NJK is a well known and most successful yacht club. With over 2500 members it is the largest in Finland.
In 1861 the constitution of NJK was approved by Czar Alexander II. In that same year NJK organised the first sailing competitions in Helsinki.
At the time Finland was called the Grand Duchy of Finland and it was part of the Russian Empire.
NJK has gone through many phases in its long history. It started as a yacht club without a harbour or clubhouse. The first pavilion was built on an island west of Helsinki. As the harbour was poor and no shipyard was available it became soon necessary to move. One club member owned a small island, Blekholmen, in the South Harbour of Helsinki, which he generously rented to NJK for a nominal fee of 225 Finnish Marks / year. (37,50 Euros). The pavilion was soon moved to Blekholmen where, over the years, it has been reconstructed. The present pavilion, designed by the architects Estlander and Settergren, was inaugurated in 1900 and has been carefully maintained.
Today Blekholmen has berths for 125 boats and it is also one of the official guest harbours of Helsinki. The pavilion is well preserved and it has a large collection of flags and burgees, the largest collection of half models in the Nordic countries, a historically valuable collection of trophies as well as paintings and photographs. The pavilion holds a public gourmet restaurant and there are rooms reserved for members and guests only.
The NJK sailing centre is situated in the western part of Helsinki on the island of Björkholmen.
Although we talk about an island it is possible to reach the centre by car. There is a clubhouse and berths for 200 boats. The sailing centre is very much alive from early May until November.
An active Match Race Centre a Skiff Centre, sailing schools and the junior centre contribute to make Björkholmen an important sailing centre in Helsinki. During the summer season a café is open where members and visitors are welcome to eat or just enjoy a cup of coffe.
The NJK office is located in the club house at Björkholmen and is open all year round.
