The preparation of Finland’s newest national park has started in Salla

Salla is located in Finnish Lapland, north of the Arctic Circle and close to the Russian border. The area of Salla covers over 5,800 sq km, with only 3,400 residents. Salla, with a population density of 0.6 inhabitants per square kilometre, is one of the most sparsely populated areas in Europe. By way of contrast, there are at least 10,000 reindeer in Salla.

The surface area of the new Salla national park will cover over 10,000 hectares, and it will be located in the existing Sallatunturi Nature Reserve, which is situated between the Salla Ski Resort and the Russian border. There are numerous rare and wilderness-specific species, fells, old forests and swamps. The national park would also provide an ecological connection to the nature reserves on the Russian side of the border.

Na vrcholu Sallatunturi. FOTO: Eeva Mäkinen

Right next to the future national park stands the Salla tourism destination, which provides various types of accommodation, restaurants and outdoor activities. You can explore the national park on marked skiing, hiking, winter walking and mountain bike trails. There are over 300 km of marked hiking and trekking trails in Salla. The local companies organise guided reindeer, husky, snowshoe, canoeing, hiking, snowmobile and fatbike trips to the national park and its surrounding areas. In Salla Reindeer Park, you can also find an exhibition of Salla’s nature.

Národní park Sallatunturi. FOTO: Timo Tuuha

Salla has invested in developing sustainable tourism for several years and has been one of the pilot areas in the Visit Finland’s Sustainable Travel Finland programme. Several tourism companies in Salla have already received environmental certification for responsible operations. Setting up the national park will continue the work on behalf of sustainable tourism.

The new national park can be reached easily by public bus from the nearest railway station and from the airport. Kuusamo airport is located approximately 90 minutes away by bus. For those who prefer a more ecological way of travel, it is easy to take a night train from Helsinki to Kemijärvi, and from there a bus to Salla.

Rozhledna poblíž Salla. FOTO: Giacomo Poretti

!The atmosphere in Salla is fantastic, and the national park project provides hope for the future-something we desperately need in the middle of the coronavirus epidemic," says the mayor of Salla municipality, Mr. Erkki Parkkinen.

INFO: Visit Salla 

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