Lake Saimaa
The Largest Lake In Finland, Heart Of The Finnish Lakeland And The Only Home Of The Saimaa Ringed Seal · Savonlinna, South Savo
Lake Saimaa is the largest lake in Finland and the heart of the Finnish Lakeland, a vast maze of open water, narrow channels and thousands of forested islands stretching across the southeast of the country. It is Finland's summer at its most typical: wooden cottages by the water, saunas on the shore, swims from the jetty and long light evenings on the lake. Saimaa is also home to one of the rarest seals in the world, the Saimaa ringed seal, which lives nowhere else and was once close to extinction; careful protection has helped its numbers slowly recover, and boat trips in Linnansaari National Park offer a small chance of seeing one. On an island at Savonlinna stands Olavinlinna, a fifteenth-century castle that hosts the Savonlinna Opera Festival every July, one of the most atmospheric opera settings in Europe. Old lake steamers still cruise between towns, and the Punkaharju ridge runs through the water on a narrow esker. In winter the lake freezes and people skate and ski across it.
Lake Saimaa system, around Savonlinna, Mikkeli, Puumala and Lappeenranta, Savonlinna, South Savo, Finland
The lake is open at all times. Lake cruises and steamers run mainly from June to August, with a few shorter trips in late spring and early autumn. Olavinlinna Castle keeps its own hours, and parts may close for rehearsals during the Savonlinna Opera Festival, which runs in July. Linnansaari and Kolovesi national parks are open at all times and reached by boat. Savonlinna is about four to five hours from Helsinki by train or car. The lake freezes in winter.