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Oodi’s services for tourists

10.6.2023

At Helsinki Central Library we offer many services for everyone visiting us. A library card is required for some of the services, but happily there’s still a lot to experience even without a membership to the library!

Oodi is open from the morning to the evening, and on the weekends as well. Entrance to all the three floors is always open and free of charge. There is an open Wifi “Stadinetti” available all over the library. If you wish, you can book a tour for your group or enjoy a self-guided tour – or just visit us and have a look around. If you can’t make it to Helsinki, you can also visit Oodi virtually! Below we’ve listed all kinds of things you can experience at Oodi, from the area outside to all the three floors.

Read more about tours

Visit Oodi virtually

Outside Oodi

Outside Oodi there’s an open outdoor play area and a small basketball field. Many open events are organized under Oodi’s balcony and the Kansalaistori square. Oodi’s restaurant’s terrace is open during the summer. Just accross the square from Oodi are the Helsinki Music Centre and Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma. From Oodi it’s also a short walk to the Töölönlahti Park and Bay.

Read more about Töölönlahti Bay

1st floor

At the Oodi restaurant you will find breakfast, seasonal lunch, snacks and of course drinks from coffee to wine. The National Audiovisual Institute (KAVI) organizes regular film screenings at the Kino Regina cinema from Tuesdays to Sundays. Tickets can be purchased online or at the theater’s ticket booth. In the lobby there is European Unions interactive Europa Experience exhibition and Helsinki City’s information point on the city’s services.

Art is present on all the floors in Oodi. In the lobby there is usually either an art installation or media art projected on the walls, or both! There are several events every week at the multipurpose hall Maijansali. The evens are mostly in Finnish, but sometimes in other languages as well.

Read more about the restaurant

Read more about the movie theater

Read more about the Europa Experience

Read more about the events

2nd floor

The second floor represents the modern library, everything from studios and game rooms to the Urban Workshop – a place where you can create new things and personalize old ones. For the use of some of the services a library card is required, and most of the services must be reserved via Varaamo beforehand.

Services that are available without a reservation and don’t require a library card:

  • Retro games

Services that need to be reserved via Varaamo, but don’t require a library card:

  • A2 printer and A3 scanner
  • 3D-printers (cost: 0,70 € per print)
  • UV-printer
  • Group rooms
  • Large format printer (cost: depending on size of the print the from 7,50 € to 30 € )
  • Media work stations
  • Workspaces

Read more and reserve the services

3rd floor

The top floor of Oodi is nicknamed “Book Heaven”. It holds the library’s book and magazine collection which you can browse and read freely in the library. We have over 180 magazines, 40 newspapers and over 100 000 books in different languages for both children and adults. All across the floor there are many places where you can read, from the children’s department’s Fairytale room (that has a secret door!) to the design sofas on the Art Rugs or the armchairs overlooking the Parliament House. Of course you can also take a a book or magazine to the Oodi Café and read while you enjoy a coffee and something sweet.

The children’s area on the north end of the floor was renovated in the spring of 2023. It has a play area for toddlers – for peaceful playing! There is a big collection of board games to be played in the library. The big balcony is open from spring to autumn. It’s a great place to get some sun and to admire the view of the cultural hub around Oodi. Most of the non-media art that is permanently located to Oodi is on the third floor. We have even created a game that showcases Oodi’s art for the Seppo.io service. To play, you need a smartphone or tablet with an internet connection.

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