It is located by the sea in East Helsinki and with its area of 15.38 km2 (5.94 sq mi) is geographically the largest district in the city.

The number of inhabitants has been increasing rapidly since early 1990s and it continues to grow as new residential areas are being built.

The continual planning of new residential zones has in fact raised criticism, as many people would rather preserve Vuosaari's closeness to nature.

This has given the neighbourhood an overtly multi-cultural image in Finnish folklore, even though the percentage is higher in many other places in the Capital Region.

The middle part of the strait was so shallow that tectonic uplift has since caused it to become dry land, changing Vuosaari into a peninsula.

In maps from the early 20th century the area was sometimes marked with a Finnish name Pohjoisenmerenmaa ("Northern sea land").

The first written record of the inhabitants of the area comes from a document dating back to Magnus IV of Sweden in the 14th century.

[2] By the 16th century, Vuosaari had regained its connection to the mainland and the former island had two Rustholl mansions, Nordsjö and Rastböle respectively, formed from the numerous farmsteads in the area,[3] several small villages and a military shipyard.

This process was further amplified after a regular steam boat connection between Helsinki and Vuosaari was established in the 19th century.

[3] Later, during the fast construction phase in the 1990s, the diversion of Soviet bombers led to halts on building sites, as unexploded aerial bombs were discovered hidden in the ground.

After the war, most of the lands in Vuosaari were owned by Oy Saseka Ab, a brick and stone company that had its factory on the island.

The main street in Meri-Rastila became colloquially known as Mogadishu Avenue, which subsequently became the title of a Finnish television series that sought to deal with the intercultural differences between immigrants and native Finns from a comic point of view.

The district also includes numerous small islands in front of the peninsula, such as Pikku Niinisaari, Iso Villasaari and Kalliosaari.

Of these, Kallahdenniemi is an esker populated with pine forest, formed about 12 thousand years ago by melting waters from flowing glaciers.

[12] It continues underneath the sea as sandbanks and a sandy bottom, and its highest undersea parts form islands such as Santinen and Iso Leikosaari.

[13] Kallahdenharju is a nature preservation area,[13] similarly to the multi-species grove forest located in Ramsinniemi.

[11] The area of Mustavuori is located in the northern part of Vuosaari, just next to the border to the neighbouring city of Vantaa.

[17] The 65-metre high hill Vuosaarenhuippu has formed from reclaimed land and is located in Niinisaari in the place of an old dumping ground.

[18][11] There is a flat giant's kettle between Mustavuori and Niinisaari, and Vuosaarenhuippu has formed partly attached to a drumlin.

People speaking foreign languages comprised 26,8 % of the population,[19] which is clearly higher than that of Helsinki in average (15.7% on 31 December 2018).

About a quarter of the inhabitants in Vuosaari come from a foreign background (almost 40% in the Kallahti and Meri-Rastila areas), [20] which is also clearly higher than that in Helsinki in average.

The Vuosaari church designed by Pirkko and Arvi Ilonen and inaugurated in 1980 is located in Keski-Vuosaari.

The modern, tightly built and nature-friendly housing area of Ramsinranta is located in the southern part of Meri-Rastila.

There are three small parks in the middle of the area and detached houses inside apartment building blocks.

The trunk bus line 560 travels through Vuosaari and continues via Kontula, Malmi and Paloheinä to Myyrmäki in the neighbouring city of Vantaa.

[citation needed] In 2012 cruise ship traffic from Vuosaari to the city centre was started.

During summer season, the cruise ship MS Okeanos travels twice per day from the pier at the end of Hiekkalaiturintie to Hakaniemi.

[citation needed] The Vuosaari Harbour has a connection to Ring III and to highways leading outside the capital region via the highway-level street Vuosaaren Satamatie, mostly running in a tunnel.

FC Viikingit plays their home matches on the Vuosaari sports ground, which is colloquially known as "Hettari" or "Monttu" ("the pit") because of its location at the end of Heteniityntie and its shape.

The other popular sport in Vuosaari is floorball with the primary team being SSV Helsinki (although it plays its home matches in Pasila).