Juhannus (Midsummer) in Finland
June 20 · Level 10 · #101 of 2238
Juhannus is the Finnish midsummer festival, one of the best-loved days of the year. It falls on a Friday and Saturday between 20 and 26 June, and it is when summer truly begins.
How it is celebrated: Finns leave the cities for lakeside cottages, light a big bonfire on the shore, heat up the sauna and go for a swim. The night barely gets dark, and by tradition girls pick seven kinds of flowers to put under the pillow in hope of dreaming of a future husband.
Cities grow noticeably quiet at Juhannus: Finland has more than half a million summer cottages, and a good part of the population spends the holiday in them.