Oulu

1bar

Probably the best cocktails in town, a small dancefloor, sofas and electronic, rap and house music.

45 Special

Open every night. Weekdays gigs and meeting place of modern drunkards after 01:30, weekends crowded.

Adventure Park Huikia

Seikkailupuisto Huikia

A considerably expensive "adventure park" near the main swimming pool of Oulu. The park's courses are mainly many metres up on the trees where you move with, e.g., cable ropes. A fun and exciting experience for everyone.

€26

Amarillo

Nice bar on the 1st floor and a night club underground. Also, the Tex-Mex-style kitchen is open M–Th 11:00–00:30, F Sa 11:00–23:30, Su 12:00–23:00.

Caio

Nice and quiet bar with music, billiards and food near the University of Oulu.

Cinema Finnkino Plaza

Elokuvateatteri Finnkino Plaza

Completed in 2007, Plaza movie theatre features one of the biggest movie screens in Finland. Most of the movies shown on theater's eight screens are original English versions and are subtitled in Finnish and Swedish, though some children's movies are dubbed in Finnish.

Admission €10.30–13, before 17:00 on weekdays €7. Add €2 for 3D movies. Ticket sets of 5 or 9 tickets are available, bringing the price per admission down to €9.90 or €9 respectively and no extra for 3D showings

Cinema Star

Elokuvateatteri Star

The oldest still functioning (yet very modern) movie theatre in Oulu, Star movie theatre features 3D digital movies. Most of the movies shown on the theatre's three screens are original English versions and are subtitled in Finnish and Swedish, though some children's movies are dubbed in Finnish. Star was nominated as Finland's most disabled-friendly establishment in 2007.

Admission €7.5-10. Sets of 5 tickets are available for €37, bringing the price per admission down to €7.4 to all shows except for 3D movies, which cost extra

Coffee House Oulu

Coffari, Koffari

A modern, trendy café with nice staff. Outlets to charge your phone are found on many seats.

Mon–Fri 08:00-20:00 Sat 10:00–21:00 Sun 11:00–20:00

Crecian

A "taverna" serving Greek food in a Greek-styled environment.

Hupisaaret park, Fountains and salmon stairs

Hupisaaret, kalatie

The beautiful park of Hupisaaret (lit. Fun Islands) is a lush area with little paths and bridges crossing beautiful little streams. The longest fish path of Finland, 750-m- and 64-stair-long fish path is on the northern part of Hupisaaret park. Take a picnic or just stroll around the renovated park where you can also find the soon-to-be-mentioned Northern Ostrobothnia Museum. Tietomaa and Oulu Museum of Art are also found near the park.

24 hr

Kaarlenholvi/Jumpru

Genuine Oulu. Pub downstairs with warmed up patio offers the authentic overview of locals. Nightclub upstairs attracts younger clientele and exchange students. Long queues weekends, so arrive early (before 23:00) to avoid waiting.

Kayaking, biking or stand up paddling

SUP

The Oulu River delta offers an exceptionally good frame for stand-up paddling and kayaking, so why not try it out? The boards/kayaks are easily rented in either Kiikeli or Nallikari, although the former one has better selection. Use the internet reserving system (http://www.lappis.fi/index.php/sup-varaus-online/) or call the renting company to assure that there are boards available for you.

SUP €25/hr, €35/2 hr and €50/day

Kesän Sauna

Summer's Sauna

A floating public sauna, open in summer. Run by volunteer workers.

Jun–Aug 17:00–19:00·€5

Kitchen and Bar Oula

Traditional Finnish ingredients are made into tasty dishes in this chain hotel's restaurant.

Sun–Thu 17:00–22:00 Fri 17:00–22:30 Sat 15:00–22:30,

Koivurannan kahvila

A café right at the Oulu river. Also has rowing boats for rent.

Open only in the summer months

Kruununmakasiini

In Sweden (to which Finland belonged from the 1300s to 1809), a "Kronomagasin" was a state-administered warehouse in which grain and other foodstuffs collected as tax were stored. Unfortunately, one can't go inside the warehouse any more since today it functions as an office for an architecture company. It is worth checking out from the outside though, the old wooden building sticks out amusingly from the 1980s apartment buildings and offers a reminder of the historical aspects of the city.

Kuluma

If you fancy cocktails, this is the place to go. Some cocktails include a fire-breathing display.

11:00–02:00

Linnanmaa swimming pool

Linnanmaan uimahalli

The newest swimming pool, opened in 2025. Pools include fitness pool, activity pool, teaching pool and kids' pool.

Can change, usually Mon Tue Thu Fri 06:15-22:00, Wed 07:00-22:00, Sat Sun 10:00-15.15·€6 for the pools

Meri-Toppila DiscGolfPark

A disc golf track in the suburb of Toppila. Bring your own frisbees.

Nallikari

A summer visit is preferred. Here you can find is the most known beach in the city. There is also the small "amusement park" Vauhtipuisto nearby, as well as minigolf, camping and a restaurant. The area is under construction as of July 2024, but you can still visit there.

Northern Ostrobothnia Museum

Pohjois-Pohjanmaan Museo

Closed for renovation until 2026A great museum on the history of Northern Ostrobothnia, especially the history of Oulu. Exhibitions on four floors.

Wed-Sun 10:00-17:00·Adults €6, students and seniors €4, children under 18 for free

Oluthuone Leskinen

Irish-style pub with the best selection of beers in the city. Very crowded on Friday and Saturday nights.

12:00–02:00

Oskarin Kellari

Large servings of non-nonsense food, steaks and such at reasonable prices. It used to be right across the street from the railway station, but nowadays neighbours the Forenom apartment hotel.

Oulu Automobile Museum

Oulun Automuseo

A car museum with 40 cars and 20 motorcycles and some traffic related paraphernalia on display. A couple of really interesting vehicles like the largest car ever built in the Nordic countries (a truck for a dam company), the remains of a Ford "killed in action" during World War II and a "motorcycle" where the rider sits inside a large wheel. The car museum also has a restaurant open for lunch.

Mon-Sat 09:00-17:00, Sun 09:00-15:00 (summer, closed on Sundays in the winter)·Adults €7, children €5

Oulu Castle

Oulun linna

The castle was damaged by attack in the 18th century and finally blown to pieces in 1793 when lightning struck the gunpowder magazine. What you see now is the maritime observatory built on the ruins; it's set in a pleasant park, and you can climb the tower for views. There's a café (Tähtitornin kahvila) within. The cellar (same hours) displays info on the castle - mostly in Finnish, but there's more in the Northern Ostrobothnia Museum.

Café daily May & Sep: 11:00–19:00, Jun & late Aug: 11:00–20:00, Jul & early Aug: 11:00–21:00 21:00·Free

Oulu Cathedral

Oulun tuomiokirkko

Neoclassical Lutheran cathedral built in 1832 after its predecessor burned down. The architect Carl Ludvig Engel also designed the buildings of Senate Square in Helsinki.

Sep-May: 12:00-13:00, Jun & Aug: 11:00-20:00, Jul: 11:00-21:00

Oulu Catholic Church

Holy Family Of Nazareth Church

Said to be the prettiest church in Oulu, and definitely stands out from its surroundings.

Oulu Museum of Art

Oulun Taidemuseo

Two-storey museum with a wide variety of modern artwork. Around 8 exhibits a year. Plenty of information in English, except for small, temporary exhibits.

Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00·€8

Oulu Water park

A "water park" meaning a floated obstacle course in the Oulu river delta. Right next to the Oulu castle ruins and cafe, so you can get a coffee or a cold beer after!

In the summer, opens in June·€12+€5 for cloackroom and wetsuit

Oulu Zipline

A zipline near the beach in Nallikari. It runs for 250 m along the shoreline. It starts from a 20-m-high tower and ends near the Nallikari lighthouse. It is possible for two people to go at the same time.

summer·€20