Venue and travel

Desucon is held annually at Sibelius Hall (http://www.sibeliustalo.fi/en/), a concert hall located in Lahti, Southern Finland. In 2007, Sibelius Hall was chosen as the best conference center in Finland along with Tampere Hall. Ever since its completition in 2000, the concert hall has received praise for its world-class acoustics and architectural design. Sibelius Hall hosts various kinds of events every year, ranging from concerts and conferences to gaming exhibitions—and since 2009, Desucon.

The most impressive features of Sibelius Hall include the Main Hall, a concert hall which can seat 1229 people, and houses the largest shows in Desucon; and the Forest Hall, a broad space in the middle of the building linking different parts of Sibelius Hall together.

There are grass fields in the vicinity of the building, and the nearby Lahti harbour is a home to many restaurant boats. The city of Lahti provides a free wireless network, Mastonet, that covers most of the city, including Sibelius Hall and the railway station.

Travel

Flying to Finland

The most relevant airports are Helsinki-Vantaa (HEL, EFHK) and Tampere-Pirkkala (TMP, EFTP).

Several international airlines fly to Helsinki-Vantaa. From the Helsinki-Vantaa airport, take the airport bus to the Tikkurila railway station and then the train to Lahti. The trip from the airport to Lahti takes roughly two hours and the one way adult fare is around 25 €.

Budget airlines such as Ryanair fly to Tampere-Pirkkala. From the Tampere-Pirkkala airport, take the airport bus to the Tampere centrum, walk down Hämeenkatu to the railway station and then take the train to Lahti. The trip from the airport to Lahti takes roughly three hours and the one way adult fare is around 30 €.

Baltic ferries

Ferries cross the Baltic from Stockholm (Sweden) and Tallinn (Estonia) to Turku or Helsinki. The companies operating these connections are Viking Line and Tallink Silja. Take the train from the harbor cities to Lahti.

Ferries from other baltic countries and Germany might also be available, but these are generally very slow and often more expensive than budget airlines.

Trains from Russia

Trains from St. Petersburg stop in Lahti. For more information, see VR.

Arriving to Sibelius Hall

Sibelius Hall is located at Ankkurikatu 9, by Lake Vesijärvi, near the Lahti city center. Buses number 17 and 30 stop at Sibelius Hall, the latter of which also stops near the Lahti railway station (Mannerheiminkatu 15).

There is a public parking lot in front of Sibelius Hall, and across the street is a field where you can park your car as well.

Using Public Transportation

VR Group – Finnish State Railways (http://www.vr.fi/en/index.html)

Matkahuolto – Buses (http://www.matkahuolto.info/lippu/en/)

Finnish Transport Agency (http://www2.liikennevirasto.fi/alk/easyway/)

From Helsinki-Vantaa Airport

Bus 615 takes passengers to Helsinki Central railway station, and bus 61 to Tikkurila railway station. Commuter train Z runs from Helsinki to Lahti. You can also take a long-distance bus to Lahti straight from Helsinki-Vantaa.

Journey Planner (http://www.reittiopas.fi/en/)

From Tampere-Pirkkala Airport

Tampere-Pirkkala Airport is located 17 kilometers from the Tampere city center. Ryanair flights have a bus connection to the Tampere railway station, and arriving passengers can buy their tickets from Airpro’s info desk at Terminal 2. Bus 61 to the Tampere bus station leaves from a bus stop next to Terminal 1. The Tampere railway station is a short walk away from the bus station.

From Port of Helsinki

Trams 9 and 3T take passengers to Helsinki Central railway station from West Terminal and South Harbor, respectively. Commuter train Z runs from Helsinki to Lahti. Both trams also stop near the Central Bus Station.

Journey Planner (http://www.reittiopas.fi/en/)

From Port of Turku

Port of Turku has a railway station and a bus terminal in its vicinity. However, long distance trains and busses depart for Lahti only a couple times a day. Below are instructions on how to get to the Turku bus station (Aninkaistenkatu 20) and the Turku Central railway station (Ratapihankatu 37).

Bus station: Take bus 1 to Linja-autoasema.

Railway station: Take bus 1 to Eskelinkatu. Follow Eskelinkatu and turn left onto Eerikinkatu. At the next intersection, turn right onto Käsityöläiskatu. Follow Käsityöläiskatu until you reach the railway station.

Journey Planner (http://reittiopas.turku.fi/en/)