Espoo Cultural Centre Info
Espoo Cultural Centre is the city’s main events venue, hosting up to 600 events annually including concerts, theatre, dance, film and children’s events. The Centre is located in the heart of Tapiola, adjacent to the AINOA shopping centre and accessible via various public transport routes and car. Espoo Cultural Centre hosts around 600 events annually. The program includes concerts, theater, dance, films, and children's cultural events.
Location
Kulttuuriaukio 2, 02100 Espoo
Construction work affects access to the Cultural Centre
Infrastructure construction work is taking place in front of the Espoo Cultural Centre throughout the autumn season 2025. The construction site affects vehicle traffic and parking in the immediate vicinity of the Cultural Centre.
There is currently no parking available in front of the building. The construction work also affects drop-off traffic and accessible entry.
We are currently working to clarify the arrangements for drop-off traffic and accessible access. We will update this page with up-to-date arrival instructions and accessibility information as soon as more details are available.
We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this temporary situation and thank you for your patience.
Directions
- From Länsiväylä via the Tapiola junction: Tapiolantie–Itätuulentie–Pohjantie–Kauppamiehentie or Kaupinkalliontie
- From Ring I, for example Kalevalantie–Pohjantie–Kaupinkalliontie
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From Turunväylä, for example via the Mankkaa junction: Mankkaantie–Vanhamankkaantie–Koivuviidantie–Kalevalantie–Pohjantie–Kaupinkalliontie
Parking
- Kaupinkallio car park (Kaupinkalliontie 7) daily from 6 am–midnight, tel. +358 9 4555531, Kaupinkallion Paikoitustalo Oy(external link, opens in a new window)
- Heikintori Square and the other car parks of Tapiola (subject to a fee)
Public transport
Further information from Helsinki Region Transport(external link, opens in a new window)
Espoo Cultural Centre’s cafe-restaurant Café Molli offers tasty and nutritious lunches, a rich selection of different cafeteria products, excellent pre-event and interval refreshments, drinks and special diets.
Opening hours:
Mon–Fri 10.00-17.00
Lunch is served Mon–Fri 11.00-14.00
In the evenings and on weekends opening hours: event-specific.
You are most welcome to enjoy good service at Molli!
https://cafemolli.fi/(external link, opens in a new window)
Enquiries/advance bookings:
myynti@cafemolli.fi
tel. +358 41 3172025
Tapiola Library(external link, opens in a new window)
Espoo Music Institute(external link, opens in a new window) – or EMO – is the largest and oldest artistic institute in the city of Espoo and provides instruction of the highest standards in an advanced musical syllabus. EMO’s aim is to equip its students with the skills necessary to foster a lifelong interest in music, both recreationally and professionally. The wide selection of courses available, together with the expertise of EMO's teaching staff, enables students to tailor their tuition to meet their individual needs and to open the door to the possibility of more in-depth, professional musical studies later in life.
Construction work affects access to the Cultural Centre
Infrastructure construction work is taking place in front of the Espoo Cultural Centre throughout the autumn season 2025. The construction site affects vehicle traffic and parking in the immediate vicinity of the Cultural Centre.
There is currently no parking available in front of the building. The construction work also affects drop-off traffic and accessible entry.
We are currently working to clarify the arrangements for drop-off traffic and accessible access. We will update this page with up-to-date arrival instructions and accessibility information as soon as more details are available. We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this temporary situation and thank you for your patience.
Indoor spaces
The main entrance of the Cultural Centre is accessible. The leftmost door of the main entrance opens automatically.
The facilities of the Cultural Centre include two single-occupancy, gender-neutral and accessible restrooms. The most spacious restroom is located near the coat racks of Tapiola Hall.
Elevators are available in the lobby and near Tapiola Hall, providing access to the upper floors. Assistance can be requested from the lobby services if needed.
Induction loops
Induction loops are available in Tapiola Hall, Louhi Hall, and the lobby areas. Coverage areas for the loops can be found at the website kuulokuvat.fi(external link, opens in a new window). For more information, contact the Cultural Centre lobby services at +358 9 81657200 or via email at kulttuurikeskus.aulapalvelut(at)espoo.fi.
Wheelchair spaces and personal assistants
Tapiola Hall has a tiered seating area, with two wheelchair spaces located in the upper section, on row 21. These spaces are accessible via the elevator next to the coat racks of Tapiola Hall. There are no wheelchair spaces on other rows, and when purchasing tickets, the ticket type "Wheelchair + Assistant" must be selected.
In Louhi Hall, wheelchair spaces are located either in the front section of the tiered seating or the upper section, depending on the event. For some events, the ground level is also in use, offering accessible entry. Access to the upper wheelchair spaces is provided via the elevator, accompanied by lobby service staff. When purchasing tickets, the allocated ticket type "Wheelchair + Assistant" must be selected.
The Cultural Centre has one wheelchair available for loan during events, obtainable from the lower lobby. It is recommended to confirm availability in advance by contacting lobby services at +358 9 81657200.
Assistance dogs are welcome at the Cultural Centre.
The free admission of personal assistants, interpreters, or guides to performances must always be confirmed when purchasing tickets. Each event organizer determines the assistant ticket price as part of the ticket sales agreement.
For more information about accessibility at the Cultural Centre, contact the lobby services at +358 9 81657200 or via email at kulttuurikeskus.aulapalvelut@espoo.fi.
The Espoo Cultural Centre is part of the Kaikukortti network.
Cloakroom services are free unless stated otherwise.
Lost items are stored at the Espoo Cultural Centre indefinitely. Inquiries about lost items can be made by calling +358 9 8165051 (Mon-Fri 8:00-16:00) or by emailing espoo.kulttuurikeskus@espoo.fi.
Venue Info
Tapiola Hall is a concert hall with 773/696 seats, with stalls and balcony. The high-quality equipment of the hall and our professional staff ensure successful organisation of all cultural events. The hall is also excellently suited for conference and
festive purposes. The hall features fixed audio and lighting equipment.
Auditorium
- 21 to 28 seats per row
- large auditorium 773 seats: stalls 589, balcony 180, wheelchairs 2
- small auditorium 690 seats (first four rows not in use)
Louhi Hall is a black theatre hall with 178/233/296 seats.
Top level theatre technical equipment and our professional personnel ensure the successful organisation of various music, theatre and dance performances. A space with high adaptability, the hall is also very well suited for organising business events.
Auditorium
- 21 seats per row
- large auditorium 296 seats
- small auditorium 233 seats (first three rows not in use = 63 seats)
With a surface area of 155 m2, the Gallery extends to two storeys. Located next to the main entrance, it is especially well suited for art exhibitions, but can also be trabsformed in to a festival office during various events.
Applications for art exhibitions: please send relevant enclosures or work samples via e-mail to maija.hietala@espoo.fi
A panel will select the exhibitions or events best suited for the facility.
The decision to construct the Espoo Cultural Centre was made in the City Council’s session on 1 January 1972, when Espoo acquired the status of a city. The first room programme was completed in 1974, an architectural competition was announced in 1979 and its results in 1980. With some 60 entries participating, Kuunsilta (Moon glade) by architect Arto Sipinen was selected
the winner. Construction started in 1986; with the foundation stone laid on the birthday of Jean Sibelius on 8 December. The building was completed in January 1989. Near the Tapiola Central Basin, the Cultural Centre is built on a plot donated by the Asuntosäätiö Foundation at a location where Professor Aarne Ervi, in his plan for the Tapiola centre in 1954, situated a theatre building.
The Cultural Centre was developed into a multi-purpose building comprising the concert hall (Tapiola Hall), theatre hall (Louhi Hall), gallery, Tapiola Library, Espoo Music Institute, Tapiola Citizen's Office and Tapiola facilities of the Espoo Adult Education Centre. The Cultural Centre was the first major cultural investment made by the City of Espoo; the construction costs totalled
about €22 million, with the furniture and equipment costs at some €2.5 million.
In the late 1950s, Arto Sipinen worked at Alvar Aalto’s office, and Kuunsilta carries on Aalto’s monumental building tradition. The back of the building is located on the Kulttuuriaukio Square side, with the lap opening to the Central Basin. The white shade links the construction to the other buildings of the Tapiola centre, and it was proportioned to the adjacent large masses of the
Central Tower. The elevated section of the building features the public premises – halls, service facilities, gallery and foyers –, the lower southern wing housing the library, Music Institute, Adult Education Centre and the administrative facilities of the Cultural Centre and City Orchestra.
The materials used in the exterior walls include brushed white quartzite sandstone bricks, travertine tiles and glass. The interior facilities are made of birch, travertine and terrazzo concrete. The structural design of the foyers is unique in the world: the supporting columns are situated outside the building and are attached to the building with the help of beams. The glass panes
in the foyers are three-layered. The distance to ground level from the lower surface of the moon gazing pavilion on the third floor, missing its fourth column, is 14 m (the total length of the column being 21 m). The gross area of the building is 12,900 m2, with a capacity of 68,700 m3.
Arto Sipinen (1936-2017)
Over the past decades, architect Arto Sipinen has won over 40 awards and redemptions in architectural competitions, nearly 20 of which are first prizes. Most of his wins are from designing public buildings. Sipinen’s entry was awarded in the design competition held for central Helsinki in 1986. His works include an extension building in the area of the University
of Jyväskylä, Imatra City Hall, Imatra Cultural Centre, Mikaeli Concert and Congress Hall in Mikkeli, Lahti Adult Institute and main library as well as Kuusamo Hall Culture and Congress Centre. Arto Sipinen has been awarded the honorary title of Professor.