Saltvik

Saltvik is located in the northeastern part of mainland Åland and is the largest municipality in the province by land area. Out of 1,800 residents who live in the municipality year-round about 91 % speak Swedish as their mother tongue.

In the northern part of the municipality is Orrdalsklint, the highest point in Åland. The top of this rocky hill rises 129 meters above sea level.

Understand
The Orrdalsklint and Långberget hills started to emerge from the Yoldia Sea about 10,000 years ago. At Kasberget hill there are the largest ancient seashores (Stenåkrarna) on Åland still visible. Saltvik area has been inhabited for thousands of years, as evidenced by the abundant archaeological finds in the area. In particular, numerous remnants of a comb ceramic and pittet ware culture settlements have been found around Orrdalsklint and Långbergen hills. Very interesting graves and objects have been found in the area of Kvarnbo village, which tell about old trade connections during the Viking era. The Kvarnbo area has been a significant settlement and a market place since at least the 14th century. A large number of archaeological findings from the Saltvik region are on display at the Åland Museum in Mariehamn.

As over 91 % of population speak Swedish as their mother tongue, Saltvik is one of the most Swedish speaking places on Earth. As elsewhere in Åland, Swedish is the only official language. Nowadays there are about 1,800 year-round inhabitants living in Saltvik. The municipality has two bank offices, grocery stores, two kindergartens, and two elementary schools (grades 1–6). The Taffel chips factory by the highway 2 is not only one of the largest employers in the whole Åland province but also one of the largest buildings on these islands.

Get in
Highway 2 going from Mariehamn northeast to Vårdö goes through the southern part of the municipality; from the highway 50 connects to the town centre. You can get in by car or by bus.

Go next

 * Kastelholm and Bomarsund fortresses in Sund.
 * Uffe på Berget café with panorama tower in Finström.