Most people visit Finland in winter, but you have decided to visit during summer – great choice! Finnish weather is pretty unique, and what you’ll need to pack in summer will be very different than if you were visiting in winter. Because of this, I decided to write a packing list for Finland in the summer with everything you’ll need to have an amazing vacation.

Finnish people are very close to nature, and it would be a shame to visit Finland in the summer without enjoying the beautiful nature. For this reason I added an additional category for “Hiking / Nature Items”.

Clothes

Summer in Finland is, um, special. You might have an amazing time with gorgeous weather, constant sunlight, and temperatures up to 25-30°C. Or it might rain the whole time. There’s just no way to be sure. What is most likely, however, is a mix of both. Because of this I recommend taking lots of different types of clothes.

Tops

• Enough t-shirts
• A few tank tops
• A thin sweatshirt
• A thick sweatshirt
• A rain jacket
• Optional: A summer dress (or two). If the weather’s warm enough this can be a nice item to have on the beach or at parties.

Finnish people carry jackets everywhere with them because the weather can change in the blink of an eye. Make sure you do this too!

Bottoms

• One or two pairs of shorts (or skirts)
• One or two pairs of jeans
• A pair of sweatpants/ other warm and comfortable pants

Shoes

• A pair of sneakers
• A pair of flip flops

You can obviously also bring nicer shoes, especially if you’re traveling for business. That being said, Finnish people are not fussy about shoes. We know the weather can be bad, and it’s not worth ruining nice shoes over it.

Other Clothing Items & Accessories

• Underwear. You’re old enough to figure out how many you need.
• A swimsuit. You can swim in the sea or in some of the hundreds of lakes or rivers you’ll find almost anywhere in Finland!
• A cap / some kind of hat to protect you from the sun
• Sunglasses
• A sleeping mask. Getting used to the midnight sun can take some time.

Electronics

These are not necessarily specific to Finland in the summer, so no matter when you’re visiting – add them to your packing list!

• A camera. There are opportunities for gorgeous photos everywhere you look, and it would be a shame not to be able to capture these moments. If possible, get a waterproof camera.
• A local SIM card / mobile data. While Finland is great in terms of publicly available Wi-Fi, it probably won’t be enough and odds are you will need to use mobile data to look up an address or buy a bus ticket on the fly. The easiest place to buy one is the R-Kioski corner stores.
• An adaptor for power outlets. Finland uses what worldstandards.eu calls C, E, and F types.

Others

• Sunscreen. The sun doesn’t set in the summer (or only for a couple hours if you’re in the south).
• Travel Insurance / European Health Insurance Card. If you live in Europe, remember to take your EHIC. If you don’t have one, travel insurance is a must. Finland is generally a very safe country but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
• A credit card with no transaction fees.
• A reusable water bottle. Finnish tap water is one of the best in the world, and buying water bottles at the store can get expensive: bottles cost around one to two euros a piece.

Nature / Hiking items

• Hiking shoes
• Hiking pants
• A breathable shirt & a breathable jacket
• Mosquito repellent. I cannot stress this enough.
• Something to put on mosquito bites. From anti-itching cream to antihistamines, make sure you have something because no matter how much repellent you use, you will probably get bitten anyway.
• A backpack / some kind of bag to take into nature.
• A microfiber towel. These can fit into a small space and dry quickly!
• Tick repellent and tick tweezers. Finnish forests can be full of ticks, and it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

What you probably won’t need in Finland in summer

• Bulky winter clothes. There most likely won’t be snow, but if you’re going to Lapland in June or September make sure you have warm clothes and waterproof shoes. I have a friend who went on a trek in the mountains in June and it snowed! However, this is pretty uncommon as the mountains are not very high.
• Cash. You can pay by cash, but most places prefer card and may even be surprised when you hand them a paper bill or coins. This even applies to most street vendors.
• Fancy clothes. Unless you’re attending a work event or going somewhere with a dress code, you probably won’t need a suit or an expensive dress. Finnish people are pretty down-to-earth in terms of clothing.
• Fancy shoes / High heels. You can absolutely bring these if you want, but your shoes might disagree with both the weather and the cobblestones in cities like Helsinki and Turku.
• A VPN. Unless you want to watch a show that’s not on Finnish Netflix, you probably won’t need one.

Are you planning a trip to Finland? Do you have any questions, comments, etc… about this packing list for Finland in summer? Tell me down below!

You can find more posts about Finland here!