Time to give feedback! Finncon 2024 gathered 7000 participants to Jyväskylä! Now is the time to give your input for future cons – what did you enjoy, what worked well, what would you have liked to see more of and what was maybe missing? You can give feedback via feedback form until July 31, 2024.
You can once more return to Finncon 2024 through these photo albums:
- Finncon 2024, photographer: Henry Söderlund
- Guests of Honor, photographer: Henry Söderlund
- Masqeurade, photographer: Matias Kellokoski
Photo: Henry Söderlund.
Finncon is the largest and oldest science fiction and fantasy convention in Finland. It is organized by fans and volunteers each year in a different city — in 2024, we will meet in Jyväskylä, Central Finland, in July 5-7. Our main location is the main building of Jyväskylä University on the Seminaarinmäki campus.
This year, the theme of Finncon is WORLDS. Our international guest of honor is writer Ursula Vernon (USA), also published as T. Kingfisher. Other guests of honor are writer Tiina Raevaara, fan Tero Ykspetäjä, and researcher Jyrki Korpua.
As opposed to many international conventions, Finncon is always free of charge and open for everyone — no memberships, no tickets, no hassle. It is a welcoming and inclusive event for everyone interested in any form of speculative culture. We are expecting an audience of several thousands of congoers.
Finncon for international congoers
Below is a list of programming items in English.
Friday 5 July
15:00
- On Writing
Writers’ House | 1h
Ursula Vernon, Cheryl Morgan
Saturday 6 July
10:00
- What ails Frodo? And how should it be classified?
C2, 1h
Karl-Johan Norén, Therese Norén
11:00
- Guest of Honor interview: Ursula Vernon
C1, 1h
Ursula Vernon, Marianna Leikomaa - Academic Track: Dystopias
C5, 1h
Filip R. Zahariev, Radvilė Musteikytė, Marjut Puhakka
12:00
- Culturally Diverse Character Design
C2, 1h
Miska Toivonen
14:00
- Guest of Honor speech: From Middle-earth to Duckburg
C1, 1h
Jyrki Korpua - Wales in Times of Arthur
C4, 1h
Cheryl Morgan
15:00
- Reimagining Fairy Tales
C1, 1h
Ursula Vernon, Sabrina Porterfield, Sara Norja, Saara Henriksson - Academic Track: Media and Materialities
C5, 1h 30min
Eero Suoranta, Thomas Apperley, Aino-Kaisa Koistinen
16:00
- Hopepunk – A Future of Radical Kindness
C2, 1h
Xan van Rooyen, Sara Norja, Mia Myllymäki
17:00
- Naamiaiset – Masquerade
C1, 1h
Sunday 7 July
10:00
- CRIME ALLEY: Batman fan production
C1, 1h - Queer Fantasies
C2, 1h
Cheryl Morgan, Artemis Kelosaari, Xan van Rooyen, Jenny Kangasvuo
11:00
- Hugo panel
C4, 2h
Marianna Leikomaa, Jukka Särkijärvi, Tommy Persson, Carolina Gomez Lagerlöf - Academic Track: Worldbuilding and World-ending
C5, 1h 30min
Marjut Puhakka and Jennifer Suoperä, Elizabeth Oakes, Essi Vatilo
12:30
- Academic Track: Perspectives on speculative fiction and research
C5, 1h 30min
Gao Weiming, Essi Varis, Jani Ylönen
13:00
- Indie self-publishing
C2, 1h
Ursula Vernon, Raita Jauhiainen, Sabrina Portefield, Chelle Honiker
14:00
- What to Watch 2024
C4, 2h
Elisa Wiik, Mikko Seppänen
15:00
- Nordic Speculative Fiction
C5, 1h
Jyrki Korpua, Aino-Kaisa Koistinen, Oskari Rantala
17:00
- Päättäjäiset – Closing Ceremony
C1, 30min
You can see the complete schedule on the website: Friday, Saturday, Sunday. More info on the Academic Track.
On Friday, the unofficial evening programme will be at Restaurant Sohwi (Vaasankatu 21) from 6 PM (18.00) onwards, welcome!
There will also be Finncon’s traditional evening party on Saturday in Restaurant Musta Kynnys, located at the address Hannikaisenkatu 16. The evening party will start at 6 PM (18.00) and there will be few programme items like giving out the Masquerade prizes at 9 PM (21.00).
The convention site
On Friday, there will be writing-related programme as well as a closed research seminar for academics organized by Finfar, the Finnish Society for Science Fiction and Fantasy Research. Saturday and Sunday will be fully packed convention days.
Finncon 2024 will be held at the Main Building (C) of the University of Jyväskylä, designed by the renowned architect Alvar Aalto. The address is Seminaarinkatu 15.
Seminaarinmäki campus is only 1.6 kilometres away from the railway station and city centre, so you probably don’t need public transportation. However, you can reach the convention site also by bus or a taxi.
Getting to Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä is located about 270 km (170 miles) north from Helsinki and 150 km (100 miles) north-east from Tampere. Arriving at either one of these larger cities and traveling to Jyväskylä by train is by far the easiest option for getting to Jyväskylä.
Staying in Jyväskylä
Finncon does not organize accommodation and there is no dedicated con hotel. The closest accommodation options are Time Hostel (450m from con site, Vaasankatu 29) and Finlandia Hotel Alba (800 m, Ahlmaninkatu 4).
There are several more hotels in the city centre very close by, the most affordable of which are probably Omenahotelli Jyväskylä (1,3 km, Vapaudenkatu 57) and Hotelli Milton (1,2 km, Hannikaisenkatu 29). You can compare accommodation options on web services such as Booking.com. The are also some AirBnb options around the city.
As Jyväskylän Kesä festival is held at the same time, it is advisable to book your accommodation sooner rather than later.
Food and drink in Jyväskylä
See our restaurant guide written by our very own con organizers!
Contact us
If you have any questions, please contact info@2024.finncon.org.