Nokia

Nokia combines nature experiences with insights into local history and a varied cultural scene. You can walk marked trails through marshland and along lakes, discover art and industrial history, or go fishing and paddling. When choosing a holiday apartment in Nokia, it therefore helps to consider what you want to focus on during your trip: trails and nature, culture, or excursions around Siuro.

Nature trails with different focuses

The Laajanoja Nature Trail leads into the habitat of the endangered brown trout. The easy, marked trail is 3.4 kilometres each way; the round trip is given as about five kilometres. If you are interested in waterways and their habitats, this trail offers a different focus from routes leading to viewpoints or through marshland.

A 27-hectare nature reserve lies by Lake Ruutanajärvi. The easy, well-marked Ruutana Nature Trail runs through it for four kilometres. There is a well-maintained campfire site on the lakeshore. Kivikesku is part of the Kaakkurijärvet Natura area, an important breeding ground for red-throated divers. A marked trail of about one kilometre leads through swamp forest and marshland to the lakeshore. These details give you a concrete basis for choosing a shorter route through this landscape instead of a longer trail.

At Maatialanharju, a marked nature trail runs from the shore of Lake Vihnusjärvi for about five kilometres up to the ridge. Along the way, you pass trenches dating from the First World War. Hakavuori in Siuro offers a different view of the area: the slate cliff affords views of Lake Kulovesi and the Nokianvirta River. The easy Hakavuori Nature Trail is 0.8 kilometres long and has five information boards about nature and geology. This gives you a choice between longer trails and a short route with information boards as different ways to experience nature.

Culture, local history, and Siuro

In Nokia city centre, the Hinttala Local History Museum presents local life and culture in the 19th century. In summer, Hinttala hosts a range of events and activities, most of which are free and open to everyone. These include concerts, workshops, family activities, literary events, and guided tours. The café in the Pytinki building serves sweet and savoury food; in summer, there is also outdoor seating.

The Virta Library and Cultural Centre invites you to discover Nokia’s history, visit art exhibitions, and attend events. Its permanent exhibition focuses on the city’s industrial past and highlights from Matti and Sirkka-Liisa Helin’s art collection. The history of Siuro Church also shapes the village: the wooden Art Nouveau church was originally built as a prayer house in 1910 and consecrated in 1938. The former schoolyard of Ossi Somma developed into a sculpture park with dozens of sculptures.

The opportunities for fishing and paddling at the Siuronkoski rapids offer a different focus for an excursion. The site also has old power station buildings and stone bridges. You can include nature, art, and traces of industrial history as different interests in your travel plans, without expecting a single excursion to cover them all.

Getting here and choosing accommodation

You can reach Tampere from Nokia by local train in about 15 minutes. All long-distance train services between Tampere and Pori also stop at Nokia station. When looking for a holiday apartment, you can consider whether to use Nokia as a base for culture and nature trails, or whether to include destinations around Siuro as well. The train connection is another useful point of reference if Tampere is part of your travel plans.

Nearby, in the village of Pinsiö in the municipality of Hämeenkyrö, Nancy Holt’s 1998 earth sculpture “Up and Under” is located on land owned by the City of Nokia. The area serves as a work of art, a recreation and hiking area, and an event venue. Visitors should use the designated paths on slopes and at erosion sites. If you would like to add outdoor art to your stay, this is another option alongside the attractions in Nokia and Siuro.

For more discoveries, you can also find Lempäälä, Virrat, Sastamala, Urjala, Västilä, Aitoo, Puutikkala, and Kolunkylä here.

For the broader travel overview: Pirkanmaa.