For Inspiration

Love Varkaus! The nature, history and industrial architecture of Lake Saimaa.

Varkaus - Living and Breathing Industrial History, Culture and Arts

Come to Varkaus, a magnificent coastal town on Lake Saimaa that offers an unprecedented range of experiences and delights.

Awaiting you in the heart of the city is the new and already award-winning Varkaus´s Museum Centre Konsti, which opened its doors in spring 2024. Konsti takes you on a journey through the history, present and future of Varkaus' industry and people. The museum centre also offers a wide range of art and Lasten Tehdas for children and child-minded people to play, play and have adventures. You might even catch a glimpse of Konttorirotta in the factory building.

The charm of Old Varkaus

From Konsti, it's easy to start touring the city along the Old Varkaus Experience Tour. This route takes you to a nostalgic wooden village where the workers, officials and managers of the pottery once lived. You'll find many delightful places to visit and places to stay in the treasure trove of wooden houses, including Taiteilijatalo Taideniity, Art Centre Taidekeskus Väinölä, Warkhaus and The Church of Varkaus. The Wanhan Warkauden kauppahalli, which opened in spring, is an experience in itself: meet local artisans at work, shop for unique food, crafts and art. Starting in October, the atmospheric Joulumaa will also open in the courtyard of the Kauppahalli. The character of Old Varkaus is complemented by the modern Varkaus right next door, which you can sense on a walking tour with the quiet humming of the factory in the background.

Natural beauty and unforgettable experiences

In Varkaus, the lake scenery of Lake Saimaa surrounds the city from all directions. Oases in the city centre, such as Hertunranta, Itsenäisyyden Puisto and Kämäri, lead you with their bridges and footpaths all the way to the Taipale Canal. Boat traffic on the canal is quiet for the winter, but the old stone canal is worth a visit all year round. This route is perfect for walking or cycling, and you can stop off to enjoy the scenery at your leisure. Along the way you can admire the Ämmäkoski bypass, Finland's largest natural route for migratory fish to spawn.

Live and breathe Varkaus

Varkaus lives and breathes industry and its history. In the streets of the city you can admire the handiwork of many architects, not forgetting the most famous Alvar Aalto. Varkaus is full of speciality shops and service companies offering unique products and services. On the boulevard-like Kauppakatu, it's worth popping inside for some delightful souvenir and gift shopping, or to reward yourself with a local product.

We also offer guided nature tours and rental equipment to help you experience the Varkaus region from a whole new perspective.

Welcome to a Varkaus that's all your own!

Old Varkaus

Varkaus Theatre

Nature experiences in Varkaus

History

On 20 April 1815, the Senate gave permission to Gustaf Wrede to establish a foundry near Huruskoski (now Voimakanava) and Ämmäkoski. The workers of the foundry settled in the immediate vicinity of the factories, either in residential buildings built by the foundry or in small huts on the land of nearby farms. Only a few buildings from the 19th century have survived in the central area of Varkaus, such as the Keskuskonttori and the Kotiseutukeskus Tyyskä.

The town planning of Varkaus began in the early 1900s, when the Varkaus Ironworks moved to the A. Ahlström Ltd. and Walter Ahlström became the company's CEO. Ahlström set out to vigorously develop the wood processing industry in Varkaus. The population of Ruukki grew rapidly with the large construction projects. Ruukki was responsible for town planning, housing policy and also public functions while Varkaus still lacked municipal independence.

Walter Ahlström had a vision of a city built around industrial plants. Ahlström took an active part in the planning of his city, his aim being to create a new kind of industrial community in which all activities were part of a whole.

A. Ahlström Ltd. commissioned the architect brothers Ivar and Valter Thomé to draw up the first town plan for Varkaus in 1913. The plan was approved in 1916, with industrial buildings along Huruskoski and Pirtinniemi, administration and services on Päiviönsaari and housing in hierarchical order on Kommila and Kosulanniemi. These parts were connected by Ahlströminkatu, a boulevard-like park street.

The main features of the Thomén brothers' plan have survived in Varkaus' urban landscape. Their work was continued by Karl Lindahl, Carolus Lindberg, Alvar Aalto, Kalevi Väyrynen, and Olli Kivinen, among others, initially commissioned by the company and, from the 1940s onwards, increasingly by the trade. Varkaus' urban landscape has been shaped by a very distinguished group of designers, many of whom have also designed many of the industrial, administrative and residential buildings familiar to the people of Varkaus.

Kerroksien kaupunki online exhibition at the Museum Centre Konsti in Varkaus presents Varkaus' architectural heritage and the changes in the city's urban landscape from the 19th century to the present day: saranat.fi/verkonayttelyt/varkaus/

Information About Varkaus

General information about the city of Varkaus

Kauppala of Varkaus was founded in 1929
Varkaus was granted city rights in 1962
Population on 31 December 2022 19 764
Area of 524.93 km², of which 139.27 km² are water bodies
There are 940 km of coastline

Varkaus - Creative Energy from Eastern Finland

A growing, competitive, environmentally friendly and international industrial region
A safe, vibrant and economically stable city
A culture of dignity and innovation as a basis for cooperation between the city and civil society

Varkaus is located

In Northern Savonia province
In the court of Eastern Finland
At the junction of highways 5 and 23
Along the deep waterway of Lake Saimaa

Varkaus is a long way off

To Kuopio 76 km
To Mikkeli 88 km
To Joensuu 118 km
To Jyväskylä 125 km
To Helsinki 317 km

Name of Varkaus

Varkaus. The name puzzles the little traveller, and the big traveller may not be sure why the name is like that, nor who gave it to him.

But I think many agree that the name is originally a Lappish language: VYÖRKÄ. And if you believe the slightest bit of history, that fancy word means something about a cache.

Exciting. Yes, it is! What was hidden in the cache?

Hair hats, firewood, playing cards, moose bones, ear flaps, partitions, knee socks frozen, bow guns, baby's pacifier, goose feathers - kuti-kuti barn, harvest, dew worm, or the dam of Ämmäkoski, arrow, chair, loose nose. And last but not least, TREASUE comes to mind! And if it's a treasure, of course, I'd love to find it.

But with no treasure map, where does the treasure bus start? In front of the swimming pool? Under the Pirtinvirran silta? At the Tumi´s kiosk? On the steps of the hardware store? The bus doesn't start from anywhere when there is no treasure map. Oh, straight, curve and bend! And yet there is a treasure in Varkaus!

And if you look hard enough, you'll find a fresh idea: the treasure is hidden everywhere here. When you start looking for it, you'd better start with yourself. That treasure is you. Yes, and so am I. And it will be found, if we just stay friends.

Jukka Itkonen

Maps and Brochures

Holiday in Savo
The Holiday in Savo brochure weaves the offer of the Joroinen, Leppävirta, Pieksämäki and Varkaus regions into fascinating discovery trips and tours that invite you to explore the history, natural treasures, culture, events and unique destinations of the region, not forgetting accommodation, dining and experience services. Take a look at the electronic versions and choose the programme of your choice for your holiday:

Holiday in Savo / Finnish
Holiday in Savo / English

Holiday in Varkaus with a good mind
Collect tips for responsible tourism:

Responsible tourist guide / Visit Saimaa

Mobile guides
Alvar Aalto in Varkaus
Kalevi Väyrynen in Varkaus
Karl Lindahl in Varkaus
On the trail of Thomé in Varkaus
Bike to art - Varkaus outdoor art tours