–59 €
- Morealfredkitchenbar.fi
Restaurant Toivo
At Radisson Blu Hotel Oulu: juniper-cured salmon, mustard-glazed ham with apple and calvados sauce, the casseroles, and almond cake with cranberry panna cotta. A tofu ham for vegans.
- WhereHallituskatu 1
- Whenweekdays 9–11, 14–18 and 21–22 Dec, 11–14 · 65 €
- Moreraflaamo.fi
Restaurant Rauhala
A 19th-century manor house on the edge of Ainola park serves a traditional Christmas buffet: cured salmon, herring, the house ham with casseroles and Christmas cake. Vegan ham available.
- WhereMannenkatu 4
- When2–22 Dec, Mon–Fri 11–15, evenings and weekends by reservation · 48 €, children 1–11 3 € per year of age
- Moreravintolarauhala.fi
Liminganlahti
A short drive south of Oulu, the Christmas table is laid at the Liminganlahti visitor centre by one of Europe’s finest bird wetlands. A good excuse for a winter day trip.
- WhereLiminganlahti, Liminka
- When16–18 Dec, 11–15
- Moregoarctic.fi
4Follow the lights and the music
Oulu’s year as European Capital of Culture runs until New Year’s Eve, and December is its finale. Some of the biggest shows are in Finnish, but music, light and ballroom dancing need no subtitles.
Snowball (Lumipallo) – a new Christmas musical
The biggest Christmas production of the Capital of Culture year premieres at Ouluhalli arena on 4 December. A family musical with a cast of Finnish stage and pop names, performed in Finnish, with Oulu Sinfonia playing live. Nineteen performances, recommended for ages five and up.
- WhereOuluhalli
- When4–19 Dec · tickets from 29 €
Swipe →
Until 31 Dec
Björk in Oulu
The Icelandic artist’s audiovisual exhibition (Ancestress, Sorrowful Soil and Björk Orkestral) on the second floor of the Pekuri block in the centre. The same ticket gets you into Fotografiska Tallinn’s PLAY exhibition.
- WherePekuri block, city centre
- Whenuntil 31 Dec
19 Dec
Ballroom Bliss Oulu
Cultural centre Valve closes its Capital of Culture year with a free ballroom party open to everyone. Dance workshops run on 14–17 Dec and need registration.
Also on
Carols, heavy and classic
Raskasta joulua, Finland’s heavy-metal Christmas tour, stops at Zemppi Areena in Kempele on 21 Nov. Oulu Theatre’s A Christmas Carol (in Finnish) runs from 4 Dec. Christmas concerts fill the city’s churches throughout December.
- MoreEvents in Oulu
5Find reindeer and the frozen sea
Travelling with children, or simply fond of reindeer? December in Oulu is built for both. The sea at Nallikari beach freezes as winter settles in, Santa keeps office hours in a forest village half an hour away, and a reindeer sleigh is waiting at a farm just outside the city.
Private reindeer sleigh ride with Northfolk
Oulu-based Northfolk takes your own group to a local reindeer farm, with transfers from the city and an English-speaking guide included. You meet and feed the reindeer, take a sleigh ride through the snowy forest, hear how herding follows the seasons, and warm up with coffee and a homemade pastry. About four hours door to door, around two to three of them at the farm. Rated easy and suitable for families.
- Wherereindeer farm near Oulu, transfers from the city
- Whensnowy winter days · book at least a week ahead
- Priceper private group: 499 € (2–4), 699 € (5–8), 899 € (9–12)
- Morenorthfolk.fi
Swipe →
Saturdays 28 Nov – 19 Dec
Christmas Village, Muhos
In the forests of Rokua UNESCO Global Geopark, thirty minutes from Oulu, a holiday village turns into a Christmas village on Saturdays. Santa tells stories, there are crafts in the glass house, and ice lanterns and a sledding hill outside.
- WhereKieksintie 209, Muhos
- Tickets6 € per person, book ahead
- Morenaturedreamdays.com
Sat 12 Dec
Vauhtipuisto Christmas, Nallikari
Santa receives visitors at 13–14 and 14.30–15.30, the Star Boys sing at 12.30 and 14, and there are reindeer in the yard, with sleigh rides if the snow allows.
- WhereLeiritie 2, Nallikari
- When11–16 · free entry
- Morevauhtipuisto.fi
From 14 Nov
Kipponikylä Christmas Park
The animal park in Haukipudas opens its Christmas season with fairy-tale forest walks, pony rides, wagon rides and animal feeding. Sausages roast over the campfire.
- WhereHaukipudas
- Morekipponit.fi
Christmas by the frozen sea
Nallikari is Oulu’s beach, 3.5 kilometres from the centre. In December the sea begins to freeze and the beach becomes a wide white plain with a lighthouse at the end of it. If you want to spend the whole holiday here, the Nallikari villas, Aalto apartments and holiday cottages stay open over Christmas, with a private sauna, fireplace and kitchen in the villas. Once the ice is thick enough, Nallikari Safaris heats a tent sauna out on the frozen sea, by advance booking.
- WhereNallikari · bus 15 from the centre
- Morenallikari.fi
Good to know before you come
Christmas in Finland is a quiet, family holiday, and it starts a day earlier than in many countries.
Christmas Eve, 24 December, is the main day. Shops close around midday, and most restaurants, museums and attractions are closed on 24 and 25 December. Hotel restaurants serve Christmas dinners for their guests, so if you are in town over Christmas, book your meals in advance.
26 December is also a public holiday. Shops and restaurants reopen gradually, and the days between Christmas and New Year are a good time for saunas, the frozen sea and the last days of Björk’s exhibition.
Weather: expect a few degrees below zero, sometimes well below, and snow most years. Dress in layers, with warm boots and a hat. Pavements and cycle paths are kept open all winter, and Oulu’s famous winter cyclists will still be out.
Getting here: Oulu Airport is 15 minutes from the centre with direct flights from Helsinki and seasonal routes from Europe. Trains from Helsinki take about six hours.
More winter ideas in Winter in Oulu 2026–27: the frozen sea, February’s festivals and more saunas.
Christmas, but make it Oulu: pick your kind of holiday
Read it all? Now choose. Swipe right for yes, left for no, and you get your own list with links to the sections. Buttons and arrow keys work too.
Christmas markets
Wooden stalls on Rotuaari, a hundred-year-old market hall and gifts made by local artisans.
Star Boys and sauna
Oulu’s own Christmas singers, a silent sauna in a yurt and a museum cottage that smells of gingerbread.
The Finnish Christmas table
Ham, cured fish, root vegetable casseroles and mulled wine, served in a manor, a hotel or by the river.
Lights and music
Björk’s exhibition, a brand-new Christmas musical and a free ballroom night to close the Capital of Culture year.
Reindeer and the frozen sea
A private reindeer sleigh ride, a Christmas village in the forest and a beach that turns into ice.
Your Oulu Christmas (0)
Take a screenshot and send it to whoever you’re spending Christmas with.
Where will you be this Christmas?
Oulu does Christmas the northern way: short days, long tables, warm saunas and a city that sings its own carol. If you make it here, show us your Oulu Christmas on Instagram and tag us.