Lahti

Lahti (Swedish: Lahtis) is a city in southern Finland, on the shore of Vesijärvi and by the esker Salpausselkä.

The city is known for sports, especially ski jumping and skiing. It has hosted many world championship and hosts the yearly international Lahti Ski Games (Finnish: Salpausselän kisat).

Lahti is also a traditional industrial city. However, the city suffered heavily during the economic downturns, especially in the early 1990s, earning a somewhat gritty reputation. Unemployment and alienation are still commonplace in suburbs of Lahti. Things are however now looking brighter again with a new direct railway to Helsinki and the city centre being revamped.

Understand


Originating from Hollola municipality, Lahti was just a village until it got the railway in 1870. It then grew quickly and got its city status in 1905. In 2016, the municipality of Nastola was incorporated into Lahti. In 2021 Lahti had a population of 120,000 making it the 8th largest city in Finland by population. It is near the country's gravity centre by population.

The area was inhabited already 9,000 years ago, with one of the oldest settlements found in Finland.

By car
Lahti is 104 km from Helsinki, a one-hour drive on freeway 4 (E75), continuing via Jyväskylä to the north. The drive will take a little less than one hour in the summer, more in the winter. Other major cities within an hour or two are Kouvola (east), Mikkeli (northeast), Jyväskylä (north), Tampere (northwest) and Hämeenlinna (west).

By bus
There are frequent buses from Helsinki and other major cities in the region, as well as cities further north along highways 4 and 5. Coming via Tallinn or Stockholm, there may be coach connections from the ports of Helsinki with arranged transfer, mostly via Kamppi. Coming via Turku harbour, there may be a direct service from the ferry terminal to Lahti. See here for schedules.

By train
Travel from Helsinki to Lahti by train takes about an hour. Trains are preferred by locals, because they're fast and comfortable. There are several train types:
 * Local train Z (Lähiliikennejuna Z). Costs €11.70 adult, €5.85 child (6–16 years). On its way from Helsinki, it Ssops at Pasila, Tikkurila, Kerava, Haarajoki, Mäntsälä and Henna. Runs hourly from about 06:00 to about 00:00.
 * InterCity trains. Cost around €16 adult, €10 children. Very comfortable trains, usually with 6 wagons, 3 of them are double-deckers. They stop at Pasila and Tikkurila. Most of the Intercity trains continue onwards from Lahti and are only marginally faster than the Z train.
 * Pendolino trains. Cost around €16 adult, €10 children. Very comfortable tilting trains. Stop only at Pasila and Tikkurila before Lahti. 48 minutes travel time. All of the Pendolino trains continue from Lahti.

The city centre is less than ten minutes walk from the train station. Cross Mannerheiminkatu and travel north on Rautatienkatu. Pass the radio hill (with the tall legacy masts) on your left and the railway tracks behind you.

By plane
The nearest passenger airport is Helsinki Airport, about 90 km south of Lahti. From the airport you can travel to Lahti by bus (direct) or train (requires a transfer in Tikkurila).

There is an almost hourly ExpressBus coach connection from Helsinki-Vantaa airport to Lahti bus station, departing from platform 13 in front of Terminal 2. The service operates round the clock, although there may be a gap of 1–2 hours between services in the small hours of the night. The trip takes between 1 h 15 min and 1 hr 30 min, depending on whether the service calls in towns on the way. In some cases, there is a change of coach at Kerava but it is well co-ordinated and easy. Tickets cost €20.50 (round trip €36.90) for adults, €10.30 for Finnish students (ISIC not accepted) and children of age 4–16.

By bus
Lahti has a good system of public transport organized by LSL. Kauppatori is the center of Lahti's public transport system, but be aware that many bus lines go in both directions from Kauppatori. You can use the interactive route plannerto find bus routes. You can ride from one part of the city to another with a single ticket of €3.20, kids €1.60. Mobile tickets can be bought using Waltti or Routes and Tickets apps.

By electric kick scooter
German Tier and Swedish Voi rent electric kick scooters for use in the centre.

By bike
Freebike offers city bikes for rent.

By taxi

 * Lahden Aluetaksi
 * Taksi Häme: see Päijänne Tavastia
 * Uber
 * Bolt
 * Smartphone apps: Valopilkku, 02 Taksi, Lahen Taksi
 * Uber
 * Bolt
 * Smartphone apps: Valopilkku, 02 Taksi, Lahen Taksi

By car
Many major car hire companies have offices in Lahti, as has 24rent.

See
Lahti has a partly deserved reputation as an unattractive, economically depressed industrial town. Lahti has improved its reputation with a lovely harbour area with outdoor cafes and bars. In the harbour area there is also beautiful Sibelius Hall which is used for concerts and conferences.




 * [[Image:Lahti radio masts.ojp.JPG|thumb|The long wave masts]]
 * [[Image:Lahti Sports Center2.jpg|thumb|Lahti Sports Center]]

Do
Lahti has a well-known symphony orchestra, Sinfonia Lahti. The annual winter sport event Salpausselän kisat is very popular and worth seeing.


 * Football: FC Lahti play soccer in Veikkausliiga, the top tier. Their home ground Lahden Stadion (capacity 14,500) is 2 km west of town centre. The playing season is April-Oct.
 * Football: FC Lahti play soccer in Veikkausliiga, the top tier. Their home ground Lahden Stadion (capacity 14,500) is 2 km west of town centre. The playing season is April-Oct.
 * Football: FC Lahti play soccer in Veikkausliiga, the top tier. Their home ground Lahden Stadion (capacity 14,500) is 2 km west of town centre. The playing season is April-Oct.
 * Football: FC Lahti play soccer in Veikkausliiga, the top tier. Their home ground Lahden Stadion (capacity 14,500) is 2 km west of town centre. The playing season is April-Oct.

Parks




Shopping centres
Lahti has several big shopping centres.



Just by walking around in the city centre you can find stores that sell almost anything (everything from buttons to cars).

Factory outlets
Lahti has several good factory outlets. For clothing Finnkarelia Outlet in Hollola and Luhta Outlet in Lahti are good places to visit. Maria Drockila's candle factory in Orimattila's old spinning mill is also worth a visit.

Eat
Lahti's most notorious local speciality is lihamuki, literally "meat mug", a soft drink cup filled with the cheapest grade of kebab meat and your choice of sauces.



Drink


Other places worth to visit are restaurant Taivaanranta and Teerenpeli which have their own whisky distillery and beer brewery.



Go next
Among the neighbouring towns and cities are Asikkala, Heinola and Orimattila. They are probably worth a visit, although perhaps just a brief one.