Finland Proper

•      Greater Turku – The metropolitan area of Turku is the third biggest in Finland. Here we count it to cover Turku, a few neighbouring towns and some of the countryside to the north.
•      Archipelago Sea – The Archipelago Sea is a large archipelago off Turku, reaching the Åland islands in the west and the Gulf of Finland in the east. A maze of thousands of islands and islets.
•      Inland of Finland Proper – The inland countryside and the town Loimaa.
•      Salo with surroundings – The eastern part of the region. A few towns, partly by the coast.
•      Vakka-Suomi – The west coast: the Vakka-Suomi proper and an additional area in the south.

Cities and towns in blue, rural areas in green.

See also: Swedish Empire

The name "Finland" was in medieval times applied only to this part of the country, hence the region's present name. This was the gateway for western culture and a central part of medieval Sweden. Turku remained the biggest town in Finland until the late 19th century, long after Helsinki had become capital. Turku is still a one-night cruise away from Stockholm and yachts from Sweden, Helsinki, and Turku are common in the archipelago.

Some people in the archipelago and on the coast still make their living from the sea, with fishing and seafaring traditions very much alive, while inland areas are more focused on agriculture. The soil is very fertile because it is an ancient seabed. Much of Finland's grain and sugar beets come from here. In the archipelago, with smaller fields, labour-intense crops such as tomatoes, salad and early potato dominate.

The southern coast and the archipelago are mainly Swedish-speaking, while the inland, the western coast and the northern parts of the archipelago are Finnish.

Turku is well connected with the rest of Finland. You can get in by direct trains from Helsinki (to "Kupittaa"), Tampere and by sleeping cars from Lapland. However if you are travelling along the Bothnian coast, by E8 or otherwise, coach or car should be your transportation of choice. Turku and Naantali have cruise ferry connections from Sweden. Turku airport has flights mainly from Helsinki, Mariehamn and Stockholm, but also regular flights from odd airports in Europe, often including Riga and Gdansk.

Turku is the hub of most connections. You can get off the train in Salo or Loimaa, coaches other than special express ones have stops along the way and minor ferries from Åland have their destinations closer (see Archipelago Sea#Get in), but mostly you need to transfer in Turku – and you probably want to stay there for at least some time, regardless of where you are heading.

Coming with own yacht is reasonably common: along the coast, from Stockholm Archipelago via Åland, directly from Gotland or from Hiiumaa or Haapsalu in Estonia. The outer archipelago is hard to navigate, so you may want to use the main fairways. From the south (the open sea), Mariehamn, Utö and Hanko are the main entry points. See Boating on the Baltic Sea, Boating in Finland and Archipelago Sea.

The Turku guide map covers the central parts of the region, including Rymättylä, Velkua, Marttila, Mynämäki and Sauvo and most of the area between them. It has layers for cycleways and biking routes, for bus lines (of Föli), parks, public services and other information that may be of interest.

Turku is the only larger city in the region, and as the oldest and former main city of Finland, it dominates the list of man-made attractions. For art lovers, Turku Art Museum has a good collection of paintings from the "golden age" of Finnish art, in late 19th and early 20th century. You can also see more modern art in Turku: there, in a few other museums, and in a big assortment of galleries.

The medieval Turku Castle and Turku Cathedral are the classics for domestic visitors. There are medieval churches all around, and also younger churches worth a visit. In Turku, Aboa Vetus et Ars Nova has an ongoing archaeologic display of cellars and streets of medieval Turku as found below the ground. Older findings are more difficult to see or understand, but there are lots of Bronze and Iron Age sites around the region. There are quite a few historic manors, with e.g. Louhisaari Manor (Villnäs slott) in Askainen open for the public in summer. The summer residence of the President of Finland, Kultaranta (Gullranda) is in Naantali, with guided tours of the garden.

For traditional living and crafts, in addition to the Luostarivuori (Klosterbacken) handicraft museum in a Turku neighbourhood that survived the great fire of 1827 and the Kurala living museum village (with historic toys for children to use, and sheep to caress), also in Turku, there are small local history museums about everywhere, some with their own specialities. In the smaller museums there is seldom written information in English, so call ahead to get a guide confident in their English.

Seafaring has been important, so in addition to Forum Marinum in Turku, with a full-rigged ship, a wooden barque, two Cold War-era warships and many smaller vessels, there are also local museums on the theme, such as the maritime house in Nagu, the one on traditional boats in Houtskär and the pulley museum in Iniö. There are tours to the lighthouses of Bengtskär, Isokari and Utö.

The sceneries of the archipelago are much loved by locals and certainly worth seeing. There are cruises available at least from Turku, Kasnäs, Nagu and Uusikaupunki.

For a quick sampling of Finnish biotopes, the displays of the biological museum in Turku are excellent, and nice also for children.

There are several good birding spots. For migrating birds southern islands of the archipelago, such as Utö, Jurmo and Bengtskär are good, as the birds rest or wait for suitable weather there. There are also easy to reach wetlands, such as Järvelä, Kuusistonlahti and Rauvolanlahti in Kaarina. Farther from Turku, Mietoistenlahti, Oukkulanlahti and Otajärvi in the Vakka-Suomi countryside and Vajosuo in Kurjenrahka National Park are good birding spots. For birds of the woods, Ruissalo in Turku and Pukkipalo by Kurjenrahka are good locations.

Surprisingly, the Finland Proper mainland has the densest wolf population of Finland, and thus probably of the Nordic countries, as of 2024, due to the abundant deer population. However, you have to have patience and luck to see any trace of them. There are local worries about the safety of school children, but there have been no violent incidents anywhere in Finland since the 19th century. Dogs and sheep may indeed get killed.

The main distinguishing feature of the region is the Archipelago Sea. Getting in by ferry will allow you to see some of it and a cruise will allow you to get closer, but to really experience it you might want to charter a yacht or hire a sea kayak. If you don't have the skills, you can at least get on a manned afternoon yacht cruise, and you can get on guided kayak expeditions also, or just on an evening tour from Turku with an experienced guide. Fishing trips are arranged from many small resorts, often with some presentation of the archipelago nature at least on request.

For hiking, there are shorter and longer trails. The main destination is the Kurjenrahka National Park, with trails suitable for a day or a (short or long) weekend. Nature trails of a few kilometres can be found in most places.

The Moomin World theme park attracts children from far away, and adults all the way from Japan. A crowded milieu is not the best to experience the world of Tove Jansson and the Moomins, but some real efforts have been made.

In summer, everybody goes swimming in the sea or a nearby lake. Most cottages have at least a swimming jetty by the sauna – and sauna bathing is as fundamental a part of the Finnish summer as the swimming. Winter swimming for the public is arranged in several places, including in Vehmaa, Kimitoön, Kustavi and Turku.

In the archipelago fish has always been important, and fish is available in most restaurants, although what is served does not necessarily reflect the local traditions. Sweet rye bread (Skärgårdslimpa) is also often served. See Archipelago Sea#Eat for a discussion. Otherwise and elsewhere what you'll see is more or less standard Finnish fare.

Turku is the main nightlife destination. Elsewhere nightlife, when it exists at all, is often concentrated at a restaurant, marina or a camping ground. There may be events at community centres, and social dancing is regularly arranged at some community centres and dance pavilions.

There are Alko stores in the bigger towns, and there may be Alko delivery points elsewhere.

Potable water is scarce in the wild. Water is usually available at manned camp grounds and at marinas. In a pinch, you can ask at any house.

There are hotels in Turku and other towns, but for most of the area bed and breakfast style accommodation (with or without breakfast), cottages and camping are what to look for. Reservations are only necessary in the peak season (and for cottages), especially July. In the off season many accommodations outside cities are closed.

Some cottages are available only for week-long bookings or longer, but most of them are available also for just overnighting, and in shoulder season they are typically rented for a weekend. Some holiday villages also offer rooms. Cottages are often a side business, and a restaurant, fishing trips or whatever may be available through the main business. There are also cottages far from where the landlord is living, and you might be more or less on your own. Cottages vary from 6 m² modules in a row to houses with proper kitchen and private sauna and beach. Price may give a hint, but also cheap cottages may be in a good spot with services available. Bed linens are usually available for about €10/set. Don't expect running hot water without checking.

Wild camping is mostly possible according to the right to access. No campfires, leave no trace. In some areas suitable woods are scarce, on one hand near towns, on the other in the archipelago, where islands may be small or most available ground put to use. Near towns, wild camping may have the risks of sleeping rough, except by lean-tos of hiking trails and similar, where it is regarded normal.

Watch out for elk and deer when driving. Roe deer and American white tailed deer are abundant.

Keep warm and afloat when at sea. Be especially careful with children by the shore.

Ticks are common, and can carry Borreliosis or TBE.

If trekking or picking berries in the autumn, wear some bright red clothing, as there might be hunters around.

There are bears and wolves, but there have been no reports on them threatening people. You are lucky if you see any trace of them.

There are adders (Vipera berus) – keep your distance. If you get bitten, stay calm and call 112 to get advice. The bite should get treatment without delay, although it seldom is dangerous for non-allergic adults. There is also another snake species, the grass snake (Natrix natrix), which is non-venomous.

• Baltic Sea ferries from Turku to Stockholm in Sweden
• King's Road from Turku via Helsinki to Vyborg in Russia
• E8 through Finland and Norway, northward by the coast

Landline area code: 02 (+358 2 xxx-xxxx). Note that 020 numbers (+358 20-xxx-xxx) are non-geographic numbers, usually not included in the "all included" plans.