Where to Stay in Vaasa, Pohjanmaa

Vaasa is the regional capital of Ostrobothnia, a bilingual port city on the Gulf of Bothnia in western Finland (Ostrobothnia). It is known for its sunny coast, its Finnish and Swedish life, and a clutch of museums and churches in the centre. The city draws on the sea.

Vaasan kirkko and the Orthodox Pyhän Nikolaoksen kirkko mark the skyline, while the Pohjanmaan museo and the Tikanojan taidekoti hold the art and history of the region, and the Suomen Vapaudenpatsas stands as the city's best-known monument.

Vaasan kirkko stands at the heart of the city, its tower a landmark of the centre. Nearby the Orthodox Pyhän Nikolaoksen kirkko marks the city's eastern church tradition, while the Suomen Vapaudenpatsas keeps the memory of independence in bronze. Three museums draw visitors in.

The Pohjanmaan museo, the Tikanojan taidekoti and the Kuntsin modernin taiteen museo hold the art and the regional history of Ostrobothnia, and the Vaasan jäähalli serves the sporting life of this corner of western Finland.

Vaasa was chartered in 1606 as a port on the Gulf of Bothnia. The town grew on the trade of the Ostrobothnia coast, shipping tar, timber and goods across the gulf to Sweden through the long years when Finland and Sweden were one realm, its early name Nikolainkaupunki recalling the Russian era that followed. Trade built the town.

The first settlement clustered around its church, and Vaasa rose as the chief market and administrative centre of the western coast. A great fire destroyed the old town in the nineteenth century, and Vaasa was rebuilt on a new site by the sea on a broad, regular plan. Vaasan kirkko and the new public buildings rose in the rebuilt grid, and the Pohjanmaan museo later gathered the history of the coast under one roof.

The harbour stayed central. Through the changes Vaasa held its place as the regional capital of Ostrobothnia, a bilingual city of Finnish and Swedish life, and the Suomen Vapaudenpatsas was raised to mark the struggle for independence in this part of western Finland (Ostrobothnia).

Vaasa lies on the Gulf of Bothnia coast, in western Finland (Ostrobothnia). The city sits where the land meets the gulf at its narrowest, the Kvarken strait reaching across to the Swedish shore through a maze of low islands and skerries. Water rings the city.

Its centre gathers around Vaasan kirkko and the market square on the mainland, while the island district of Palosaari and the wider archipelago of Ostrobothnia spread west into the shallow waters of the gulf.

Vaasa has a cool maritime climate softened by the Gulf of Bothnia. Winters are cold and snowy, the gulf freezing along the Ostrobothnia coast through the dark months while frost grips the islands around Palosaari. Summers run bright and long.

The city counts among the sunniest in the country, the long northern daylight warming the coast and the archipelago through a short, vivid growing season in this part of western Finland.

Vaasa is reached by land, sea and air. The city has its own airport and rail line, linking the Ostrobothnia capital to the rest of western Finland, while a ferry crosses the Kvarken strait of the Gulf of Bothnia to Sweden. Trains run to the centre.

From the station it is a short walk to Vaasan kirkko and the market square, and the coastal roads carry drivers north and south along the gulf shore through the archipelago of Ostrobothnia.