The habitat settings
The animal in its forest rather than in a case.
Tiia Monto — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Tiia Monto — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Tiia Monto — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Tiia Monto — CC BY-SA 3.0
Tampere's natural history museum is part of the **Vapriikki Museum Centre** — a complex in an old mill building holding several museums under one roof on one ticket. Its collection is mainly about **Finnish nature**: mammals, birds, insects and minerals from the forests, lakes and wetlands, shown in settings that place the animal in its habitat rather than in a case. The sections are arranged by environment — pine forest, lake shore, bog and the Arctic north. There is also a mineral and fossil collection, and a section on Finland's four seasons — genuinely useful for understanding a country whose nature changes radically every three months. The real advantage is that **the ticket covers the rest of the Vapriikki museums** in the same building: the Tampere history museum, the doll museum, the Finnish Hockey Museum and the shoe collection — so a visit becomes several museums for one price, and it is among the best things to do on a wet day.
The animal in its forest rather than in a case.
History, dolls and hockey on the same ticket.
Museum Centre Vapriikki, Tampere
Vapriikki Museum CentreTen museums on one ticket: Vapriikki fills the old Tampella engineering works on1 minute walk4.7
The Werstas Labour MuseumThe Finnish Labour Museum Werstas occupies an old Finlayson mill building on the2 minutes walk4.3
The Finlayson AreaThe factory that made the city: the Scot James Finlayson founded a cotton mill o3 minutes walk4.4
Finlayson ChurchFinlayson Church is a small red brick church built in 1879 inside the **Finlayso4 minutes walk4.6
Tampere Old ChurchTampere Old Church is **the oldest building in the city centre**: a timber churc6 minutes walk4.3Tampere is among the best Finnish cities for families. The **Vapriikki centre** here, with its several museums on one ticket. The **Moomin Museum** in the city library — the most important for children: Tove Jansson's world in models and original drawings, and the only one in the world. **Särkänniemi**, the funfair with its observation tower and aquarium on the lake. A small **zoo**. And **lake steamers** on Näsijärvi in summer. The city is small and walkable, and prices are below Helsinki.