Northern Europe > Finland > Southern Finland > Lahti
Lahti
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Lahti [1] is a town in southern Finland, which lies on the shore of Vesijärvi.
[edit] UnderstandLahti has a population of 99,489 making it the 7th largest city in Finland by population. The area of the city is 154,6 square kilometres, of which 19,54 km² is water. Current mayor of Lahti is Jyrki Myllyvirta. [edit] Get in[edit] By carLahti is exactly 104 km from Helsinki, a one-hour drive on the expressway number 4 connecting the two cities. [edit] By busBuses to Lahti depart from Helsinki every half hour. Currently, journey to Lahti by bus takes approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. Buses arrive at the Lahti Bus Station (Linja-autoasema) in the city centre. Ticket costs around 14,20€ - 17€. By the way, "pikavuoro" means express-service, "vakiovuoro" means normal service, and "tilausajo" means charter service. [edit] By trainTravel from Helsinki to Lahti by train takes about 50 minutes. The train service is provided by VR, the national train company. Trains are also preferred by locals, because they're fast and comfortable. There are several train types:
If you travel with children, you should choose Perhelippu(Family ticket). With each adult, one child can ride for free. For example, if you have three children, you will only pay for 2 adults and 1 child. The train station is about ten minutes walk from the city center. Cross Mannerheiminkatu and take Rautatienkatu towards north. [edit] Get aroundLahti has a good system of public transport. You can ride from one part of the city to another with a single ticket of 3.20€, kids 1.60€. Kauppatori is the center of Lahti's public transport system, but be aware that many bus lines go in both directions from Kauppatori. [edit] SeeLahti has a partly deserved reputation as an unattractive, economically depressed industrial town. In the recent years, however, Lahti has improved its reputation with a lovely harbor area with outdoor cafes and bars. In the harbor area there is also beautiful Sibelius Hall which is used for concerts and conferences. [edit] Sibelius HallSibelius Hall (built in 2000) is an example of a modern wood construction and the largest wooden building built in Finland for 100 years. Finnish forests were the main inspiration for the architects. The building consists of four parts:
Guided tours for groups of 1-13 persons. The ex-carpentry factory was renovated into a restaurant, offices and cabinets. Sibelius Hall host about 800 events every year: about 140 concerts from classical music to rock, pop etc. [edit] Parks
In Laune park, you'll have lots of fun. There's a traffic city, where you can drive with free bicycles and scooters. There are pipes and water, and parents can rest on grass while kids are having fun.
Vesiurut means water organs. Every day at 1 pm and 6 pm, at the park there is a small 15 minute concert. The fountain starts in unison with music from speakers up in the trees. There are some classical music pieces and some Finnish pop music pieces. You can sit on rocks around the fountain, but be aware - you can get wet ;) During the fall, there are also lights playing.
Barnyard animals in the sweet country milieu right in the city center. Open only in Summer.
Puksu train goes through the city's entertaining places. It starts from Vesijärvi harbour, then goes to Laune park, then Farm Animal Yard, "Little Marketplace" and back to Vesijärvi harbour.
In the summer, the bottom part of the highest ski jump is opened as a pool. There's a shallow kids area as well as a deeper area, which goes quickly from 2m to 3m deep. Swimming ability required. You can borrow trunks and glasses.
You can play almost anything in the sports park. There are tennis courts, a tennis wall, volleyball court, baseball field and of course a football field. Inside, there are tennis, badminton, and squash courts.
There's a list of parks at Lahtitravel [2] [edit] DoLahti has the best known symphony orchestra in Finland, Sinfonia Lahti. Annual winter sport event, Salpausselän kisat is very popular and worth to see. From the harbour you can take a cruise to lake Vesijärvi which is a nice way to spend a summer day. [edit] Buy[edit] Shopping centersLahti has several big shopping centers. One of them is Trio [3] at Aleksanterinkatu 20. There are many shops, as the center is divided into four sections - Trio Aleksanteri, Trio Opaali, Trio Forum and Trio Hansa. Each part has 2 or 3 floors.
Sokos shopping center [4] at Aleksanterinkatu 19-21. It's a big center with 3 floors and basement floor. Upper three floors are filled with shoes, clothes, toys, electronics, dishes, games, movies and everything that you need in your household. In the basement, there's a S-Market grocery store, what has a store in almost every city in Finland.
Outside town (LAUNE) is a large commercial area filled with large hypermarkets, electronic and car stores.
Liike shopping center is near the city centre. Mail order business Anttila has a big 2-floor store there, what sells nearly everything found in the catalog. There are also several smaller shops, a cafe and a sports shop InterSport. Shopping center Syke is located just opposite of Liike. Unlike Liike, which has a few shops. Syke has many shops. One of the biggest is Euromarket, which sells clothes, electronics, household products and food. By just walking around in the city centre you can found stores that sell almost anything (everything from buttons to cars). [edit] Eat
[edit] Drink
Other places worth to visit are restaurant Taivaanranta and Teerenpeli which have their own whisky distillery and beer brewery. In Teerenpeli there is very nice athmosphere and friendly service. [edit] Sleep
More hotels in Lahti [8] and hostels in Lahti [9] [edit] Get outAmong the neighboring counties are Asikkala, Heinola and Orimattila. Many of them have something worth a visit, although perhaps just a brief one.
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