Hotels in Savonlinna

We ate a lot of "muikku" served in different ways. Try the soup at the market square "rantakalakeitto". Great! Loved to walk along the shore. Went to Sulosaari, an island behind the casino. Had crepes that tasted great. The castle was nice too. We walked everywhere since it's such a small place. Newly opened "muikkuterassi" at the top floor of the Sokos hotel was great at sunset.

A quiet cozy town with a pleasant quay and a cool playground for kids. The alley for walking with dogs is easy to find. The castle is worth to be visited and the small islands around are also good for walking. But too many tourists and therefore too many restaurants and hotels.

As there are mostly outdoor places to see you should be lucky with the weather!) take a car for sure as most places are 30-50 km from each other but it is really worth seeing! Locals are very friendly🙏🏻 Try salmon soup and salmon-vegetable pie 👌🏻 Linnavuori is hard for getting to and we returned back not getting to the mountain to see great views, locals said that most ways are locked with fences which were bought by some Russians and no chance to get to the pick ☹️ Puntaharjo road is really great and you can stop by car and enjoy lake views! Park with paranoid sculptures is also worth seeing but take it easy, it’s scaring but not as much as most visitors comment. At least do not visit it at late evening/night))

A beautiful little town surrounded by pristine waters of Lake Saimaa and characterized by the old castle and the Opera Festival. You can enjoy a nice cup of coffee in the marketsquare and wander in the boutiques and handicraft stalls. There’s a great new cafe restaurant on the market square, Bistro Onkipaikka - love the glutein-free sour salmon pancakes! The more traditional thing to eat at the market square are, however, savoury or sweet lörtsy pies. It’s also well worth taking a cruise on the old ferries, one of which is a real steam boat and can take you up to Kuopio in one day! On a hot summer’s day, I recommend taking a walk to Sulosaari (close to town centre), having pancakes in cute Lettukahvila Kalliolinna and taking a dip on the beach. On the way back, you can go see some summer theatre (or in winter, see a play on Casino Island).

Savonlinna is a Finnish jewel most people have never heard of, and I probably shouldn't be writing this as it might start to get too crowded. The castle is fabulous and hosts an annual opera festival within its walls that is absolutely worth the effort of experiencing at least once in your life, but be careful, you might get hooked. If you are travelling from abroad then the easiest way to get there is to fly from Helsinki. The summer market is lovely with local delicacies and handicrafts galore. Rent a car and you are within easy reach of Kerimäki, home to the biggest wooden church in the world, as well as the arts centre at Punkaharju. Reckon on a long weekend and you should see everything worth seeing. Highly recommended.

Saonlinna is a small town characterised by it's castle and location on lake Saimaa. As a consequence it focuses on activities on the water or in the forests surrounding the lakes. In July there is an Opera festival in the castle that is an added bonus. Savonlinna is easily accessed by car or by train from Parikkala which is on the line from Helsinki to Joensuu. The regional trains are timed to hook up with the intercity line. I took a day trip hiking in Punkaharju which is between Savonlinna and Parikkala on the train line. The forst is lovely and in summer you can eat wild strawberries that you find along the trail.