Tourist Places to Visit in Sodankyla, Finland, Europe

Tourist Places to Visit in Sodankyla, Finland, Europe

Sodankyla is one of the municipalities in the Lapland region in Finland, located about 165 km north-northeast of Rovaniemi and 990 km north of the national capital, Helsinki. Sodankyla New Church is the main religious site as well as landmark in Sodankyla.

Sodankyla is one of the major tourist centers in northern Finland as it is home to Luosto (a ski and safari resort), Midnight Sun Film Festival and Urho Kekkonen National Park. Sodankyla also houses Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory and the Jaeger Brigade of the Finnish Army.

Geography of Sodankyla:

Sodankyla is located at the northern end of the national road 5 covering an area of 2,415.46 square kilometers. Sodankyla coordinates with 67°25′ N latitude and 026°35′ E longitude.

Connectivity to Sodankyla:

Kittila Airport is the major closest airport to Sodankyla, situated about 125 km away, operating scheduled flights to Ivalo and Helsinki and seasonal flights to Copenhagen, Paris, Glasgow, London, Birmingham, East Midlands, Newcastle, Zurich, and Manchester.

There are buses generally available at the airport and also tourists can take taxi or rented car to reach Sodankyla.

Sodankyla houses many travel agencies that offer car and motorbikes for rent on day or hour basis with valid identity proof and security deposit.

Culture and Food in Sodankyla:

Midnight Sun Film Festival is a 5 day film festival in Sodankyla celebrated in the second week of June annually since 1986, featuring contemporary Finnish films and other entertainments.

List of the major food corners in Sodankyla include:

Paivin Kammari
Kerttuli
Pizza-paikka Á la Riesto
Annabella

What to do in Sodankyla?

Snowmobile driving
Ice fishing
Snow shoe walk
Downhill skiing
Fishing
Hiking
Riverboat cruises

What to see in Sodankyla?

Sodankylä New Church:

Sodankyla New Church was constructed in the year 1859 in stone and the Old Church was built in wood in 1689 which still exists.

Urho Kekkonen National Park:

The Urho Kekkonen National Park covers a total area of 2,550 square kilometers of the municipalities of Savukoski, Sodankyla and Inari. It is one of the largest national parks in Finland which was established in 1983 and was named in the honor of Urho Kekkonen who was the former President and Prime Minister of Finland. The fells like Sokosti, Kiilopää, Ukselmapää, Saariselkä and Lake Aittajärvi are the highlights of the park.

Luosto:

Located in the centre of Urho Kekkonen National Park, Luosto is a ski and safari resort boasting Skidoo, Santa, Husky and Reindeer. It also houses Europe’s only open amethyst mine.

List of other places of interest in and around Sodankyla include:

Gold museum at Tankavaara
Northern Lights research centre
Alariesto Art Gallery
Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory
Levi Husky Park
Kittila Town Hall
The ski resort Levi
Lapland Forestry Museum
Rovaniemi Local History Museum
Wolverine Fell Wilderness and Nature
Gold Prospector Museum
Pilke Science Centre
Santa Claus Village
Rovaniemi Church
Korundi House of Culture

Ideal time to visit Sodankyla:

From June to August is the best time to travel Sodankyla while the summer season runs supportive festival celebration and outdoor activities.

Where to stay in Sodankyla?

There are hotels less but vacation rentals are plenty in Sodankyla and the rent of the vacation rentals range from $85 to $260 including different facilities and services. Here is the list of the hotels and vacation rentals in Sodankyla: