South Savonia

• — the largest city in the region
• — major rail junction
• — Finland's largest castle, a famous opera festival and scenic views of Lake Saimaa

• : labyrinth of lake channels, with ancient rock paintings and the Saimaa seal, paradise for conoeists.
• : lake cruises among forested islands and rocky islets, home of ospreys and Saimaa seals; slash-and-burn farm; hiking trails in summer, skating trail in winter.

By plane

The only airport in the region is at Savonlinna, which has service to Helsinki.

By train

South Savonia's major cities are all well-served by rail, although you may need to change trains in Kouvola. It's 3 hours from Helsinki to Savonlinna or Mikkeli, or about 4 hours to Pieksämäki. There's also a cross line from Turku, Tampere and Jyväskylä to Pieksämäki.

By bus

South Savonia has good bus connections from neighboring provinces and even from provinces more far away.

Trains of national operator VR are possible to use for travelling inside province.
Matkahuolto has a dense bus network covering most of the province.
Onnibus offers discount bus service by few routes.

• The ridge landscape at Punkaharju, which is the "national landscape of Finland".
• World's largest wooden church in Kerimäki.
• Olavinlinna medieval castle in Savonlinna.

• The monastery of New Valamo

  address: Heinävesi
  The orthodox monastery of New Valamo is open for visitors all year round. It is also possible to sleep overnight in the monastery area. Visitors are expected to wear clothes that cover their knees and shoulders.

• Lintula Holy Trinity Convent

  address: Heinävesi
  Close to New Valamo monastery, Lintula convent is the only orthodox convent in Finland. It welcomes visitors every day to services. During the summer it also serves accommodation in the convent area.

Hiking

• Astuvansalmi rock paintingsAstuvansalmi is one of the biggest rock painting sites in the Nordic countries. The paintings on a cliff next to a lake are thought to be 4500-5000 years old and they depict elk, human, hands, animal tracks, boats etc. The site can be reached by a 3 km walking path. You can arrive to the trail head from Ristiina by car. In Ristiina turn to "Suurlahdentie", road 4323. Drive 19 km and find a small parking place with the Astuvansalmi sign. In winter the paintings can be viewed from the ice on the frozen lake. In summer boats trips are possible.

Sports

• Joroisten JudokerhoJudo club open to everyone, including day guests. Contact them by email in advance for special lessons and schedules, which vary based on interest.

Festivals

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