Luostarinmäen museokortteli

About the museum

Luostarinmäki is Turku’s only continuous wooden-house district to have survived the great fire of 1827. The buildings still stand on their original sites and are more than 200 years old. The plots on the hill were cheap, so people of modest means settled there and lived largely self-sufficiently, in the manner of the countryside. The first residents built small dwellings; later the owners added rooms and outbuildings, sold houses and repaired them.

Among the residents were shoemakers, sailors and guards, and in the 19th century especially carpenters skilled in woodworking, who could build their own homes. Their backgrounds ranged from circus artists and musicians to vagrants and innkeepers. Many-child families often lived in small spaces, and by the early 20th century most of the tenants were elderly people and women living alone.

Museum activities began in the area in 1940. The houses were restored to their appearance before the fire, and some of the homes remain in private residential use alongside the museum. The exhibition shows life in the 18th to 20th centuries: furnished rooms, craftsmen’s workshops, and courtyards where potatoes, turnips, herbs and berry bushes grow, as well as apple trees planted by the old residents. In the courtyard of the tobacco house, Virginia tobacco is grown, and the flower beds contain old perennials.

Highlights

• Wooden houses that survived the fire of 1827 on their original sites
• Main exhibition: the houses and courtyards of Luostarinmäki
• Craftsmen’s workshops and furnished living rooms
• Historic courtyards with vegetable gardens and berry bushes
• Lasten Luostarinmäki (Children’s Luostarinmäki) in summer
• Luostarinmäki 1827 virtual tour

Permanent exhibitions

• Luostarinmäen talot ja pihat – The main exhibition presents the houses and courtyards of the museum block and the everyday life of the 18th to 20th centuries and the lives of craftsmen.
• Luostarinmäki 1827 – The virtual tour depicts historic Luostarinmäki before the great fire.

Founded

1940

Operated by

Turun kaupunki, Turun kaupunginmuseo

Visitors per year

approx. 44,184

Admission & discounts

The Museokortti (Finnish Museum Card) is accepted. Free admission also for school groups from Turku at primary and secondary level, ICOM members, media representatives, and the tour leader and bus driver of a group. Payment methods: cash, common bank and credit cards, as well as Smartum, ePassi and Edenred benefits (Smartum until 31 August 2026). Guided tours cost €50–155 per group, and admission to the museum is added at the individual rate.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The only entrance is through the Vartiovuorenkatu gate. From the gate to the ticket desk there is a paved route with railings and resting platforms. In summer, near the ticket point, there is a tactile ceramic model of the area for visually impaired visitors. Wheelchair users can reach the marked courtyards of the museum area; the hilly and uneven terrain and the stairs of the houses make movement difficult, so an assistant is recommended for the visit. The museum shop, the nearest toilets, the Kisälli café and the Luostarinmäen krouvit (Luostarinmäki Taverns) exhibition can be reached by wheelchair via a ramp. There is an induction loop at the ticket desk. An easier, guided route past six courtyards starts from the museum shop courtyard, and a route guide is available from the ticket desk. Guide dogs and assistance dogs are allowed. There are benches and portable folding chairs in the exhibition spaces. Two accessible parking spaces are next to the museum entrance.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Hands-on stations
• Stroller-friendly: not available
• Baby changing facilities

In summer, the open Lasten Luostarinmäki (Children’s Luostarinmäki) is an area for families where children can touch objects, try things out and play. The museum toilets have a changing table. The steep, uneven terrain and the stairs make pushchairs difficult to use.

Getting there & parking

The museum is reached only through the Vartiovuorenkatu gate; the gates on the park side are kept closed. Recommended ways of getting there are on foot, by bicycle and by public transport.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop
• Lockers

Café Kisälli and the museum shop. Large bags, umbrellas and long objects can be left in storage lockers near the entrance and the museum shop.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events

Celebration and meeting venue Mestari.

Plan your visit