The Tall Ships Races is a beloved and eagerly awaited summer highlight, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors to the banks of the Aura River.
SEPTEMBER 2025.- Turku has signed an agreement to host The Tall Ships Races sailing event from 6-9 July 2028. The Baltic Sea leg of the race will include the ports of Kiel, Turku, Tallinn, and Szczecin.
Turku has already hosted the international Tall Ships Races five times in the past - the last event took place in July 2024. In addition, the city organized a major tall ships cultural regatta in 2011, the year Turku held the title of European Capital of Culture.
Last year, Turku was designated as the Baltic Sea anchor port for the Tall Ships Races, in recognition of its strong track record in organizing sailing events. The anchor port status guarantees Turku the right to host the Tall Ships Races every four years without a separate application process or competition with other candidate ports.
The Tall Ships Races is a beloved and eagerly awaited summer highlight, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors to the banks of the Aura River. The event also generates significant regional economic benefits, including tourism revenue and other spending during the festival.
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Turku City Board to visit Malmö
The Turku City Board will make an official visit to Malmö, Sweden, from 30 September to 3 October 2025. The visit also serves as the City Board’s budget seminar, which is traditionally organized in spring and autumn as part of the budget preparation process.
During its term, the City Board makes 1-2 visits abroad, always within the nearby region, departing either from Turku Airport or Turku Port. The trip to Malmö is the first international visit for the new City Board. In the previous term, no such visits were organized.
A total of 24 participants will take part in the Malmö visit, including the City Board, the chairs of the City Council, and six senior city officials. The delegation will be led by Piia Elo, Mayor of Turku and Chair of the City Board. During the visit, she will also be a speaker at the "Future-proofing Our Port Cities" conference in Malmö.