Vappu

Vappu is the day Finland stops being quiet. On the evening of 30 April every town square fills with people in white caps and overalls, and on 1 May the whole country has a picnic. If you arrived in winter and wondered where everyone was, Vappu is the answer: they were waiting for this.

What it is

Vappu is three holidays in one: the international workers' day, the students' spring carnival, and the welcome to summer after the long winter. The name comes from Saint Walpurga (Valpuri), whose name day it is.

30 April: Vappuaatto

Work ends and the evening begins. In Helsinki, at six o'clock, students crown the statue of Havis Amanda at the Market Square with a giant white cap, and everyone who has a cap puts theirs on at the same moment. Tampere puts a cap on its own statue and dunks graduating engineers in the Tammerkoski rapids. Turku gathers at the Art Museum hill. Elsewhere, the town square. Then restaurants, house parties and street crowds until late.

1 May: Vappupäivä

The picnic. In Helsinki, Kaivopuisto park by the sea from morning: blankets, sparkling wine, sima, tippaleipä, balloons, and a lot of people who slept two hours. Every city has its park. Bring your own everything; nothing is sold in the park itself, and shops are closed.

The morning also has the workers' marches and speeches for those who want them, and the Vappu brunch for those who do not.

What to eat and drink

• Sima: sweet, lemony, barely alcoholic, sold in every supermarket the week before. Look for the raisins floating at the top; that means it is ready.
• Tippaleipä: funnel cake with icing sugar, in every bakery.
• Munkki: doughnuts, the other Vappu pastry.
• Kuohuviini: sparkling wine, the adult drink of the day.

What is closed

Everything on 1 May: shops, Alko, offices. Restaurants and kiosks are open and full. Public transport runs a Sunday timetable, packed.

Vappu Finnish