North Savonia (Pohjois-Savo) is a province in the Finnish Lakeland, north of Saimaa proper, but with connecting waterways.
Cities
- 1 Iisalmi
- 2 Kiuruvesi
- 3 Kuopio — the largest city in the region
- 4 Suonenjoki
- 5 Varkaus
In general cities in North Savonia are small – the population of the region's largest city, Kuopio, is around 92,000 inhabitants and the second largest city Varkaus has only 23,000 inhabitants.
Municipalities
- 1 Kaavi
- 2 Keitele
- 3 Lapinlahti
- 4 Leppävirta
- 5 Pielavesi
- 6 Rautalampi
- 7 Rautavaara
- 8 Siilinjärvi
- 9 Sonkajärvi
- 10 Tervo
- 11 Tuusniemi
- 12 Vesanto
- 13 Vieremä
Other destinations
- 1 Tahko , a ski resort near Kuopio, with accommodation and some outdoor activities also during the summer.
Understand
Talk
Local dialect of Finnish is Savo. Most people speak English at least satisfactory, especially young people. Also Russian and German may be understood (not widely), but don't expect people to speak or understand Finland's second language Swedish in this region.
Get in
By plane
There are flights from Helsinki to Kuopio airport.
By train
Kuopio, Varkaus and Iisalmi have railway connections.
By bus
Buses operate to all municipality and city centres.
By car
Distances are long and service level of public transportation is poor, so the best way to get in and get around is by own car. It is possible to rent a car from Rissala airport or Kuopio.
By boat
In summer months there are daily cruises from Savonlinna in South Savonia to Kuopio.
Get around
Trains can be used from Varkaus via Pieksamäki to Kuopio and Iisalmi or between the latter. Some intermediate stations may have VR bus connections.
There is a dense bus network covering most of the province. In addition to Matkahuolto, see the schedules of Waltti traffic. Onnibus offers discount bus service by a few routes.
Google Maps includes timetables of trains, long distance buses and local transport of many cities and towns. Other useful route planners are Matka.fi for trains and local buses and Matkahuolto Reittiopas for regional buses.
Especially if you are willing to go to more remote areas of province, having your own car is useful. Rent a car in Kuopio, Iisalmi or Varkaus.
By taxi
- Smartphone apps: Valopilkku, 02 Taksi
- Menevä Kuopio. Smart phone app offers address based routing and calculates price according to them. €4/7 €0.90/1.60km 0.90/min; the lower fee for 1–4 persons; prebooking free.
- Taksi EHT-Line, ☏ 358 200 14200, ✉[email protected]. Smart phone app offers address based routing and calculates price according to them. €5.90/9 €1.91/2.23km 0.90/min; the lower fee for 1–4 persons; prebooking €7.10.
See
- Pumpulikirkko in Rautavaara.
- Seinävuoren rotkolaakso in Tuusniemi. Around 50 km from Kuopio there is a gorge with a short 2,5 km hiking trail.
- Go hiking to Orinoro gorge in Leppävirta. There is around 7 km long hiking trail which´leads you into a narrow gorge with vertical cliffs. Alternatively you can drive by car as close as 700 m to a gorge.
- Pisa, a fell and a view spot and a protected area between Juankoski and Nilsiä in Kuopio. The Treaty of Teusina in 1595 determined Pisa to be one landmark of the border between Russia and Sweden. On the top (270 m) you can still see the markings in stone.
- Mekaanisen Musiikin Museo in Varkaus is the only mechanical music museum in Finland.
- Olvi Panimomuseo in Iisalmi shows the history of beer and different stages of brewing.
- See Kuopio and its surroundings from Puijo observation tower.
Do
- In a nice summer day, take a cruise in Finland's biggest lake area Saimaa. Depart from Kuopio.
- Metsäkartano, located in the municipality of Rautavaara in northern North Savonia, this nature tourist centre offers variety of sport and outdoor activities both in summer and winter and accommodation in log buildings and even in a tepee made of peat. In the restaurant they serve organic food.
- Relax in a spa in Leppävirta
- Ski downhill or cross-country in Tahko, Nilsiä (nowadays officially a part of Kuopio).
Events
- Navitas Marathon in the beginning of June in Varkaus
- Vekara-Varkaus is a summer event for children held in June in Varkaus.
- Kuopio Dance Festival in June.
- Kuopio Wine Festival; wine, food, friend, celebration. The wine village opens in the beginning of July offering wine, food and music performances and festivities continue for one week.
- Suonenjoki strawberry carnival is one of the oldest summer festivals in Finland. In 2010 the carnival tradition will be 40 years old. Suonenjoki municipality is considered as a strawberry capital of Finland, as it is the biggest strawberry producer in the country.
- The Wife Carrying World Championships is arranged in Sonkajärvi each summer.
Eat
- Kalakukko, a specialty of the region, a rye bread pastry filled with fish and meat. Buy it in a marketplace, especially in Kuopio.
Drink
Try kotikalja, non-alcoholic home-made ale, usually served in summer season but can be found in restaurants, especially in buffet, all year round.
Tap water is drinkable everywhere.
Stay safe
As in the whole Finland, it is really safe to travel in North Savonia. There are few brown bear in wilderness but you almost never see them as they give way when hear people coming. Beware of vipers in the summer. Insects, such as mosquitoes, gadflies and deer flies are irritating and their bite itchy but not dangerous. Ticks may carry borreliosis and the dangerous tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) but it is extremely rare to get a disease (there has been only one recorded case of TBE in North Savonia).