Event: Finland - Helsinki

Natural History Museum

When:	Daily; not Mon
Where:	Natural History Museum
Costs:	€4.20; 7-15 yrs & students €2.50; group rates aavailable
Opening Hours:	Tue-Fri 11am-5pm; Sat & Sun 11am-4pm; open Easter Mon Various holiday closures including 6 (Independence Day), 24-26 Dec & 1 Jan

Helsinki's much loved Natural History Museum, including zoological, botanical, geological and palaeontological exhibits, allows visitors to explore the wonders of the natural world.

As well as keeping busy as an independent research institution, the museum is also one of the three central national museums in Finland. Its permanent collections, with specimens from all over the world, are divided into various departments: Mammals, Birds, Fishes, Invertebrates and, the most popular one for adults and kids alike, Skeletons and Bones.

One of the museum's most valuable treasures is the complete skeleton of a Steller's sea cow. This loveable species lived around the Bering Straits long ago, before dying out in around 1768. It's well worth a gawp - especially if you have kids: guaranteed to keep them quiet for two minutes!