General information
City of Turku
Turku, in the Southwest corner of Finland, is the oldest city and the first capital of the country. Turku’s official founding year is recorded as 1229. Today, Turku is the capital of its region, the Southwest Finland.
Turku is the birthplace of Finnish academic life, as the Academy of Turku was established in Turku in 1640. Today, the city has three universities: University of Turku, Åbo Akademi and Turku University of Applied Sciences. University of Turku, the largest one of the three, is a multidisciplinary university with 7 faculties and with over 20 000 students. There are over 60 majors, educational programmes and degrees available.
Please visit the Turku tourist office Turku Touring website for more information about Turku and the surrounding region.
Weather in Turku – a 5 day forecast
http://www.fmi.fi/weather/local.html
Languages
Official languages in Finland are Finnish and Swedish. Most people (particularly young people) have also a basic knowledge of English. You should have no problems communicating in English.
Electrical appliances
The electric current in Finland is 220V (230V), 50Hz. Plugs are two-pin continental sizes.
Money and banking
The Finnish currency unit is the Euro, divided into 100 cents (the smallest coin is 5 cents) You can exchange foreign currency and traveller's cheques either in banks or in Forex (currency exchange company), located at the Market square. Banks are open from 10.00 to 16.30 on weekdays and closed on Saturdays and Sundays. There are numerous cash machines (ATMs) open around the clock and accepting all major credit cards. Major credit cards, in particular Visa, Eurocard and Mastercard are widely accepted almost everywhere (in hotels, restaurants, shops, taxis, cafeterias, bars, etc.).
