A week's driving tour round southern Finland
May 6, 2017 5:30 AM   Subscribe

We're going to Helsinki mid-August (no prizes for guessing what for) and are heading out a week early to hire a car and do some touring in Finland first. Any suggestions for places to see or a possible itinerary?

From past road trip holidays our preference is not to move on every day but rather to stay two or three days somewhere with shorter excursions nearby and then move on. We're happy to drive 3 or 4 hours between stopovers, maybe a bit longer if the route is particularly scenic or has interesting sights on the way.

Likes: pretty countryside, interesting or odd museums, distinctive architecture, touring places that make or sell foods (especially local specialities).

Not interested in: nightlife or shopping for its own sake. OK for places that involve a walk of two or three miles, but substantial hikes are sadly not an option.
posted by Major Clanger to Travel & Transportation around Finland (4 answers total)
 
Just to get started: Suomenlinna . No driving involved. Get the public transport ferry, no need for the tour. This is one of the most beautiful harbours on earth, hands down.
posted by Logophiliac at 6:01 AM on May 6, 2017 [1 favorite]


Sorry, screwed up the link.
posted by Logophiliac at 6:15 AM on May 6, 2017


I came in to recommend Suomenlinna too. It's gorgeous. As is Hämeenlinna on the way to Tampere. If you end up in Tampere, it has the Moomin museum!
posted by gemmy at 10:41 AM on May 6, 2017


I went to Finland in the mid 90s with my parents and my brother, and here's what stuck in my mind: There are lakes *everywhere*, and they're gorgeous. You can rent a cabin by a lake. They all have saunas, even the ones that don't have any plumbing (and I mean, 'head into the woods with a shovel' no plumbing). Go to the sauna, then jump in the lake. Bring a metric fuckton of bug spray.

There's good fishing if you like that kind of thing. There's a boat, probably. Seems like there would be a boat. Bring some books, read in the boat on the lake. Relax the shit out of that place.

Eat mostly fish (if you like fish). It's awesome, and the rest of the food is nothing special IMO. If you're staying in a good hotel, the breakfast will be great though (found that out recently). Plan for everything to cost about twice as much as you think it reasonably could.
posted by kleinsteradikaleminderheit at 4:26 PM on May 6, 2017


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