Finland is the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. Therefore the next Eurovision 2007 will be held in the Scandinavian region.  Will it be the Finnish capital, Helsinki to host the show?  What will be so special about Finland 2007?  What currency is used in Finland? Is it true that Finland experiences the Midnight Sun?  What are the Finnish saunas?  All these queries and much more will be replied in this new section of our website.
 

The Venue Seating Plan

Total Area: 338,145 sq km
land: 304,473 sq km
water: 33,672 sq km

Finland has a long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain

Finland is a country of thousands of lakes and islands; 187,888 lakes (larger than 500 m²) and 179,584 islands to be precise. One of these lakes, Saimaa, is the 5th largest in Europe. The Finnish landscape is mostly flat with few hills and its highest point, the Haltitunturi at 1,328 metres (4,357 ft), is found in the extreme north of Lapland. Beside the many lakes the landscape is dominated by extensive boreal forests (about 68 per cent of land area) and little arable land. The greater part of the islands are found in south-west, part of the archipelago of the Åland Islands, and along the southern coast in the Gulf of Finland. Finland is one of the few countries in the world that are still growing. Owing to the isostatic uplift that has been taking place since the last ice age, the surface area of the country is growing by about 7 square kilometres (2.7 sq miles) a year.

(source: wikipedia.org)

Generally cold temperate; potentially subarctic but comparatively mild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current, Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes

The climate in Southern Finland is a northern temperature climate. In Northern Finland, particularly in the Province of Lapland, a subarctic climate dominates, characterised by cold, occasionally severe, winters and relatively warm summers. Finland is near enough to the Atlantic to be continuously warmed by the Gulf stream, which explains the unusually warm climate considering the absolute latitude.

A quarter of Finland's territory lies above the Arctic Cirlce, and as a consequence the midnight sun can be experienced — for more and more days, the further up north one comes. At Finland's northernmost point, the sun does not set for 73 days during summer, and does not rise at all for 51 days in winter.

(source: wikipedia.org)

The midnight sun is a phenomenon occurring in latitudes north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Cirlce where the sun is continuously visible for at least 24 hours once per year.  A quarter of Finland's territory lies above the Arctic Circle, and as a consequence the midnight sun can be experienced — for more and more days, the further north one goes. At Finland's northernmost point, the sun does not set for 73 days during summer.

(source: wikipedia.org)

Economically speaking, Finland stands for Nokia -- or maybe it's the other way around. The rise of the world's largest cell phone company was nearly simultaneous with Finland's ascent from post-Iron Curtain nadirs. With Jorma Ollila as CEO and an emphasis on mobile phones, Nokia landed on the path to success in 1992. The value of the company's stock has grown by more than 400 percent since then. The national success story began with EU accession in 1995. According to Transparency International, there is practically zero corruption in Finland today. Productivity, economic growth and price stability are above average compared with the 15 older European Union member states. The public sector enjoys a surplus. And the World Economic Forum has listed Finland as the most competitive country in the world. Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:  Finland's eonomic growth paralleled Nokia's upward climb in the mid 1990s "All that is the result of extensive reforms during the 1990s," Högnabba said.

Finland's previous appearances: 40 years out of 51
Years participated: 1961-1969; 1971-1994; 1996; 1998; 2000; 2002; 2004; 2005; 2006
Best result: 1st (2006)
Previous best result: 6th (1973)

For a country that's participated in Eurovision quite so many times, Finland really does have a dismal record. Before 2006, it had only once reached the heights of 6th place (even then over 30 years ago, in 1973, with the rather silly 'Tom tom tom'), and last managed a top ten placing in 1989. Worse, between 1994 and 2002, Finland had the distinction of only participating in the even-numbered years (94, 96, 98, 00, 02), having managed to get relegated on every occasion, with its 'highlight' being a 15th place in 1998.

Having missed 2003 through relegation, the Semi Final format introduced in 2004 has at least allowed Finland to take part every year, though (until 2006) not yet with much success to show for it. In 2004, the country could only manage 14th place with Jari Sillanpää and his disturbing dance moves, despite 'Takes 2 to tango' being quite highly rated prior to the Contest. Participating in the Semi Final again in 2005, Geir Rönning gave a classy performance of 'Why', but once again it was not enough to gain Finland that elusive place in the Final, meaning that the Semi Final beckoned once again in 2006.

However, 2006 was a runaway winning for the Finlands own hard rock band, LORDI and their powerful "Hard Rock Halleluyah".

(source: Soult Eurovision)

The Finnish public broadcaster received bids from seven cities to host the upcoming contest. From the Finnish capital Helsinki, YLE received bids from two venues.  As well as two bids from venues in Helsinki, YLE has offers from Turku, Espoo, Tampere, Lahti, Lordi's 'birth city' and capital of Lapland Rovaniemi and one from the ski resort Levi.

Eventually, Helsinki won the right to host the 52nd annual Eurovision Song Contest.   According to YLE at a press conference at YLE in Pasila (the area of Helsinki where the arena is also located), the main reasons for this selection were the city's number of hotel rooms, the international airport, the harbour, and Helsinki's experience in organising international events.  The Hartwall Arena's bigger capacity went down well with YLE, who wish that ''as many people as possible can see the Eurovision live''.  Turku was the 'runner-up' according to the Finnish broadcaster, and no other venues were taken as seriously.

Hartwall Arena
Hartwall Arena is the biggest indoor arena in Finland. Arena’s capacity is 12 000 – 15 000 seats, depending on the place where the stage will be built. Ice Hockey championships, concerts, fairs and many kinds of events have been organized and it is not inconsiderate to say that Hartwall Arena would be the best venue for Eurovision Song Contest of today. Using the commuter train, it takes only some 10 minutes to get to the hall from the heart of Helsinki.

Jaana Pelkonen and Heikki Paasonen are tipped to host the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest. Finnish newspaper Iltalehti wrote that. 40,67% of its readers voted for Pelkonen as favourite female host, 35,09% gave their vote to Paasonen.

Heikki Paasonen said to MTV3's entertainment news that Jaana and he were promised the jobs already, but YLE could not confirm that. "Only the project managers have been appointed", was YLE's official comment.

The delegations meeting is taking place on March 11-12, 2007 where the draw will also take place. The Finnish broadcaster announced that the 2007 Eurovision show will be produced totally (100%) by local companies without any external help.

The public transport in Helsinki surroundings is organized very well so that should not be a problem. The traveller’s ticket for Helsinki public transport for five days costs 18 euros. The single-ticket to local trains (Helsinki area only), underground and trams costs 2,20 euros. The journey by using the local train from Helsinki central railway station to Pasila railway station, where Hartwall-arena is located, takes less than 10 minutes. Pasila railway station is just next to the venue. Or if you prefer fresh air, you can just walk to Pasila. The distance from the centre is around three kilometres.

Helsinki can offer 13.000 hotel beds for their guests. Many of those beds are in the most high quality hotels in Finland and Scandinavia. There are also good quality hotels in the surrounding municipalities for the Eurovision tourists. That could be actually even less expensive than staying in a hotel in the city centre.