Leisure

Leisure in Pori
www.pori.fi/english/tourism/

Culture

Theatres, Art Galleries, Museums, Concerts, Cinemas, Festivals
Pori offers a wide variety of cultural activities with its many theatres, art galleries, and museums. There are also many concerts to go to: the Promenade Centre hosts top class concerts as often as several times a week. In addition to the concert hall, the Promenade Centre houses six cinemas, and international films usually premier quickly in Pori, too. International films are shown with subtitles in Finnish.

Pori is famous for the annual Pori Jazz Festival arranged in July, which attracts thousands of music lovers from all parts of the world every summer. The music goes on around the clock at the festival, which attracted 143,000 visitors in 2003.
www.porijazz.fi/

The traditional Pori International Folk Culture Festival has become an established summer event. It takes place in August every year. Pori Folk adds life to the city centre by offering folk culture for the audience to hear, see, and taste.

The Rakastajat Theatre arranges the Lainsuojattomat (Outlaws) festival in the autumn every year. For five days, the true-to-life, funny theatre performances can be enjoyed at theatres, in the streets, and at restaurants. These include drama, music, street theatre, and other styles. This broad survey of the free theatre scene features international guests, too, so there are theatre performances in English, and a variety of performances with free entry.

Library

The Pori City Library offers books for borrowing for a period of approximately four weeks. You need a library card to borrow books. One can be issued to anyone providing proof of identity.
The library arranges various events, including storytelling for children and lectures. 
Pori City Library, Gallen-Kallelankatu 12, tel. +358 (0)2 621 5800, www.pori.fi/kirjasto/English/

Colleges

Otsola is a community college operating in Pori and the neighbouring municipalities. Otsola arranges various day and evening classes – for instance, in languages – as well as Open University courses; public lectures; and courses in culture, music, dance, the visual arts, and physical education. Otsola also arranges Finnish language courses for foreigners.
 
Otsola Community College: Juhana Herttuan katu 16, tel. +358 (0)2 630 1500, www.otsola.net/

The City of Pori Community College offers a wide variety of activities: courses in languages, Open University courses, singing in choirs, information technology studies, yoga classes, carpet-weaving...

City of Pori Community College: Gallen-Kallelankatu 14, tel. +358 (0)2 621 5962, www.pori.fi/tyovaenopisto/

Sport

Pori offers almost limitless opportunities for engaging in sport: you can bowl, climb, dive, play golf, cycle, jog and hike, ski downhill, skate, ski cross-country, do aerobics, train at a gym, swim, ride horseback… the variety is endless.

Teams from Pori play ice hockey, bandy, rink bandy, Finnish baseball, water polo, floorball and American football at the highest national level, so there are plenty of options for sport enthusiasts, too.

For further information on sport activities, please contact the City of Pori Leisure Office at Isolinnankatu 12 (2nd Floor), tel. +358 (0)2 621 1400, online at www.pori.fi/english/tourism/sports.html

The Island of Kirjurinluoto

The small nature park of Kirjurinluoto island, situated in the middle of the river Kokemäenjoki opposite the street Eteläranta, is famous as, among other things, the concert park of the Pori Jazz Festival. The place is a summer oasis, a popular place for relaxation among Pori citizens and tourists alike, enjoyable by children and adults. Kirjurinluoto is only a five-minute walk from the marketplace.

Kirjurinluoto consists of well-cared-for green parkland with flowers, bushes, ornamental plants, and walkways. The total area of the island is approximately 25 hectares. The affiliated Raatimiehenluoto island is home to a miniature golf centre with golf courses both indoors and outdoors, and an international course outdoors. City gardens and the Satakunta Garden Information Centre (Satakunnan Vihertietokeskus) are located on Hanhiluoto island.

The sandy beach is ideal for children, and the water is clean. There is free access to the beach.

Kirjurinluoto also features a summer restaurant, the Concert Park Pori Delta Arena, Pelle Hermanni playground, guided nature paths, and campfire locations.

The playground area attracts a lot of groups from day care centres and schools, as, in addition to the Pelle Hermanni playground, the area features a pirate ship with dock. The Three Bears’ Park (Kolmen karhun puisto) is mainly intended for children between 10 and 12 years of age. Wheelchair access is provided to one of the new climbing frames.

Yyteri beach 

Yyteri is a seaside holiday oasis approximately 18 kilometres away from central Pori. The sandy dunes of Yyteri attract tourists and Pori residents to the beach all summer long.

You can also play golf, ride horseback, and surf on the sea at Yyteri. The Yyteri area boasts over 30 kilometres of hiking routes and nature paths, and more than 10 birdwatching towers. The area also features a comfortable spa hotel and camping area.


Embassies, Consulates, Honorary Consuls, and Associations 

For contact information of embassies and consuls your country, please contact the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Unit for Consular Issues
Postal address: Ministry for Foreign Affairs, P.O. Box 176, FI-00161 Helsinki
Visiting address: Merikasarmi, Laivastokatu 22 B, FI-00160 Helsinki
Tel. +358 (0)9 160 05
E-mail: oik-32@formin.fi
http://formin.finland.fi/english/

The Multicultural Association of Satakunta

The Multicultural Association of Satakunta is an international meeting place in Pori. It is an association founded jointly by immigrants and Finns in 1996 with the goal of increasing internationality and the interaction of different cultures, and of helping immigrants feel at home in Satakunta. The voluntary association arranges courses, clubs, lectures, and meetings. It also offers Finnish-language courses.

The Multicultural Association of Satakunta


Sources and Further Information:

City of Pori: www.pori.fi 
Satakunta region: www.satakunta.fi

Local registry office: www.maistraatti.fi 
Social Insurance Institution: www.kela.fi
Tax Office: www.vero.fi
Police: www.poliisi.fi
Employment Office: www.mol.fi
Customs: www.tulli.fi

Train timetables: www.vr.fi
Bus timetables: www.matkahuolto.fi
Flight timetables: Finncomm Airlines

City of Helsinki Cultural Office