14 Jan 2026
Oulu, Finland, Named European Capital of Culture 2026: A Year of Northern Lights, Frozen Sea Festivals, and Europe's First Sami Opera
For U.S. travelers seeking Northern Lights adventures, cutting-edge art, sustainable design, and immersive local experiences, Oulu2026 offers one of Europe's most compelling reasons to visit in 2026.
Oulu, home to 220,000 people, two universities, and one of Europe's most innovative tech ecosystems, is only the third Finnish city in history to receive this prestigious designation. Easily reached via a one-hour flight from Helsinki, Oulu sits at the intersection of coastal and Arctic Finland – making it an ideal gateway for winter adventures, design-forward culture, and summer nights that never end.
More than 1,000 events are already included in the official Oulu calendar for 2026, with additional events to be released throughout the year. The winter season brings electronic music, light art, ice installations, and snow sculpting, while summer highlights food culture, outdoor arts, and community gatherings. Autumn welcomes innovative intersections of art, tech, and ecology.
Below is a curated list from Visit Finland featuring Oulu highlights tailored to every type of traveler.
FOR CULTURE LOVERS: The World Premiere of the First Sami Opera
Ovllá, debuting at Oulu Theatre in January, is the world's first full-scale opera to center around the Sámi, the only indigenous people of the Nordic countries. Featuring Sámi musicians and joikers – who are well-known within the Sámi community but rarely seen on Finnish stages – the production explores identity, shame, and the legacy of silence, along with how language and culture can reconnect with our roots. The performance is presented in collaboration with the Oulu Symphony.
FOR ART LOVERS: Oulu2026 x Tallinn Fotografiska
In January, Fotografiska Tallinn brings its first-ever exhibition to Finland. PLAY, opening January 14, features sixteen international artists exploring spontaneity and the role of play in modern life. Fotografiska, founded in Stockholm in 2010, is one of Europe's leading hubs for contemporary photography, art, and culture.
FOR MUSIC LOVERS: Techno and karaoke festival on the frozen sea
On February 28, the Frozen People Festival returns. This winter festival showcases electronic music and Northern art, held on the frozen sea.
The art program encompasses performances, installations, soft spaces and encounters, light art, and interdisciplinary art, all available until 10 p.m. Highlights include:
- Jään, Saunaan – a sauna built entirely of ice by the Ice Ars Beibi collective
- A new After Sea techno party in Oulu's Cultural House (k18)
- A diverse program at the S+T+ARTS tent, including a performative karaoke corner.
FOR FOODIES: Dine with Locals at a Table Stretching More Than Half a Mile Under the Midnight Sun
The Arctic Food Lab celebrates northern cuisine, which is based on local ingredients such as wild berries, mushrooms, fish, and ingredients from local foragers and farmers. Its signature event, the Summer Night's Dinner in August, invites visitors and locals to dine together at a 3,280-foot-long table, featuring a custom-designed tablecloth by Northern Finland's Proto collective and students from Hangzhou's China Academy of Art.
Guests can sit at the table with their own delicacies or get local, authentic dishes from the local vendors.
FOR TECH ENTHUSIASTS: Art Underground and Citywide Light Installations
Autumn highlights the synergy between art, science, and technology. Lumo Light Festival expands into the ten-day Lumo Art & Tech Festival, combining international expertise in visual art, light, and sound. Large-scale installations will transform public spaces, while immersive works in unexpected venues will challenge perceptions of nature, space, and time. Underground Clash (working title) is an immersive art installation by Danish artist Jakob Kudsk Steensen, created from ecological fieldwork within Finland, and staged beneath central Oulu in the parking facility.
ABOUT VISIT FINLAND
Visit Finland, a unit of Business Finland, is a national authority on tourism and an active force in promoting international travel to Finland. Its main goal is to develop Finland's international image as a destination. Visit Finland supports the travel industry through research and helps businesses and groups develop products and services for the international market. For more information, please visit www.visitfinland.com. This material is distributed by Business Finland USA, Inc. On behalf of Business Finland Oy.
