Tavastia Proper

Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme) is a region in Southern Finland.

Cities

• 1 Forssa
• 2 Hämeenlinna
• 3 Riihimäki

Municipalities

• 1 Hattula
• 2 Hausjärvi
• 3 Humppila
• 4 Janakkala
• 5 Jokioinen
• 6 Loppi
• 7 Tammela
• 8 Ypäjä

Other destinations

• 1 Puuhamaa Amusement Park (Puuhamaa) (in Tervakoski, Janakkala). 
• 2 Folk Park of Saari (Saaren kansanpuisto). 
• 3 Torronsuo National Park (Torronsuon kansallispuisto) (in Tammela). 

Understand

The region has a diverse landscape, including forests, lakes, and rolling hills.

Historically, Tavastia Proper was an important region for agriculture and forestry due to its fertile land and vast forests. The largest city in the region is Hämeenlinna, which was also the provincial capital. Hämeenlinna is known for its medieval castle, Häme Castle, which is a popular tourist attraction. The region is also home to many other cultural and historical sites, including museums, churches, and old towns.

Get in

If you fly in from abroad, you can fly to Helsinki (HEL ^IATA) and continue by bus or train.

Tampere (TMP ^IATA) airport is Ryanair's destination in Finland and AirBaltic hub so there are a couple of direct flights to odd airports in Europe, in addition to some flights to Scandinavian destinations. Turku has some international flights, most of them operated by Wizz Air.

The main railroad north from Helsinki goes through Tavastia Proper, so especially from Helsinki or Tampere it is quite easy to get to places like Hämeenlinna and Riihimäki by train; also all buses going northwest from Helsinki travel along Freeway 3 and stop in cities along the way. To reach the western parts of the region, take the bus.

The following OnniBus.com routes serve the province:

• M3 (Helsinki—Tampere—Vaasa)
• M12 (Tampere—Lahti—Kouvola—Kotka)
• F10 (Turku—Forssa—Hämeenlinna—Lahti)

Get around

Trains of national operator VR are possible to use for travelling inside province.

Matkahuolto has a dense bus network covering most of the province. Hämeenlinna timetables include also some regional lines.

Onnibus offers discount bus service by few routes.

Google Maps includes timetables of trains, long distance buses and local transport of many cities and towns. Other useful route planners are Matka.fi for trains and local buses and Matkahuolto Reittiopas for regional buses.

By taxi

• Taksi Häme, ☏ +358 100-0700 (€2.76/call + €0.35/min - queuing toll-free 1½ min). Hämeenlinna-based company. Can be booked through the 0100 0700 app. Fixed price based on calculated route and time if destination address given when booking by app. (updated Mar 2020)
• iTaksi, ☏ +358 10-212-0000 (high cost?), info@itaksi.fi. Smart phone app offers address based routing and calculates price according to them. €4.00/6.00+€0.90/km+€0.85/min. (updated Jan 2021)
• Smartphone apps: Valopilkku, 02 Taksi, Menevä, Uber

See

Häme Castle

• Häme Castle (Hämeen linna) (Hämeenlinna).  
• Armour Museum (Parolan panssarimuseo) (in Parola, Hattula). Tanks.  
• Spinning Mill Area (Kehräämöalue) (Forssa). The various museums.  
• St. Bridget Church (Santa Pirjon kirkko) (Loppi). Church from the 17th century.  

Do

View of the Aulanko Nature Reserve

• Take an old-fashioned train trip from Humppila to Jokioinen
• Aulanko Nature Reserve (Aulangon luonnonsuojelualue) (Hämeenlinna). 
• Ahvenisto nature trail (Ahveniston luontopolku) (near Hämeenlinna). 

Stay safe

Tavastia Proper region is a safe region.

Go next

• Päijänne Tavastia, a neighbouring region