Aboa Vetus Ars Nova

As someone who is not a fan of modern art, my heart sank at the linking of a contemporary art museum with an archaeological museum. However, it turned out that it was possible to buy a ticket for what claims to be Finland’s only archaeological museum. It is the remains of a small section of the late medieval riverside, and a model when you enter gives a hypothetical reconstruction of how the area may have appeared. It requires some imagination, but it is fun just to explore the ruins. There are boards with maps to show how Turku changed and grew over the centuries, and plenty of information for context.

Our children's favorite museum! A museum that combines the history of Turku, the remains of which are discovered underground, with modern culture and art (Contemporary art exhibitions change from time to time )
The historical museum is experiential and interactive and suitable for children.
At the entrance is a pleasant cafe-restaurant and a museum shop.
מומלץ מאד!!!

A great museum for all ages. Seeing how things were built in the medieval period and after was very exciting! Not to mention the fantastic art show above. 👍👍👍

A very nice place if you want to see how people lived in the 1300s in Turku.

Really nice combination of Art gallery and Archeological museum. The entire building is built on top of an excavation of medieval dwellings with artifacts dating from the 16th century. I think this is a top place to visit when in Turku

While at Turku Night of Arts @taiteidenyo_tku , I discovered some participatory museum practices at @aboavetusarsnova . They made archeological site and historical part of the museum a truly exciting and entertaining experience! Also multisensory and multimedia approach was the best, as well as the inclusion of on-hand experience with writing on clay Tablets and building a bucket👏🏻 I of course also appreciated the feedback wall! They also had a great bone identifying simulator, where you put one of the provided objects on a scanner, and you a presented with an explanatory video from an archeologist researcher!#patricipatorymuseum #archeology #historicalmuseum #finland #turuntaiteidenyö

Contemporary part presented exhibition of Kustaa Saksi with very impressive (both in scale and skill) and majestic fractal tapestry artworks. Another hall upstairs exhibited some of the Finnish modernist artists(mostly abstract expressionism) but I didn’t have the time to properly explore it, as 2 hours wasn’t enough to explore the whole museum despite museum worker’s opinion😅

What I’m also very greatful for is meeting and observing VideoKaffee art collective and their sound-air artwork or more accurate would be to describe it as an art machine :)

Absolutely loved this place. Best museum in Turku! The café is amazing and the staff are friendly and helpful.
I Will be coming back here again.

It's incredible how much effort has been put in the space of the archaeological museum to reconstruct the passage of centuries. The finds include even minuscule artefacts but they tell a story. Also the combination with the art exhibition offers something for all tastes. Along the exhibition path there are activities for children keeping them engaged. Really impressed.

Amazing experience! Leo at the front desk was so helpful. He really took the time to explain to me the different exhibits and what order to start in. The place has such a great combination of old and new. Looks like a great cafe as well

After the visit to the Aboa museums, I just felt very complacent and more enlightened. It was a very joyous experience. Must see in Turku!

Fantastic place to visit! Lots of information. Perfect place to visit for a few hours. Would definitely return again. The ruins were fascinating and amazing to look at. Hands on activities for both old and young. Can go inside of an old cellar that was very well preserved. 5/5 would recommend to others and bring friends.

One of the best museums in Finland. Modern art and the history of Finland and Turku in the same museum.

Beautiful modern and contemporary Art museum, which has also an archeological area. You can literally walk among the buildings of the 14th and 15th century. Upstairs you can find the museum with many different paintings and artworks. The exposition involve famous painting from Picasso to Andy Warhol and also same Finnish art. There could be also an area for temporary expansion.

Good place to learn about the past of Turku and Finland.
Plenty of affordable mementos from their shop. There is a chic coffee shop with glass floors where portions of the middle ages ruins can be seen.

Chapel inside the "ruins" is on it's own worth the visit. Small but imbued with a sense of the past. Entrance was 10€.

Extraordinary! Inspirational!

Best museum where visit, nice to found old city under current city.

Aboa Vetus with the historical remains was an amazing place for our two young children on a wet day. Lots of things for them to play with and exciting places to explore. Loved it. Would skip the upstairs Ars Nova with kids as that's just a more normal modern art gallery. Nice, but not engaging for them. Brilliant cafe with a very nice buffet lunch for a good price.

Must see in Turku. Proper combination of art and history.

The place is amazing, I did not get the tour in the museum, but did visit the shop has super cute little things & gifts. The good part is that they have discounted rates for students to check the museum. And they have a super nice cafe next to it. What I loved the most the glass floor that allows you to see the water and alleys underneath the museum