Tornio

Two countries, same street, one river between.

Located at Finland's northern border, this riverside town sits next to Sweden. Modern buildings and wooden houses line the Tornio River, while museums and art spaces reflect the local culture.

3.2
out of 5

Tornio sits at Finland's western border with Sweden, where the Torne River separates the two countries. You can walk across the border to browse Europe's northernmost IKEA, explore the wooden pillars of the 1686 Tornio Church, or catch salmon in the Kukkolaforsen rapids. In winter, you can drive snowmobiles across the frozen Bothnian Bay or spot rare birds near the wind turbines of Alkunkarinlahti.

Cross-Border Life with Haparanda

Tornio and the Swedish town of Haparanda form a single cross-border community of 31,000 people. You'll find municipal services shared between both cities, and the joint city center straddles the international border. Local residents work and shop on both sides daily, with street signs in Finnish and Swedish, and shops accepting both euros and Swedish kronor. The IKEA store makes shopping easy with signs and prices in both languages and currencies.

Activities on the Torne River

The Torne River defines daily life year-round. In summer, you can paddle through the Kukkolaforsen rapids or join locals at fishing spots along the river banks. Winter transforms the frozen river into a route for snowmobile trips and dog sledding tours. At the Green Zone Golf Club, you'll play an unusual round of golf with holes in both Finland and Sweden.

Nature and Wildlife

At Alkunkarinlahti bay, 10 kilometers from central Tornio, you can watch migrating birds from wooden observation platforms. The area attracts numerous bird species despite its proximity to wind turbines and the Outokumpu steel mill. Take a boat to the Bay of Bothnia National Park to visit old fishing stations and spot seabirds along the rocky coastline.

Historical Buildings and Museums

Inside the wooden Church of Tornio from 1686, you'll find the largest wooden pillar structure of its time in Finland. The Museum of Tornio Valley displays trading items from the 1600s, including fur pelts, fish barrels, and merchant logs from when Tornio was the northernmost trading post in Europe. The Orthodox church from the early 1800s contains original icons and decorations from the time of Russian military presence along the Swedish border.

Getting There and Around

You can fly to Tornio through Kemi-Tornio Airport, located 18 kilometers from downtown, with daily connections to Helsinki. Trains run to both the Finnish and Swedish sides of the city via a special dual-gauge railway bridge. Local buses connect major points in both Tornio and Haparanda, making it easy to explore both sides of the border.

Average temperatures during the day in Tornio.
April
3°
May
11°
Jun
17°
Jul
20°
Aug
17°
Sep
12°
Oct
5°
Nov
-1°
Dec
-6°
Jan
-8°
Feb
-7°
Mar
-2°

What people say about Tornio

3.2
People
4
Food
3
Spaces
4
Value
4
Safety
5

Places nearby Tornio

Best places to visit in🇫🇮Finland

A map of your visited countries

Share where you have been with your own interactive map of the world.

Your travel bucket list

Keep track of where you want to go with an interactive travel bucket list.

Articles about Finland

Image of Bucket list-worthy places in the Nordics
Image of Bucket list-worthy places in the Nordics

Bucket list-worthy places in the Nordics

December 2023,
The Nordics is a beautiful region in Northern Europe consisting of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Iceland. These five countries are some of the world's safest, most peaceful, and most prosperou
Image of The 20 most bike-friendly cities in the world
Image of The 20 most bike-friendly cities in the world

The 20 most bike-friendly cities in the world

January 2023,
To find the best cities for cycling, we looked at the Copenhagenize Index, a comprehensive ranking of the world’s most bicycle-friendly cities based on ambition, culture, and city design. Below you wi
Image of The 20 happiest cities in the world
Image of The 20 happiest cities in the world

The 20 happiest cities in the world

November 2024,
This is a list of the top 20 happiest cities in the world according the World Happiness Report which is based on data from 160+ countries. The Nordics and Oceania are heavily over-represented, but the
Popular on Humbo right now
Humboâ„¢AboutVisitedBucket listQuizzesSustainable travelPrivacyTerms