Kuopio travel guide

Kuopio is the center of Finnish Lakeland. This university city is home to 95,000 people and delights holiday goers with its natural beauty, a broad range of events, and great shopping and entertaiment options. Kuopio´s most striking landmark is the Puijo Tower. It´s an excellent place to start yur tour of the city. The view from the top will take your breath away - the majesty of the forests and the lakes! The market square and hall inte city centre, you´ll get a good feel for local life: relaxed mood, people who love to chat, and regional delicates from vendace to pasties and kalakukko fish pies. The harbour invites you for a cruise of the stunning archipelago - or to walk on the awe-insipiring natural ice to enjoy the gleaming snow.
In Kuopio everything is close- nature, culture, entertaiment and services.

Up here in the north, the sun barely sets in the summertime. The light energies your body and mind. It´s time to go out and have fun. In the summer Kuopio dances and rocks, celebrates wines and cuisine, competes in sports and games. In summer you can enjoy the lakeland by boating along wonderful waterways, by boarding a cruise operated by Finland’s largest fleet of inland boats, by shooting the rapids, or by going on a fishing trip or a jet-ski safari. Golfers will be delighted by the fairways and greens of the Tahko Golf Club in Nilsiä, Tarina Golf in Siilinjärvi, Konnus-Golf in Leppävirta and the Puijo Golf Course in Kuopio. Horse-riding, trips by all-terrain vehicles or off-road vehicles, and various adventure trips provide unforgettable experiences.

Winter gives the landscape an arctic touch. Hilly forests are covered in snow. The frozen lakes create new terrain for outdoor enthusiasts to explore. In winter you can explore the snow-clad countryside by riding a snowmobile along well-maintained routes. The Kuopio region is also ideal for cross-country skiing, either in the woods or on the frozen-over lakes, and the ski centres of Tahko, Kasurila and Puijo beckon those who prefer skiing downhill. You can go ice-fishing or ice-skating on a frozen-over lake and even take part in the Finland Ice Marathon. Try it out and get hooked!

Best events in Kuopio region are:

Kuopio Dance Festival in June
Kuopio Wine Festival in July
Kuopio RockCock Festival in July
World Cup Ski jumping December
Finland Ice Marathon in February
Plenty of smaler events during the year.

In Kuopio Region, you can enjoy the great oudoors in peace. Smaller towns and districts surrounding, Kuopio: Kaavi, Karttula, Leppävirta, Nilsiä, Rautavaara, Siilinjärvi, Tervo and Tuusniemi are popular destinations for cabin holidays, fishing, boating and other nature activities.

A good network of well-maintained roads connects Kuopio and the rural districts in the region. The Kuopio region can also be reached by bus. Apart from car and bus, Siilinjärvi and Suonenjoki can be reached by rail.

Connections by air to Kuopio are excellent, as there are 5 - 10 daily flights from Helsinki. Kuopio Airport. There are 7 trains daily from Helsinki to Kuopio, the fastest Pendolino train taking only 4 hours. Kuopio is situated by one of the arterial roads of the country, highway 5 leading from Helsinki to Lapland.
From Helsinki it takes about 4,5 hours by car. If you fly from Helsinki it takes 50 min.

If you would like to sample the most typical flavours of Kuopio Region try Kalakukko, fish baked in a rye crust. And no visit would be comlete without tasting our cult classic, muikku, a succulent serving of vendace, a Finnish whitefish. Local food is made of delicious local ingredients. fish, game, berries and mushrooms. Don´t forget to sample our rustic ryebreds, famous berry liqueurs and wines.