e-Car Adventures: Memorable day for kids and fun-lovers in Tampere region

15.03.2024


Image: Visit Tampere and Laura Vanzo

Looking for something fun for your summer holiday? This route promises a broad smile to all adventurers big and small. Book a day or two in your calendar, download this route in your mobile phone and start you e-car towards Finnish nature!

Start your e-car nature adventure environmentally by renting a modern vehicle at downtown Tampere. Avis delivers the car straight to you, so you can start your trip at the doorstep of your hotel, if you like.

Are you ready for a time travel to the past? Drive route 12 west from Tampere just a little while and stop in Nokia city. You’d never guess that in the centre of this average Finnish city there’s a rural museum of local history and culture called Hinttala. In this 19th century village, you can experience everyday life as it was over 100 years ago in Finland. There are themed workspaces, including building traditional instruments or crossbows, or riding a hobbyhorse over the staples. Under the roofs of historic wooden houses you can also find a café, exhibitions and craftsmen stores. https://visitnokia.fi/kohteet/hinttalan-kotiseutumuseo/

Your next stop is Ellivuori Resort, which offers a vast selection of outdoor and indoor activities. Here you can enjoy several days and book an accommodation, too, but at our trip, we recommend that you charge your e-car and yourself on a lunch or climb uphill to Pirunvuori rock castle. On its massive walls, you can imagine defending the castle agains furious Vikings – or being one yourself. https://www.ellivuoriresort.fi/

At small town of Sastamala lies the House of Mr. Clutterbuck (Address: Marttilankatu 10, Sastamala). Who? Well, Mr. Clutterbuck is a goat who walks in his sleep and ends up to all kinds of exciting situations. The House of Mr. Clutterbuck is an exciting and active world based on the characters from Mauri Kunnas’s popular children’s books. The house lets visitors immerse themselves in play, regardless of age: playing, dressing up in role-play costumes, colourful sights and sounds. In and around the house you can also visit Out-Of-This-World Space experience, King Arthur’s Round Table and Fun-On-Wheels yard, amongst many other things. https://herrahakkaraisentalo.fi/in-english/

Next, head up to north on route 249 and have a break at Kukkokuppila or Rooster Café (Trassitie 340, Hämeenkyrö). Here you can regale with freshly baked wafers, ice cream and other local artisan products – in companion with different roosters, ducks and other birds, of course. http://www.kukkokuppila.fi/ 

The highlight and turning point of this route is Ikaalinen Spa & Resort, where you could spend more than just one day. So, if the day’s been long and you and your company are feeling tired, book a room and stay at the Spa for a day or two. Here, you can find two hot tubs, two small pools, a 58-metre-long waterslide, and an outdoor pool. And being in Finland, the spa contains a total of six saunas, two of which are communal. If you are lucky with the weather, enjoy the beach and its many activities outdoors, or try SUP boards, frisbee golf or fatbiking. Try also a separate sauna located outdoors on the shore of the lake. https://ikaalinenspa.fi/

After soaking yourselves enough in the lovely waters of Ikaalinen Spa & Resort, head back towards Tampere and take the route 2623 at Hämeenkyrö centre, also known as the Scenic route. At Mahnala village, stop by to pick or purchase already picked strawberries at Yrjölän marjatila (Maisematie 642/1, Mahnala) http://www.yrjolanmarjatila.fi/eng.html

Keep on driving and admiring the Finnish countryside to Sasi and Ylä-Pinsiö villages. There’s a fun environmental artwork called Up and under by Nancy Holt (Sasintie 555, Pinsiö). The work is made up of a curved, winding mound of earth, through which one vertical tunnel and seven horizontal tunnels - aligned with the North star, Polaris - are installed. https://holtsmithsonfoundation.org/and-under

All good things must come to an end. After exploring the art with your hands and feet, it is time to return to highway E12 and head back to Tampere and your hotel.

Facts on this adventure:

  • Total length of the route: 190 km
  • Time needed: If you want to spend time at Ikaalinen Spa & Resort, we recommend you to stay overnight at the resort. Depending on activities you pick, you can easily pass two or three days there. If you just drive through the roadtrip, it doesn’t take you more than half a day, but you’ll get more out of your trip if you spend some time at different stops.  
  • Charging stations: Ellivuori Resort, Sastamala ABC gas station, Sastamalan Osuuspankki (bank), Hämeenkyrö S-market shop and municipal hall’s parking lot, Ikaalinen Spa & Resort.
  • Who the route is for: Families with children, animal lovers and everyone aiming to explore Finland in summertime. Many suggested destinations work best for kids under 7, but there are activities for older children and teens  in the cities listed here, and Ikaalinen Spa offers something for all ages.
  • The route in Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/Gu3K1iZrKBUzrd6ZA

Book your e-car for this adventure here: https://one.avisworld.com/en_GB/Avis-ecaradventures/ 

This route has been designed as a concept of REACT-EU funded Sustainable Tourism Mobility project.

Images: Visit Tampere / Laura Vanzo, Ikaalinen Spa & Resort / Fanny Järvensivu and Alex Mazurov