Heinola

Heinola is a town of 18,000 people (2021) in Päijänne Tavastia.

Understand
The name Heinola is derived from the Finnish word "heinä," which means hay, and refers to the town's location in a rich agricultural area. The town was officially founded in 1776, but it had already become an important trading hub by the 1700s due to its location on the shores of Lake Ruotsalainen and the Heinola rapids, which were important transportation routes for goods.

In the late 1700s and early 1800s, Heinola experienced significant growth as new industries were established in the area, including a paper mill, a sawmill, and a tannery. The town became an important center for commerce, industry, and transportation, and it played a key role in the development of the Päijänne Tavastia region.

During World War II, Heinola suffered significant damage from bombings, and many buildings and infrastructure were destroyed. However, the town was quickly rebuilt after the war, and it continued to develop and modernize in the post-war era.

Get in
Heinola is located halfway between Helsinki and Jyväskylä (140 km from each) on highway 4 (E75), some 40 km north of Lahti, and 100 km south-west of Mikkeli. There are good coach connections especially along highway 4, see Matkahuolto.

The railway from Lahti has no passenger transport, except occasional museum trains.

Get around
You can walk around downtown.

By bus
See Lahti#By bus

By taxi

 * Lahen Taksi, Lahden aluetaksi, Menevä: see Lahti
 * Lahen Taksi, Lahden aluetaksi, Menevä: see Lahti

See

 * Some wooden houses in central Heinola.
 * Some wooden houses in central Heinola.
 * Some wooden houses in central Heinola.

Buy
There are some shops downtown, and about 2 km southwest next to the motorway you can find a large hypermarket store.



Go next

 * Lahti — the nearest large city, 40 km south
 * The world heritage listed former groundwood and board mill in the village of, about 50 km southeast.
 * Continue north along Highway 4 to Jyväskylä and beyond, or northeast to Mikkeli and Eastern Finland along Highway 5.