Lounge Review: Finnair Lounge Schengen Helsinki Airport (HEL)

I wasn’t expecting much from the Finnair Schengen region lounge at Helsinki, but I was very pleasantly surprised by this lounge.

First, I loved the design of the lounge. It felt airy and open with lots of cool furniture and lighting fixtures. There were large windows, so there was natural light. The lounge was pretty busy, but there were plenty of seats still available.

The lounge had showers, which may be useful for anyone connecting from a long flight.

In terms of food, I wouldn’t say it was great, but it was there. There was soup and a hot option (of something that I could not identify), breads, salad, fruit salad, and cake. Everyone likes cake, right?

Going in, I was expecting something similar to US domestic lounges, but the Finnair Schengen region lounge at HEL is a step above. It’s just a cool-looking lounge, and there’s some food and showers.

In general, I think Helsinki is a pretty great airport with interesting lounges. It’s not super fancy or extravagant, but the airport and lounges are solid with great design and character. I’ll also note that even you’re connecting from a non-Schengen flight to Schengen flight, you can still use the non-Schengen lounges prior to passing through passport control, which is a great perk.