Lappeenranta countryside

Lappeenranta countryside is a rural area, the westernmost part of South Karelia in the Finnish Lakeland. It's made up of the municipalities of Lemi, Luumäki, Savitaipale and Taipalsaari. Lake Saimaa reaches Savitaipale and Taipalsaari; there is an abundance of lake shore also otherwise (Taipalsaari alone has some 1,000 km of shoreline).

The large countryside that belongs to Lappeenranta itself is handled in that article, including Nuijamaa, Joutseno and Ylämaa.

The area is popular for summer cottages; the population doubles in summer.

• Lemi municipal office, Toukkalantie 5, leminkunta@lemi.fi. Tue 10:00–15:30 Wed 08:00–15:00 Fri 09:00–13:00 or by agreement.  
• Luumäki: Taavetti main library, see Connect below
• Savitaipale municipal office, Peltoinlahdentie 3a, kunta@savitaipale.fi. Mon–Fri 09:00–15:00.  
• Visit Taipalsaari, Savilahdentie 2 (by M-Market Taipalsaari). Jun–Aug according to the supermarket's opening hours. Unmanned Tourist Information Point. Coffee brewer, bike repair equipment (get the key from the supermarket checkout), bulletin board and books. 
• Regional Council of South Karelia, kirjaamo@ekarjala.fi.  

Luumäki is on national road 6, connecting Kouvola and Lappeenranta, and national road 26, coming in from Hamina. Savitaipale, in turn, is on the National Road 13 between Mikkeli and Lappeenranta. The other two towns are off the main highways; Lemi on regional road 380, bulging out from national road 13 and Taipalsaari is on regional road 408 going from Lappeenranta over islands in Lake Saimaa to Savitaipale.

Taavetti, the main town in Luumäki does have a railway station, but trains do not stop there any longer.

All municipal centres have bus services from Lappeenranta. In addition, Luumäki has bus connections from Kouvola, and Savitaipale from Mikkeli.

• 60.967927.83311 Kotkaniemi (Luumäki). Now a museum, Kotkaniemi was home of Pehr Evind Svinhufvud from 1908 until his death in 1944. Svinhufvud was chairman of the senate signing the declaration of independence in 1917 and President of Finland 1931–1937.  (updated Aug 2023)
• 61.262127.7112 Kärnäkoski Fortress (at Kärnäkoski, by the shore of Saimaa), ☏ +358 20-639-5929 (Riihisaari visitor centre), saimaa@metsa.fi. 24 hr daily. The Kärnäskoski fortress was built as part of the outermost defences of Saint Petersburg in 1791–1793. It was used also as a base for the Russian Saimaa fleet. The fortress was closed down in 1835, as all Finland had become part of the empire. The fortress is maintained as a nationally significant cultural historic landmark. There is a trail, a lean-to shelter, campfire site etc. Guided tours are available from the Partakoski village association. Free.  
• Lemin kirkko, Iitiäntie 1. Open by agreement; main services Sun 10:00. Wooden church from 1786. Lemi has a tradition of singing psalms with four voices. 
• Salpalinja. Defences built during World War II. Salpalinja stretched all the way to Savukoski in Lapland, but the heaviest fortifications were here, between the Gulf of Finland and Saimaa. 

Canoeing – The labyrinthine interconnected lakes make for good canoeing. On windy days, the routes have to be planned to cope, regardless of any nominal routes.

• 61.235527.6111 Kuolimon kierros. 24 hr daily. A canoeing route around Kuolimo off Savitaipale. There are lean-to shelters and trails to a few sights, such as the fortress at Kärnäkoski. The route optionally extends to Orrainpolku in the north and Suomenniemi to the north-west. The route has connections to Saimaa by 200–300 m portages at Kärnäkoski and Orraintaipale. Free.  

Hiking and biking – There are several hiking and biking routes, with infrastructure such as lean-to shelters, outhouse toilets and campfire sites.

• 61.301527.63722 Orrainpolku, Partakoskentie 1520 (by roads 13 km to the south-east). 24 hr daily. 7-km trail with two lean-to shelters, by a pond and by the shore, respectively. The 40-m ascent to Luotolahdenvuori, with nice views, is steep. There is also a biking route around the area. Maintained by the municipality. Free.  

• Lemi music festival

• 61.062227.80351 Ravintola Jehu, Toukkalantie 1 (Lemi), ☏ +358 44 762 2124.  (updated Sep 2023)
• 60.9227827.568732 Ravintola Ostola, Riihitie 1 (Luumäki). Pizza, kebab, salads, steaks.  (updated Aug 2023) ^{[dead link]}

• 61.20227.67261 Olkkolan Hovi, Olkkolantie 2 (Savitaipale), ☏ + 358 50 5555 862, info@olkkolanhovi.fi. Hotel and restaurant.  (updated Aug 2023)

The libraries are part of the Heili library cooperation.

• Lemin kirjasto. Public computer and printer. Outdoor chess board (get the pieces from the service desk). Snowshoes and other equipment to be borrowed. 
• Savitaipaleen kunnankirjasto, Keskustie 2, ☏ +358 40-713-1886, kirjasto@savitaipale.fi. Mon Wed 11:00–18:00 Tue Thu Fri 09:00–16:00.  
• Taavetin pääkirjasto, Virastotie 2 (Taavetti), ☏ +358 40-712-3525, kirjasto@luumaki.fi. Mon–Wed 10:00–28:00 Thu Fri 10:00–16:00. Luumäki main library and tourist information. There is a library also in Kangasvarsi, with limited hours. 
• Taipalsaaren kirjasto, Kuhatie 3, ☏ +358 40-710-6136, kirjasto@taipalsaari.fi. Mon–Wed 12:00–19:00 Thu Fri 09:00–16:00. Wi-Fi, public computers, colour printer. 

Ends in Koskenkylä at ← Kouvola ←

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→ Lappeenranta → Kajaani