Jyväskylä

Understand

Elias Lönnrot, the compiler of the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, gave the city the nickname "Athens of Finland". This nickname refers to the major role of Jyväskylä as an educational centre: the "seminar" founded in 1863 was the first institution educating teachers in Finnish. The seminar later developed into a university, inaugurated in 1954. The city is home of the annual Jyväskylä Arts Festival.

There are 328 lakes in the municipality, and lakes and rivers constitute 20% of its total area.

Most of today's Jyväskylä was built after the Continuation War, when evacuees from territories ceded to the Soviet Union were settled in the city, and housing was badly needed.

Visit Jyväskylä website

Get around

Jyväskylä has invested in cycle and pedestrian routes. As the town centre is not big you might want to walk or cycle to see the sights. Almost 1/3 of the population of Jyväskylä are students who mainly use bicycles to get around in the central area. Roads are also in good condition. There are bicycle and car rentals in the city.

See

thumb|300px|Harbour of Jyväskylä

Jyväskylä has many buildings by the famous architect Alvar Aalto. These include kaupunginteatteri (City Theatre), some buildings in the main campus of the university and the Alvar Aalto Museum.

thumb|300px|Christmas market at the Old Yard of Toivola

Do

The city's web site has an event calendar for current and upcoming events.

Laajavuori nature trail and other trails for hiking, cycling, riding etc. Part of the Laajavuori area is protected.

Buy

During the summer, the marketplace (Yliopistonkatu 15) is a good place to visit if you want fresh vegetables or fish, flowers or craft items.

You'll definitely want to look for shopping opportunities at the Jyväskylä pedestrian street Kauppakatu.

thumb|A few of the shopping centres may be found around the street Kauppakatu in Jyväskylä centre

Eat

It's cheap to have lunch at the student restaurants. They are scattered all over the university area. With a Finnish student card it costs about €2.6. Without the card it costs about €5.5. There are many pizzerias offering large pizzas for as cheap as €5, guaranteed to fill your belly. Student restaurants:

Drink

Alko shop (wine, strong beer and spirits) e.g. in the Sokos department store on Kauppakatu.

Sleep

There are a few hotels in the vicinity of the train station. All the major hotel chains (Scandic, Cumulus, Sokos) can also be found in the city.

Connect

The city of Jyväskylä does not offer a free wifi as such. However, e.g. every library in the city has both computers with internet access free, and free wifi. Usually the wifi password is written on a sign somewhere but you can ask any librarian, as they all speak English. Many companies offer free wifi.

Restaurants and bars also have wifi connections for customers, but a password is usually needed and must specifically be asked for.

Stay safe

The crime rate in Jyväskylä is generally low. However, it's best to avoid obviously drunk people during weekend nights after the bars close. Long queuing for taxis or late night snack sometimes frustrate some partygoers to seek fighting opponents. Sometimes this results to a temporary conversion from a pedestrian district to fighting arena, but the common sight of patrolling police makes the occurrences more rare. Despite this, walking on the streets at night (or any time of day) is safe.

In the winter time the streets might be slippery and that it is mandatory by traffic law to wear a reflector during the dark period.