Vantaa

Minna sent me this interesting card showing, firstly, the Helsinki Airport or Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, and secondly The Finnish Science Centre. These two sites have been pictured inside a fish, the tail of which is pictured on the City's Coat of Arms. Below are a few more details about these two important tourist destinations.

Helsinki Airport or Helsinki-Vantaa Airport is the main international airport of the Helsinki metropolitan region and the whole of Finland. It is located in Vantaa, Finland, about 5 kilometres (3 mi) west of Tikkurila, the centre of Vantaa, and 9.2 NM (17.0 km; 10.6 mi) north of Helsinki city centre. Originally built for the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, the airport served 14,865,871 passengers in 2011 and it is the fourth largest airport in the Nordic countries. It provides jobs for 20,000 people and there are 1,500 companies who operate from this airport.

The airport is operated by Finavia, the state-owned enterprise that operates Finland's airports. Helsinki Airport was chosen as the best airport in the world in the IATA 1999 survey on the topic. In 2006 the global airport customer satisfaction survey AETRA ranked Helsinki Airport one of the best airports worldwide and according to Association of European Airlines 2005 delay rates, Helsinki Airport was the most punctual airport in Europe.

The Finnish Science Centre. Heureka is a unique high-level cultural and educational institution that is among Finland’s most popular leisure time destinations. Its mission is twofold: on the one hand the Science Centre operates in the leisure time market, and on the other hand it performs important educational and public service tasks.

Heureka, the Finnish Science Centre opened to the public on April 28, 1989. Heureka attracts on the average 280 000 visitors a year. Apart from the main exhibition Heureka usually displays two temporary exhibitions. Total exhibition space indoors amounts to 3500 m2. During summer season an outdoor exhibition area, Science Park Galilei, is available. Heureka features also a modern digital planetarium. Heureka is open around the year and it operates fully in three languages: Finnish, Swedish and English. Located in the City of Vantaa next to Tikkurila train station and near the Helsinki-Vantaa airport.