Cultural trails

Cultural Affairs has so far produced numerous cultural trails and continues to do so. The trails are tours of the city that you can take independently. The idea of the trails is that you can get to know the city from a new perspective and also familiarise yourself with parts of the city you have never gotten to know before.

Most of the cultural trails have a specific theme that they are built around. “Tampereen likat – naisaiheisia julkisia veistoksia” for example introduces people to the female statues all around central Tampere. There are also several literary themed trails based on the works of famous authors from Tampere.

The cultural trails are available in several different formats. You can find the printed brochures at the customer service of the Cultural Affairs. The brochures are also in pdf form on our website. In addition, you can find a trail video or audio files related to some of the trails.

At the moment, Central Square 360° (Keskustori 360°) is also in English.

List of cultural trails

Central Square 360°
(Keskustori 360°)

A look on the history and the current state of the heart of the city. What are the buildings around the square called and how did they use to look decades ago?

Cultural Trail: Central Square 360° (pdf, 3 MB)

Kimmo Kaivanto – His Life and Public Works in Tampere
(Kimmo Kaivanto – Elämä ja julkiset teokset Tampereella)

A look at the artist Kimmo Kaivanto. The works and life of this famous Finnish painter, sculptor and graphic artist.

Hilma and the Cotton Factory – Children’s Finlayson
(Hilma ja pumpulitehdas – Lasten Finlayson -raitti)

Introduce yourself to the Finlayson factory area with the help of an 11 year-old girl called Hilma. She’ll tell you about all the different buildings in the area, and how she worked in the factory over a hundred years ago. There’s also some activities for you to do.

Inspector Koskinen’s Tampere
(Komisario Koskisen Tampere)

This cultural trail is inspired by the fictional character of inspector Koskinen. The inspector is the main protagonist of the detective novels written by author Seppo Jokinen. Many of the events in Jokinen’s books take place in different locations in Tampere, and through the trail you can get to know the real life places of the fictional events.

The Girls of Tampere – Public Sculptures of Women in Tampere
(Tampereen likat – naisaiheisia julkisia veistoksia)

Public sculptures are often things people don’t pay much attention to whilst walking in the hustle and bustle of city life. Through this trail you can introduce yourself to the female statues all around Tampere.

Industrial Tammela
(Teollinen Tammela -raitti)

The Tammela neighbourhood was known in its day for its numerous shoe factories and little cobbler’s shops.

Epilä Trail
(Epilä -raitti)

A historical look on the district of Epilä, the part of town where ridges and villas reside.

A Bike Ride from Kissanmaa to Messukylä
(Pyöräillen Kissanmaalta Messukylään)

The route stays mainly in the area of the old Messukylä parish in eastern Tampere. Messukylä became part of Tampere in 1947, after which the region was zoned as residential areas. The trail is approximately 7 kilometres long.

The Ikuri of Pate Mustajärvi
(Pate Mustajärven Ikuri)

There’s nothing much to see in Ikuri. Except that it’s the birthplace of rocker Pate Mustajärvi and therefore a cultural sight. The trail details the most memorable and important childhood sights of the famous Finnish rock artist and shows the surroundings that inspired the young man to form a garage rock band.

A Bike Ride from Pispala to Mustavuori and Lamminpää
(Pyöräillen Pispalasta Mustavuoreen ja Lamminpäähän)

A bike route introducing the cultural surroundings of western Tampere (19 kilometres).

A Bike Ride from Pispala to Reuhari
(Pyöräillen Pispalasta Reuhariin)

A bike route introducing the cultural surroundings of Lielahti-Pohtola-Lentävänniemi areas in western Tampere (16 kilometres).

Wivi Lönn
(Wivi Lönn -raitti)

Wivi Lönn was a pioneer of Finnish women architects. Lönn made a considerable contribution to the architecture of Tampere in the early 20^th century, when the city was experiencing an economical upswing.

Factory Owner Wilhelm von Nottbeck
(Patruuna Wilhelm von Nottbeckin raitti)

This cultural trail centres around the onetime owner of the Finlayson factory and the enormous development of the Finlayson area in the 19^th century.

The Villa Coast of Härmälä
(Härmälän huvilarannikko -raitti)

The cultural trail tells the story of how the upper class people used to spend their summers in Rantaperkiö and Härmälä by Lake Pyhäjärvi in the late 19^th and 20^th centuries. The term “villa coast” refers to the strip of lakeshore from Vihioja to Härmälänoja, which is close to the boarder of Pirkkala.

Rebel Trail
(Kapinaraitti)

In 1918 a bloody battle was waged in Tampere between the Whites and the Reds. Each side struggled to gain the upper hand and both sides were helped by different foreign powers. The rebel trail introduces the places and buildings that relate to the events of 1918.

Lauri Viita
(Lauri Viita -raitti)

On this trail you can follow the footsteps of author Lauri Viita in his home neighbourhood of Pispala. On the trail there will be e.g. the house Viita was born in, the community of Pispala where Viita’s poem Alfhild was first performed in public and the Lauri Viita monument.

Kalle Päätalo
(Kalle Päätalo -raitti)

Before Kalle Päätalo became a famous author, he was first a carpenter and then a master builder. On this trail you can get to know the buildings in Tampere that Päätalo helped build and that are described in detail in his works. The trail was published on 11.11.2007, on the author’s birthday.

Väinö Linna
(Väinö Linna -raitti)

The Väinö Linna trail focuses on the time the famous author spent in Tampere. The trail follows Linna’s life from Finlayson (where he used to work) to the Central Square, Amuri and then back to the factory.

The Tiina Trail in the Childhood Surroundings of Authoress Anni Polva
(Tiina-raitti kirjailija Anni Polvan lapsuudenmaisemissa)

The Tiina trail introduces the childhood sceneries of Anni Polva in Tammela and Etu-Kaleva. The events in the Tiina book series also take place in this area. The Tiina trail was the first cultural trail published by the City of Tampere Cultural Affairs and it was published on Tiina’s name day on 24 July 2007.