Naantali is an excellent Finnish summer destination offering diverse activities for everyone. It is situated in between many other interesting Finnish places and provides an opportunity for an interesting, at least half a day stop.
How to get.
Naantali only 30 minutes’ drive from Turku. It is also easy to reach by bus from Turku market square (timetable at www.foli.fi), Velkua and Livonsaari (www.matkahuolto.fi). Ships to Naantali run from Sweden and Turku (Tallink). Its sea connection is obvious all over the town providing the tourist with excellent harbor views on the shore.
Naantali.
Another interesting and essential place to ramble around is Naantali Old Town: its buildings, unusual streets and true charm.
You will certainly want to get lost there, especially when you reach the unique living district, still in the Old Town, but very special.
Among the must-sees in Naantali there is Naantali Church was originally built to serve the Catholic Bigettine Convent situated on a hill. The permission for the building was given in 1443, and then the history of both the Convent and the Church starts. Nowadays, the church is the only building which remains from the Convent. It is both a popular tourist attraction and a parish church.
You may also be lucky enough to hear the organ.
Moominworld.
Families with kids come to Naantali primarily for Adventure Park at Island Väski and Moominworld theme park. The latter promises to provide both Tove Jansson’s saga immersion and authentic archipelago nature offering plenty to see, do and experience even for several days! You may buy the combined ticket to visit both Moominworld and Väski.
Tove Jansson’s saga is one of the major themes of Naantali, there are even Moominworld shops within the town outside of the park.
Yet, the shops of Naantali are attractions and museums by themselves offering a lot of unusual things to buy or just to window shop.
Festivals.
Check the annual dates for The Naantali Music Festival and The Sleepyhead Festival. The latter is great for the whole family, bursting with a fun market atmosphere. It begins on July, 26 and on July, 27, Sleepyhead Day, the Official Sleepyhead of the year is thrown into the sea. All the events are free of charge.
For eating we strongly recommend Merisali restaurant at water. The lunch buffet cost 15 euros per person in 2016, but it included a huge variety of dishes, including a lot of fish.
Finally, what makes Naantali attractive is its closeness to another unusual place – Seili island (which can be reached by the combination of ferry and bus).
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