Arriving to Finland, Kainuu and Puolanka
Getting to Finland and to the Kainuu Orienteering Week 2027 in Puolanka is smooth and easy. The nearest airport and railway station to Suomussalmi are located in Kajaani, about a 1 hour and 15 minute drive away. You can travel to Kajaani by plane or train and continue your journey to Puolanka by bus or car.
Once in Kainuu, you can make use of public transportation.
The event bus offers a convenient way to travel between the event centre located in the center of Puolanka, the competition center in Paljakka — and back — during each of the four competition stages. See the “Bus Transportation” section at the bottom of this page for details.
By Air:
Finnair operates direct flights from around the world to Finland and Helsinki Airport. From Helsinki, you can continue your journey by flying directly to Kajaani, Kuopio, or Oulu — the nearest airports to Puolanka.
From each of these airports, you can rent a car, or for example, travel by train or bus from Kuopio or Oulu to Kajaani and onward to Puolanka. From Kajaani Airport, you can reach Kajaani city center and Puolanka by scheduled public bus services.
See here for a list of countries and cities around the world with Finnair’s direct flight connections to Finland.
Check here for the upcoming summer’s flight connections between Helsinki and Kajaani.
Book your flights on Finnair’s website: www.finnair.fi
Nearest airports:
Helsinki – Kajaani (recommended)
Helsinki – Kuopio
Helsinki – Oulu
Helsinki – Kuusamo
Helsinki – Rovaniemi
There are daily bus connections from all the above airports to Kajaani, and Puolanka.
By Ferry:
Several international ferry companies operate routes to Finland’s main ports in Helsinki and Turku. From Sweden, you can also travel to Finland via the port of Vaasa.
By Rail:
Several daily train services arrive at the Kajaanin Matkakeskus (Kajaani Travel Centre). From the railway station, you can easily continue your journey to Puolanka by bus or rental car.
By Bus:
Several daily bus connections also arrive at Kajaanin Matkakeskus (Kajaani Travel Centre). From there, you can conveniently continue to Puolanka by bus or rental car.
www.matkahuolto.fi
www.matka.fi
Competition Bus:
A paid race bus service will operate between the Kainuu Orienteering Week Event Centre in Puolanka and the competition centre, and back, on each competition day.
Ticket prices, timetables, and routes will be published in the competition instructions and at the bottom of this webpage.
By car:
Distances and estimated driving times by car to Puolanka:
From Turku 690 km, 8 h 30 min
From Helsinki 660 km, 7 h 30 min
From Tampere 560 km, 7 h 00 min
From Vaasa 420 km, 5 h 30 min
From Jyväskylä 420 km, 5 h 00 min
From Kuopio 270 km, 3 h 15 min
From Rovaniemi 240 km, 2 h 45 min
From Kuusamo 170 km, 2 h 15 min
From Oulu 130 km, 1 h 45 min
From Kajaani 100 km, 1 h 15 min
From Vuokatti 105 km, 1 h 20 min
Car rental locations:
Helsinki (airport)
Kuopio (airport)
Kajaani (airport)
Oulu (airport)
Rovaniemi (airport)
Electric Vehicle Charging Points:
In Kainuu, electric car charging stations can be found in Sotkamo (Vuokatti), Kajaani, Paltamo, Kuhmo, and Suomussalmi.
See the map of electric car charging stations for details.
BUS TRANSPORTATIONS
Competition bus (COACH TRANSPORTATION)
With the event bus, you can conveniently travel from the Event Centre located in centre of Puolanka, to the competition centre in Paljakka, and back, during each of the four competition stages.
Routes, timetables, and prices for the competition buses will be published later.
