Holiday reminder: Christmas opening hours

Alko stores will be closed during Christmas, while most grocery stores will operate with limited hours.

Many grocery stores will operate around the clock throughout the Christmas holidays. Image: Aalto Puutio / Yle

Christmas holidays will affect store and service hours in Finland, with many shops and services operating on restricted schedules.

Retailer S-Group has announced that its Alepa, S-market, and Prisma stores, which typically operate 24/7, will remain open around the clock throughout the Christmas holidays. Other stores in the chain, however, will have restricted hours.

K Group stated on its website that K-Citymarkets, K-Supermarkets, K-Markets, and Neste K stores will be open during the holidays, with some K-Citymarkets operating 24/7.

Lidl announced that its stores will close at 4 pm on Christmas Eve. All Lidl stores will be closed on Christmas Day. The outlets will mainly follow their Sunday opening hours on Boxing Day.

Alko stores will be open until at least 6 pm on the day before Christmas Eve, following regular Friday hours. On Christmas Eve, they will operate from 9 am to noon and will be closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

The Finnish postal service Posti has announced its stores will be closed during Christmas, with hours from 9 am to 6 pm on the day before Christmas Eve. Posti also noted on its website that most postal services are offered through partner businesses, which will follow their own holiday hours.

Social benefits agency Kela’s service points and phone services will be closed during the holidays. However, Kela's chatbot will be available 24/7 on the kela.fi website and OmaKela app.

Pharmacies in the Yliopiston Apteeki chain will have limited hours on Christmas Eve, with some locations closed on Christmas Day. However, the Töölö University Pharmacy in Helsinki will remain open 24/7 during the holidays.

Other pharmacies will either be fully closed or operate with limited hours during the Christmas holidays. Details of the nearest open pharmacy can be found at this link.

This year, reduced timetables are in operation over the festive period. Details of any disruptions are available at the VR website. VR reports that it has increased its fleet and train departures, with the most popular routes expected to sell out.

VR also says that some trains will feature a greeting from Santa Claus, along with small festive surprises. A holiday atmosphere can also be experienced at Helsinki’s main train station, as well as the stations in Turku and Tampere.

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