Frequently Asked Questions
Day With A Local is a flexible option in comparison to typical guided and private tours. We host couples, families, groups of friends and solo travellers.
In 2026 Day With A Local is taking bookings for the founder Liisa in Helsinki only.
General questions
Day With A Local provides a 100 % flexible, customized and private day in your travel destination. Our service combines city highlights with the local perspective in the city you are visiting. If you want to focus only on highlights or skip all touristy spots, let us know and we will adjust your program accordingly!
We are warmly welcoming guests with any special needs.
Day With A Local is a day at your pace, according to your and your group’s wishes. We have hosted guests with mobility issues or who are in a wheelchair, as well as guests who like to walk the whole day. Tell us what you prefer and your day will be arranged according to your wishes. We usually use public transportation and walk, as locals do. Included in our travel assistant services, we can also make arrangements for private transportation for the day.
During your Day With A Local you will meet a Local, see the highlights of the city from a Local’s point of view, and you will also receive lots of tips for the rest of your holiday if you’re staying for a longer time. Interaction with a Local is a key element of the day. You will talk and discuss about subjects that you are interested in, visit the places you want to visit, and feel like a local. Day With A Local has passionate Locals in all locations waiting to show you their city and what they love about it.
Day With A Local isn’t a typical guided tour with lots of memorized information one place after another. Locals are encouraged to add their personality to your day and answer your questions as well as talk freely about subjects that are of interest to them, to create a unique local experience.
Our Locals never push you inside a souvenir shop (and you’ve been on one of those tours before, right?!) and all recommendations we give are real – we don’t get any movie tickets, free dinners or other compensation for our recommendations (unlike what happens so often in tourism, unfortunately)!
A Day With A Local team member is your host for the day. Our Locals know their hometowns well and are ready to answer your questions for example about culture and lifestyle, as well as take you around the city for a smooth and worry-free experience. Locals have different personal preferences (for instance, some are into history, some are into nature). Get to know our team members on their own profile pages.
Day With A Local is not an authorized guide service, better yet, it’s an experience with a Local. Locals come from various backgrounds, often outside the travel and tourism industry. Some have previous background in guiding.
Day With A Local entrepreneur Liisa has handpicked, interviewed and trained all Day With A Local team members to guarantee you a great experience in all of our locations.
Day With A Local is owned and operated by Finnish entrepreneur Liisa Eskelinen.
We offer the Day With A Local prove tour service mainly for small groups (couples, families, groups of friends and solo travellers) customized according to your wishes. Our most popular service length is 6-8 hours as then the time allows you to go also off the beaten path. Any length of day is available and many guests have chosen a combination of several days.
We take into account the things you would like to see and do, your pace as well as how much time you have and suggest an appropriate itinerary. Changes can be made right up to your scheduled Day With A Local and even during the day.
Day With A Local can be adjusted for example the following ways:
- family-friendly: let us know the ages of children taking part and we’ll have something in the day for them, too!
- suitable for limited walking availability: with someone or all with mobility issues in the group; please notice that there is an extra cost of 60 euros for plan making, preparing and arrangements if the day is planned to be with a van from start to the end)
- accessible / suitable for wheelchair/s: a van with one or two spots for wheelchairs will be used if preferred, also taking public transportation with wheelchair is possible in Helsinki if interested; extra additional cost 60 euros for planning, preparing and arrangements for the day
- start of your holiday: with including lots of suggestions and helping with plans for the rest of your stay
- Day With A Local Helsinki is on MyStay on the Visit Finland website.
- Girl In Florence visited Helsinki during Midsummer 2015 and loved her Midsummer Eve With A Local.
- You can see Liisa’s comments about Finnish cuisine in this Fine Dining Lovers article by Ishay Govender.
- Day With A Local Helsinki has been mentioned also on ‘This Is Proof that Finland Is One of the Most Welcoming Countries’ by AFAR.
- You’ll find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter where we share our tips and recommendations. Our guests have shared their Day With A Local experiences on TripAdvisor.
If you have any other questions that you have not been able to find the answer to please do not hesitate to contact us:
hello@daywithalocal.com or WhatsApp +358 444 000 404
We always reply in 24 hours so make sure to check your Spam folder if you haven’t received a message to your e-mail Inbox.
Questions related to the Day With A Local Private Tours
In 2024 the founder of Day With A Local is taking bookings in Helsinki.
Day With A Local has had team members in the following locations:
- Helsinki, Finland
- Porvoo, Finland
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Tallinn, Estonia
In 2024 Day With A Local is available in Helsinki in English.
Our Locals speak a range of different languages. You can check the languages of a certain Local from their profiles.
Reason #1 – Flexibility
This is the flexible option for your limited time in a new city. You can request changes to the plan also during the day.
Reason #2 – Great correspondence
We always reply to your e-mail or WhatsApp message within 24 hours, usually sooner.
Reason #3 – You rather spend your day elsewhere than queueing in and out from a tourist bus.
If you are looking for a different experience than a bus tour with headphones or following a guide with a microphone, you are definitely in the right place.
No more waiting for dozens of people to fit into the same tourist bus! No more passing by everything interesting and having a failed photo from the bus window of a sight you would have wanted to visit! No more long lectures heard from the headphones, with no possibility to ask any questions. With a Local you will talk and discuss about subjects that are important to you, visit the places you want to visit, and feel like a local.
Reason #4 – Our Locals know each other.
You aren’t meeting just a random person from an online platform. Liisa has handpicked, interviewed and trained all team members in person.
Reason #5 – Our recommendations are genuine.
All services, restaurants, cafés and other recommendations have been experienced by at least one of our team members. These recommendations are real places we love as locals. We don’t get a commission from any of your purchases in shops or restaurants (actually, we have refused to take them).
Reason #6 – By choosing us you support a small business and the ones who are actually doing the job.
By choosing us, you choose to support a small startup which wants to be the change you want to see in tourism. This means, for example, that our Locals get a fair compensation from their work effort.
You decide with whom you spend your day. We don’t combine groups because we want to focus on you and your group’s needs. In general, announced pricing is for groups of 1 to 4 and 5 to 8 guests and one Local hosts maximum 8 people. Larger groups or groups with special requests can usually be accommodated but should contact us in advance by e-mail and there is an additional fee for adjusting the service to the larger group size.
We have hosted groups between 1 and 29 people.
You’re very welcome, but to keep the idea we will host you with two or more Locals depending on your group size. The idea is to have interaction, not just to ‘follow the umbrella’!
If your group is larger than 8 people, please e-mail us. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee last minute availability for large groups. There will be an additional service charge for group arrangements depending on your group size and requests (starting from 60 euros).
Our prices for your Day With A Local are available and on the Prices page. The price of your Day With A Local is based on the amount of Locals hosting you and the length of your day, not on the size of your group (1-8 persons).
The price includes your Local, Value Added Tax and Locals team support on WhatsApp during your stay. Any additional costs will be announced beforehand so you can choose where you spend your money!
If you pay for your Day With A Local in advance, you will receive a discount. For bookings made more than one month before, advance payment is requested minimum one month before your Day With A Local.
VAT (Value Added Tax) 24 % is included in all announced prices. Our Locals are paid for their time and effort (including planning & preparing to the day).
This is included in Day With A Local private tour:
– Community membership
– Your Local for the desired time
– When you are staying for more than 12 hours, recommendations for the rest of your stay before, during or after your Day With A Local according to information you give us
– Your Local’s food and drinks, and admission fees when this has been agreed beforehand
– Your Local’s public transportation
– Value Added Tax24 %
This is NOT included in your Day With A Local private tour:
– Your and in some cases also Local’s admission fees, in case we visit any place which has an entrance fee. Additional prices are announced before your Day With A Local.
– Your tickets for public transportation and any other transportation methods
– Your food, drinks or any personal purchases, unless otherwise mentioned
– When going somewhere by your special request: Local’s admission fees, other than public transportation, food or drinks (you can request only places where Local’s costs are covered!)
– Any transportation costs outside of the city
If your day starts from the port, for your convenience we recommend you paying us an additional charge for pre-arrangements (including getting public transportation and in some cases also some admission tickets).
To book your Day With A Local, contact us using the contact form on this website or e-mail us to hello@daywithalocal.com e-mail address. After you have made the reservation successfully, you will receive a link by e-mail to our online store for making the payment before your Day With A Local.
We will send you a confirmation by e-mail and you will receive a suggestion of your itinerary before your Day With A Local if you have requested to get one, so you can make any changes or suggestions. During your day your itinerary is customized to your needs and requests and according to the weather and opening hours. You can pay online right away or closer to your Day With A Local.
As we will be walking, please wear comfortable walking shoes.
Helsinki, Tallinn, Stockholm and Porvoo are located next to the Baltic Sea, and the weather can change rapidly. Please be prepared for colder weather or breeze with a cardigan or a light coat even on a summer day. Please note, that the summer temperature can be anything between 0 and +30 Celsius (32 and 86 Fahrenheit) and the winter temperature can be anything between +10 and -25 Celsius (50 and -13 Fahrenheit). During the summer months (June-August) the day temperature is usually between +15 and +20 Celsius (59 to 68 Fahrenheit). It is also good to have an umbrella or a rain jacket with you.
Credit cards (especially Mastercard and Visa) work almost everywhere. You will need cash for using some of the public restrooms (often 1 € in Helsinki) and sometimes for small purchases.
It is highly recommended that you’ve got travel insurance as in the very unlikely event of an accident the costs of health care are high. Also in case of a last minute cancellation of your flight or arrival to port, your travel insurance might cover it.
Your Local will meet you at an agreed time in a location that is the most convenient for you to start your Day With A Local, either cruise port, hotel lobby, airport or a location of your choosing.
All Locals have been introduced on the website and you know who you are meeting. All Locals wear their own clothes, we don’t use any uniforms (as we know that you want to blend in the crowd, don’t you?). If we meet you in the port or at the airport, we’ll be holding a sign with a Day With A Local pin and your name. If you have any challenge finding us, you can always contact us on WhatsApp +358 444 000 404.
In general we walk and use public transportation when moving around. Why? Because using public transportation in Helsinki, Tallinn and Stockholm is fun, very convenient, clean and cost-effective. If you would like to use private transportation for a part of your day or for the whole day, we can arrange a taxi/van for you, if needed.
It is up to you what kind of customized program you want to have. Your itinerary is based on your interests and on the length of the chosen Day With A Local. Please inform us about your wishes and interests in advance. You can request changes to the program even during the day.
In Helsinki, if you wish to visit Suomenlinna Fortress Island, we can visit ‘like locals’, and have a picnic there for example. Please be aware that our Locals cannot guide you around the Suomenlinna Fortress islands as only members of the Ehrensvärd Society are allowed to do so. If you want to include a guided tour in Suomenlinna Fortress to your day, we can arrange it with an additional cost. One option is to go and watch a 25-minute film of the history at Suomenlinna Center as a part of your Day With A Local.
Our priority is to arrange you the best possible day. In case you feel like your Day With A Local doesn’t meet your expectations, feel free to share your thoughts during and/or after your tour with your Local and we will find a solution together. We aim to create a unique and memorable visit for you and our previous guests have been very satisfied with their Day With A Local experiences!