Central Finland
Founded in 2017 to commemorate Finland's centenary of independence, the country's 40th national park stretches over 11,000 hectares of glittering lakes…
Must-see attractions in Central Finland
Central Finland
This excellent museum is by the Iijoki, whose banks are riddled with important Stone Age settlements. The informative display zeroes in on a handful of…
Oulu
Oulu has one of Finland's liveliest market squares, and its position at the waterfront makes it all the more appealing. The square is bordered by several…
Central Finland
If you're interested in the Kalevala or Karelian culture, pay a visit to this excellent resource centre inside a beautiful hand-hewn timber building made…
Oulu
This huge, excellent science museum can occupy kids for the best part of a day with a giant, 35m-high IMAX screen, hands-on interactive exhibits exploring…
Central Finland
Stretching from Koillismaa to Lapland and along the Russian border, this superb national park was established in 1956 and covers 27,000 hectares of…
Central Finland
Haukipudas, 21km north of Oulu at a scenic spot along the Kiiminkijoki, is renowned for its cream-painted, terracotta-roofed wooden church, one of Finland…
Central Finland
Paltaniemi's enchantingly weathered wooden church was built in 1726 and contains some of Finland’s most interesting church paintings: rustic 18th-century…
Hossa National Park Visitor Centre
Central Finland
The visitor centre at Hossa National Park has a detailed exhibition on the Värikallio Stone Age rock paintings. Only discovered in 1977, the paintings of…
Central Finland
There’s a great backstory to this bear sanctuary 35km south of Kuusamo on the Kajaani road. Rescued as orphans, the bears were nursed by their ‘father’…
Central Finland
This national park is a favourite winter-sports escape 140km northeast of Oulu, with a downhill resort, Iso-Syöte. It covers discrete areas of old-growth…
Oulu
Set across two river islands on the scenic Oulujoki, this open-air museum is a collection of traditional wooden buildings, from loggers’ cabins to stables…
Central Finland
Some of the most bitter fighting of the Winter War took place 88km south of Hossa (23km east of the lakeside town of Suomussalmi) along the Raate road…
Central Finland
On the main road 3.5km east of central Kuhmo, this centre has an informative exhibition in various languages on Finland’s quartet of large carnivores,…
Central Finland
Within Hossa National Park, this reindeer farm offers the opportunity to get to know these gentle, antlered beasts. You can feed the reindeer (€5 per bag)…
Oulu
The Museum of Northern Ostrobothnia in the city park has almost too much information to take in at first bite. It covers the earliest habitation of the…
Central Finland
Situated 4.5km southeast of central Kuhmo, by the Hotelli Kalevala, this Winter War museum documents that bitter conflict in the Kuhmo area, mostly…
Central Finland
Consisting of fells and hillside bogs, this 77-sq-km national park 58km northwest of Kuusamo offers spectacular views and rewarding hiking, including…
Central Finland
At this house-museum, traditional Karelian red-painted wooden farm buildings have been fitted out to depict traditional Kuhmo life at the turn of the 20th…
Oulu
Just north of the city centre on the Hupisaaret Islands, connected by small bridges, this great park has bike paths, museums, greenhouses and a summer…
Central Finland
In the tourist office building, this rotating exhibition displays the work of famous Finnish nature photographer Hannu Hautala with great accompanying…
Central Finland
The Eino Leino-Talo is a re-creation of the place where Leino, one of Finland’s foremost independence-era poets, was born in 1878. It’s a lovely lakeside…
Oulu
Oulu’s imposing cathedral was built in 1777, but then came the great fire of 1822, which severely damaged the structure. Prolific architect CL Engel…
Oulu
Oulu’s art museum is a bright, spacious gallery with excellent temporary exhibitions of both international and Finnish contemporary art, and a cafe.
Central Finland
Liminka Bay, 34km southwest of Oulu, attracts numerous avian species, with several rare waders nesting here during summer, and many species of waterfowl…
Central Finland
An unearthly field confronts travellers 30km north of Suomussalmi, on Rd 5 to Kuusamo. Hiljainen Kansa is a thousand scarecrow-like figures with heads of…
Central Finland
Picturesquely set on a river island in the town centre, Kajaani's castle was constructed between 1604 and 1619 to guard the Swedish border from Russia,…
Oulu
This house-museum on Pikisaari belonged to a local sailor. Built in 1737, it is the oldest house in Oulu and was transferred here from the city centre in…
Central Finland
Near the train station, the town museum has a good permanent exhibition on Kajaani’s history from prehistoric times to the mid-1900s, including…
Central Finland
In Hailuoto village, 8km east of Marjaniemi, Kniivilä is an open-air museum of old wooden buildings, including a shoemaker's cottage, a barn and a cowshed…
Central Finland
Guided visits of this 1872-completed lighthouse run in July; be prepared to climb 110 steps. It originally had a Fresnel lens and was automated in 1962…
Central Finland
Sprawling 48km southeast of Sotkamo, this national park surrounds forests and boggy flatlands, and is laced with 30km of marked hiking trails. The…
Central Finland
On the ground floor of the Arctic Lighthouse Hotel, in the former lighthouse pilot station, this exhibition details the local dune ecosystem and the…
Central Finland
Sotkamo's 19th-century wooden church rises above the treeline on the lake shore.
